Techno-economic analysis of a bio-refinery based on castor plant

A bio-refinery is a plant in which several types of products and biofuels, e.g., biodiesel, bioethanol, biogas, heat and power are produced. Interest on this type of industry has increased due to more efficient, multifaceted use of bio-based feed stocks and reducing fossil fuel adverse effects on the global climate. Bio-refineries has major economic, social and environmental benefits which depend on the type of feed-stock. The feedstock’s type also has significant impacts on process designing and determining products’ type. The current research is about development of a biorefinery and study of the economy of such a process. In this techno-economic study castor plant has been used as a feedstock for production of biodiesel, ethanol and biogas, as main products. All parts of castor plant, as a non-edible energy crop, were used for biofuel production. The results of this study indicate that a bio-refinery with capacity of 120,000 ton/year (dry weight) of castor plant in Iran, produced 8900, 27900 and 3.72106 m3/year bioethanol, biodiesel and bio methane, respectively. Furthermore 15.54 MW heat is produced. Glycerin is another by-product of this process. After determination of total capital investment for the processes, the cash flow was calculated. The project required 115.5 million $ investment and the profitability was 1.09. Thus, construction of a biorefinery for production of biodiesel, bioethanol and biogas can be economically attractive in Iran.

Keywords:

Bio-refinery , Techno-economic analysis , Biodiesel , Bioethanol , Biogas