EUBCE 2024 - Nils RETTENMAIER - Process Intensification - A Beacon of Hope for Lower Environmental Impacts?

Process Intensification - A Beacon of Hope for Lower Environmental Impacts?

Short Introductive summary

Lignocellulose biorefineries process biomass into cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Currently, the hemicellulose fraction requires extra effort to be converted into bio-based intermediates and (end) products. The EU-funded BioSPRINT project aims to develop and validate process intensification methods to improve purification and conversion of this fraction, ultimately reducing energy resource use and greenhouse gas emissions. We have analysed the impact of process intensification on the environmental performance of hemicellulose-based intermediates and end products by means of a screening life cycle assessment (LCA). Our results show that i) it is not straight-forward that process intensification automatically leads to lower environmental impacts, and that ii) the environmental performance of the bio-based end product depends on the environmental footprint of the substituted conventional equivalent product and on the substitution ratio, among others. We conclude, among others, that it is essential to implement life cycle thinking at an early stage of process development to monitor the impact of individual process intensification measures on the overall system performance.

N. Rettenmaier, IFEU - Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Heidelberg, GERMANY
S. Haertlé, IFEU - Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Heidelberg, GERMANY
H. Keller, IFEU - Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Heidelberg, GERMANY
G. Reinhardt, IFEU - Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Heidelberg, GERMANY