Process Intensification of cellulose esterification in ionic liquids

社会赋予工业界的任务是利用可持续和资源效率高的技术来减少、回收和再利用。通过流程优化对传统技术的渐进式改进无法足够快地实现这些变化。过程强化（PI）是一种创新方法，其目标是通过颠覆性技术对化学品制造进行数量级改进，以实现效率和原料/能源转型的范式转变。对PI的了解有限，缺乏量化其与传统技术相比的性能的指标，延迟了其商业化。生物圈每年生产1010公吨纤维素。加拿大广阔的森林是世界上最大的（未充分开发的）木质纤维素生物质供应地之一。通过将纤维素转化为特种化学品，特别是热塑性塑料，而不是制造生物乙醇，我们的目标分子的价值至少比纤维素醇高100倍。该计划开发PI工艺，将纤维素转化为化学品和工艺模型，以量化PI技术的集约化程度和技术经济吸引力。我们将量化分布式可再生工艺的模块化和电气化潜力，适用于广泛的技术。为了实现这一长期目标，我们有三个子目标：O 1纤维素与生物质衍生的游离脂肪酸和绿色溶剂的均相酯化（离子液体）;强化反应器中的O2纤维素酯化：时间尺度分析，以衡量强化技术与传统技术的潜力; PI的O3放大：时间尺度分析派生指标和技术经济分析（TEA）的学习弹性的原始概念。该项目将在五年内培养6名博士和15名B.Sc.学生。每个博士生将专注于PI技术（PhD 1，4：超声波; PhD 2，5：机械化学反应器; PhD 3，6：旋转圆盘反应器）。然而，他们都将获得适用于强化技术的能力：计算流体动力学（CFD），通过时间尺度分析的原始方法获得PI指标，通过学习弹性的技术经济分析（TEA），包括能源供应的预测可用性。所有博士也将接受培训，操作专门设备。 该计划通过评估PI技术的经济性和改造行业以使其更具可持续性来产生社会经济影响。通过当地以电力为动力的可再生模块化工厂，PI有可能在发展中国家实施。它还通过生产在塑料、涂料、膜和制药市场具有潜力的热塑性纤维素酯，促使加拿大经济走在生物炼制行业的最前沿。最后，它通过促进生物炼制来取代化石原料和减少温室气体排放而对环境产生影响。

Society has given industry the mandate to reduce, recycle and reuse leveraging technologies that are sustainable and resource-efficient. The incremental improvement of traditional technologies through process optimization cannot deliver these changes fast enough. Process intensification (PI) is an innovative approach that targets order of magnitude improvements to manufacture chemicals by disruptive technologies for a paradigm-shift in efficiency and feedstock/energy transition. Limited knowledge on PI and the lack of metrics to quantify their performance vs. traditional technologies delay their commercialization. The biosphere produces 1010 metric tons cellulose yearly. Canada's vast forests constitute one of the largest (underexploited) supplies of lignocellulosic biomass in the world. By converting cellulose to specialty chemicals, specifically thermoplastics, rather than making bioethanol, we target molecules with a value at least 100X higher than cellulosic alcohol. This program develops PI processes to convert cellulose to chemicals and process models to quantify the degree of intensification and the techno-economic attractiveness of PI technologies. We will quantify the potential for modularization and electrification for distributed renewable-based processes, applicable to technologies at large. To tackle this long-term objective, we target three sub objectives: O1 Homogeneous esterification of cellulose with biomass-derived free fatty acids and green solvents (ionic liquids); O2 Cellulose esterification in intensified reactors: time scale analysis to gauge the potential of intensified vs. traditional technologies; O3 Scale-up of PI: time scale analysis-derived indicators and techno-economic analysis (TEA) by the original concept of learning elasticity. This program will train six PhD and 15 B.Sc. students over five years. Each PhD student will concentrate on a PI technology (PhD1,4: ultrasound; PhD2,5: mechanochemical reactor; PhD3,6: spinning disc reactor). However, they will all acquire competencies applicable to intensified technologies at large: computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to derive PI indicators through the original approach of time scale analysis, techno-economic analysis (TEA) by learning elasticity, including projected availability of energy supply. All PhDs will also receive training to operate specialized equipment. This program generates socio-economic impacts by assessing economics of PI technologies and retrofitting industries to make them more sustainable. By local renewable-based modular plants powered by electricity, PI has the potential to be implemented in developing countries. It also prompts Canadian economy to be at the forefront of the biorefinery industry by producing thermoplastic cellulose esters with potential in plastics, coatings, membranes, and pharma markets. It finally has an environmental impact by promoting biorefineries to replace fossil feedstock and decrease GHG emissions.