Pilot Plant Design, Construction and Optimization for the Synthesis and Isolation of Furfural

DMT BioProducts是由总部位于安大略省Almer的Creative Enterprises公司创建的，该公司专门从事建筑行业设备的设计、工程和制造。2014年，CreativeEnterprise创建了初创公司DMT BioProducts，以开发一种创新的高效生物精炼工艺，并将其商业化，以从生物质芒草中生产呋喃。糠醛通常是从玉米残渣中提取的，被广泛认为是最丰富的呋喃，但目前运营的工厂仍然存在产量较低的工艺。然而，芒草是一种生长迅速的植物，每英亩提供的生物量最高可达玉米的7倍。此外，芒属植物可以在贫瘠的土壤和其他粮食作物无法生长的短季生长。在与兰伯顿学院生物工业过程研究中心(BPRC)的合作下，该项目将专注于开发一种从芒草中生产糠醛的生物精炼工艺。一旦对芒属植物的工艺进行了优化，计划探索其他作物，如柳枝草(Panicum Virgatum)，一种路边常见的本地牧草。如果该项目的成功将为生物加工技术带来重大进步。如果能够在目前10%的工业标准的基础上提高产量，这将使加拿大的糠醛生产具有竞争力，并可能被证明不仅是建立一个可持续的生物精炼厂所必需的，而且是一个蓬勃发展的生物精炼厂所必需的。

DMT Bioproducts was created from the Alymer, Ontario based company Creative Enterprises, who specializesin the design, engineering, and fabrication of equipment for the construction industry. In 2014, CreativeEnterprises created the start-up company DMT Bioproducts to develop and commercialize an innovativehigh-efficiency bio-refining process to produce furfural from biomass Miscanthus grass.Furfural is typically produced from corn residues and is widely considered the most abundantly available furan,yet current operating plants still suffer from low-yielding processes. Miscanthus Giganteus grass crop,however, is a rapidly growing plant that can provide up to 7 times the biomass as corn per acre. In addition,Miscanthus can grow in poor soil and in short seasons where other food crops cannot grow. In collaborationwith Lambton College's Bio-industrial Process Research Centre (BPRC), this project will focus on developinga bio-refining process for furfural production from Miscanthus grass. Once the process is optimized forMiscanthus, plans are to explore other crops like switchgrass (Panicum Virgatum), a native grass commonalong roadsides.The success if this project will provide significant advancement to bio-processing technology. If the yield canbe increased from the current industrial standard of 10%, this will make furfural production in Canadacompetitive and may prove necessary to establish not only a sustainable bio-refinery, but a thriving one.