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Offshore wind power integration is a grand challenge due to the volatility, randomness and intermittency This work presents a wind-thermal-electrolysis-battery (WTEB) hybrid energy system designed to integrate large-scale offshore wind energy and reduce curtailment. The system composes of offshore wind farms (OWF), thermal power plants (TPP), electrolysis station, battery bank. The Qingzhou (geographic name) I-VII offshore wind farms (5000 MW) and the Yangxi (geographic name) coal-fired power plant units #5, #6 (2 × 1240 MW) are taken as a case study. The OWF is the indispensable generator and the renewable fraction increases with integration level. The TPP adjusts the load ratio to meet the changing net load. The electrolysis station consumes the excess electricity and the battery bank time-shifts the electricity to reduce the electrolyzer downtime. The recommended wind-thermal (W-T) capacity ratio is 1.452:1 in the studied case, namely 3600 MW OWF. The WTEB system breaks the trade-off relationship between renewable fraction (50.11%) and curtailment rate (1.48%) compared to traditional wind-thermal (WT) bundled system. The WPEB system improves the electricity shortage rate (4.74%), transmission line capacity factor (61.79%), load following precision (91.79%). The internal rate of return (IRR), levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) of WTEB-W3600 are 34.70%, 0.5172 ¥/kWh, 29.76 ¥/kg. The WTEB hybrid energy system for a large-scale offshore wind power integration is first proposed and the techno-economic feasibility analysis proves the feasibility and forward-looking of the system. Collaborative capacity optimization of OWF, TPP, electrolysis station, battery can improve the system performance and economy. The wind-photovoltaic-thermal-electrolysis-battery (WPTEB) system co-locating the OWF and floating photovoltaic (PV) is an important development direction. Figure. Schematic of the wind-thermal-electrolysis-battery (WTEB) hybrid energy system in Yangjiang, China. [Display omitted] • WTEB enables a large-scale offshore wind power integration and curtailment reduction. • WTEB improves load following precision, electricity shortage and curtailment rate. • The wind-thermal (W-T) capacity ratio of the WTEB system is 1.452:1. • The electrolyzers and battery bank operate on the curtailed electricity. • The NPV, LCOE, IRR of WTEB-W3600 are 3.13 billion¥, 0.5172 ¥/kWh, 4.70%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the present study was to carry out a technical study of the gasification of almond shells and husks at different temperatures and, subsequently, an economic analysis for the in situ installation of a decentralized unit to produce electricity, through a syngas generator, that would overcome the use of fossil fuels used in this agroindustry. The gasification tests were carried out at three different temperatures (700, 750 and 800 °C) and the results for the tests carried out were as follows: a 50:50 mixture of almond husks and shells was found to have a lower heating value of value of 6.4 MJ/Nm3, a flow rate of 187.3 Nm3/h, a syngas yield of 1.9 Nm3/kg, cold gas efficiency of 68.9% and carbon conversion efficiency of 70.2%. Based on all the assumptions, a 100 kg/h (100 kWh) installation was proposed, located near the raw material processing industries studied, for an economic analysis. The technical–economic analysis indicated that the project was economically viable, under current market conditions, with a calculated net present value of k€204.3, an internal rate of return of 20.84% and a payback period of 5.7 years. It was concluded that thermal gasification is a perfectly suitable technology for the recovery of raw materials of lignocellulosic origin, presenting very interesting data in terms of economic viability for the fixed bed gasification system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A conceptual biorefinery process has been designed for the integration of the protein extraction and the ethanol production from brewers' spent grain (BSG) and palm kernel meal (PKM). The conceptual process is designed for an industrial scale biorefinery annually processing 20 kton dry weight BSG and 50 kton dry weight PKM with 8000 production hours per year and is used to techno-economically analyse the performance. The techno-economic analysis showed that the biorefinery of BSG has a high economic potential with an internal rate of return of 24 %. However, despite the high raw material costs, the biorefinery of PKM still has a positive internal rate of return of 12 %. The presented virtual biorefinery demonstrated the economic potential of integrating the production of a valuable product, like protein powder for food applications, with the production of biofuel, like ethanol, from the remaining biomass, thereby valorising larger portion of the biomass with the same raw material costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing combined heat and power plants usually operate on part-load conditions during low heating demand seasons. Similarly, there are boilers designated for winter use that remain inactive for much of the year. This brings a concern about the inefficiency of resource utilization. Retrofitting existing CHP plants (especially for those with spare boilers) for biofuel production could increase revenue and enhance resource efficiency. This study introduces a novel approach that combines biomass gasification and pyrolysis in a polygeneration process that is based on utilizing existing CHP facilities to produce biomethane, bio-oil, and hydrogen. In this work, a detailed analysis was undertaken of retrofitting an existing biomass combined heat and power plant for biofuel production. The biofuel production plant is designed to explore the polygeneration of hydrogen, biomethane, and bio-oil via the integration of gasification, pyrolysis, and renewable-powered electrolysis. An Aspen Plus model of the proposed biofuel production plant is established followed by a performance investigation of the biofuel production plant under various design conditions. An economic analysis is carried out to examine the profitability of the proposed polygeneration system. Results show that the proposed polygeneration system can achieve 40% carbon efficiency with a payback period of 9 years and an internal rate of return of 17.5%, without the integration of renewable hydrogen. When integrated with renewable-power electrolysis, the carbon efficiency could be significantly improved to approximately 90%; however, the high investment cost associated with the electrolyzer system makes this integration economically unfavorable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the potential of energy generation from anaerobic co-digestion (AcD) of vinasse and hemicelluloses hydrolysate within the context of an integrated 1G-2G sugarcane biorefinery as a mean to ensure its technical, economic and environmental feasibility. Environmental impact indexes for 2G ethanol and biogas production process, such as carbon footprint, which varied from 12.3 to 50.02 g CO 2 /MJ and reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (from 42.7 to 85.9%), were obtained in all scenarios. Economic indicators showed the unviability of 1G-2G sugarcane mill integration adopting AcD of wastes, considering technologies for 2G ethanol production in view of their high capital and operational costs (pretreatment). However, by fixing the experimental methane yield at 0.245 Nm3 kg COD−1 r which has been obtained for two-stage anaerobic systems and by considering the use of 50% of bagasse surplus for biogas production, it was possible to achieve internal rate of return (IRR), return on investment (ROI) and payback period of 21.8%, 59.50% and 10.55 years respectively. Moreover, when experimental methane yield is increased in 10% in such scenario, it was possible to achieve internal rate of return (IRR), return on investment (ROI) and payback period of 26%,89.05% and 5.36 years, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 24 billion pieces of surgical mask waste (WM) were generated in the EU region, with an acute shortage of their management and recycling. Pyrolysis and gasification are among the most promising treatments that were proposed to dispose of WMs and convert them into pyrolysis oil and hydrogen-rich syngas. This work aimed to investigate the techno-economic analysis (TEA) of both treatments in order to assess the feasibility of scaling up. The TEA was carried out using a discounted cash flow model and its data were collected from practical experiments conducted using a fluidised bed pyrolysis reactor and bubbling fluidised bed gasifier system with a capacity of 0.2 kg/h and 1 kg/h, respectively, then upscaling to one tonne/h. The technological evaluation was made based on the optimal conditions that could produce the maximum amount of pyrolysis oil (42.3%) and hydrogen-rich syngas (89.7%). These treatments were also compared to the incineration of WMs as a commercial solution. The discounted payback, simple payback, net present value (NPV), production cost, and internal rate of return (IRR) were the main indicators used in the economic feasibility analysis. Sensitivity analysis was performed using SimLab software with the help of Monte Carlo simulations. The results showed that the production cost of the main variables was estimated at 45.4 EUR/t (gate fee), 71.7 EUR/MWh (electricity), 30.5 EUR/MWh (heat), 356 EUR/t (oil), 221 EUR/t (gaseous), 237 EUR/t (char), and 257 EUR/t (syngas). Meanwhile, the IRR results showed that gasification (12.51%) and incineration (7.56%) have better economic performance, while pyrolysis can produce less revenue (1.73%). Based on the TEA results, it is highly recommended to use the gasification process to treat WMs, yielding higher revenue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sustainable valorization process for puree processing from processed carrot discards (PDCs) was proposed by using multiple-pass ultrasonication with mechanical homogenization (MPUMH), optimized at 9 min ultrasonication followed by mechanical homogenization for 1 min, subjected to three passes. Techno-economic analysis of the puree processing plant was studied for two process models using SuperPro Designer for a plant with a capacity of 17.4 MT/day, operational for 26 weeks, with a 20-year lifetime. The two scenarios were (i) base case (PDCs processed without peels and crowns) and (ii) case 2 (PDCs and carrots (50:50, w/w) processed with peels and crowns). Both scenarios were economically feasible with an internal rate of return (IRR) and return on investment (ROI) at 24.71% and 31.04% (base case) and 86.11% and 119.87% (case 2), respectively. Case 2 had a higher total capital investment (Can$13.7 million) but a lower annual operating cost (Can$8.9 million), resulting in greater revenue generation (Can$29.7 million), thus offering a higher ROI. Sensitivity analysis related to the number of passes on puree quality and price is suggested to lower the capital investment. For the base case, a lower ROI was due to the high labor cost incurred for manual peeling of PDCs, indicating the critical need for developing a commercial peeler equipped to cut labor costs and increase profitability. The study casts insights into the techno-economic performance of a sustainable process for the valorization of PDCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioethanol has become more attractive as an alternative to fossil-based fuel: a biofuel and fuel additive to gasoline. Therefore, people are interested in ethanol from a feedstock that does not compete with the food supply. Oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) are major biomass by-products from the palm oil industry. This study proposes commercial-scale bioethanol production from EFB of 99.5 wt.% at 10,000 L/day ethanol. This bioethanol production was formulated using the commercial simulator and divided into four stages: pre-treatment, Hydrolysis, fermentation, and purification. EFB is pretreated using hot water, hot-compressed water, and alkaline hydrogen peroxide approaches. Simultaneous Saccharification and fermentation are chosen to produce the target of ethanol. At optimum conditions, it can conclude that the ethanol production rate was 13,950 litter per day by using an empty fruit bunch of 47,208 kg per day. Finally, the economic feasibility is also evaluated under techno-economic analysis. From the economic perspective, the net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), and payback period (PBP) equate to 9.016 M USD, 15%, and seven years, respectively, based on 20 years of life and a total capital investment of 12.32 M USD. The results show that bioethanol production is profitable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multi-renewable energy complementary system (MRECS) is a good plan that can effectively support the accomplishment of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality on schedule and take full advantage of renewable resources in rural areas. This research investigates the techno-economic feasibility of MRECS in rural areas to promote its large-scale implementation. A MRECS with integrated solar, wind, and biomass energy is proposed for a rural economic development zone. First, a scientific evaluation of the potential for renewable resources in rural areas is done. Second, a case study of the Jize Economic Development Zone is applied to examine the optimal MRECS configuration. Finally, an economic evaluation model that takes environmental benefits into account was created based on life cycle costs (LCCs). For the techno-economic analysis, the net present value (NPV), dynamic investment payback period, and internal rate of return (IRR) are also employed. Findings reveal that (1) the Jize Economic Development Zone has considerable development potential due to its abundance of renewable energy resources and ability to plan for 168.42 MW of renewable energy units; (2) to meet the demand for continuous power generation and realize the sensible use of renewable energy, a combination of 10 MW photovoltaic power generation (PV), 25 MW wind power generation (WT), 2 MW biogas power generation (BG), and 1 MW straw direct combustion power generation (SDC) is able to be implemented; (3) the provided renewable energy system can save indirect expenses up to 10.60 million RMB/year, with significant environmental advantages, when compared to grid extension; and (4) the NPV of the dynamic investment reaches RMB 322.44 million after accounting for the environmental advantages in the income of MRECS. The dynamic investment payback period is 6.42 years, and the IRR is 21.44%. According to the findings, the MRECS is economically viable, and capitalizing on the environmental advantages can increase those advantages even more. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing demand for large-market natural and biotechnological products driven by shifting consumer preferences in food and calls for decentralized vaccine and medication production capabilities. The current paradigm of bioreactor-based biomanufacturing faces difficulties of scalability and a high entry barrier of capital intensity and workforce specialization. Field-grown plant-based manufacturing, as an inexpensive and readily scalable platform, is a promising strategy to meet this call. Despite some successes in field-grown bioproducts manufacturing, concerns, including process variability, have largely stymied adoption. Here we report on the development of techno-economic modeling coupled with Monte Carlo simulation as an effective tool to quantify, and mitigate, the impact of variation in field-grown plant-based manufacturing on profitability-related (internal rate of return, cost of goods) and process performance (product purity, annual throughput) forecast variables. In the base case, we observe 80.8% certainty of meeting all forecast variable specifications, defined generically to represent those of a high-volume food-grade commodity product. We observe an internal rate of return (with a selling price of $2275/kg bioproduct) as low as 10.7% and as high as 47.9% across facility scenarios. We also demonstrate optimization under uncertainty in a facility retrofitting to find a profitability-optimal chromatography column diameter of 1.2 m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe multiple scenarios to assess the techno‐economic results of producing hydrocarbon fuels from corn stover‐derived ethanol and the impact of co‐producing higher‐value, ethanol‐derived n‐butanol and 1,3‐butadiene to improve economic feasibility. In our baseline process, the stover‐derived lignin is burned for its energy content to raise process steam and electricity. We evaluated an alternative approach based on the same stover‐to‐ethanol process, but instead of burning residual lignin to produce heat and electricity, it was fed to a hydrothermal liquefaction process and converted into hydrocarbon fuel, while the ethanol from fermentation is used to make only butanol or butadiene. Our results indicate that the hydrothermal liquefaction pathways have significant cost advantages over the pathways that burn the lignin. For comparison purposes, two more scenarios were evaluated based on the assumption that ethanol was purchased at market prices and converted to butanol or butadiene exclusively. This comparison evaluates the economics for making higher‐valued chemicals which, in the absence of incentives, would be the most profitable approaches in our study. The results for these evaluations indicated that the ethanol‐to‐butanol economics were generally favorable and achieved or exceeded the 10% internal rate of return target. The butadiene process had less favorable economic performance in some years when the market price for butadiene was less than the selling price needed to achieve the internal rate of return. Economic incentives for low‐carbon chemicals and fuels were not considered in our analysis. © 2022 Battelle Memorial Institute. Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining published by Society of Industrial Chemistry and John Wiley & Sons Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study develops a novel mathematical modelling framework for biomass combined heat and power systems (CHP) that links biomass and process characteristics to sustainability assessment of the life cycle. A total of twenty-nine indicators for the process (four-indicators), economic (five-indicators), environmental (eight-indicators) and social global (five-indicators) and local (seven-indicators) aspects have been analysed for sustainability. These are technological: biomass throughput, electricity and steam generations and CHP efficiency; economic: internal rate of return, capital, operating and feedstock costs and cost of production; environmental: global warming, fossil, land and water use, acidification, urban smog, eutrophication and ecotoxicity potentials; social (global): labour rights and decent work, health & safety, human rights, governance and community infrastructure; social (local): total forest land, direct/indirect jobs, gender equality and energy-water-sanitation access for communities, from biomass characteristics (carbon and hydrogen contents), energy demands and economic parameters. This paper applies the developed methodology to a case study in Mexico. From 12.47 kt/year forestry residue, 1 MWe is generated with an associated low-pressure steam generation of 50 kt/year, at the cost of production of $0.023/kWh. This makes the energy provision "affordable and clean" for marginalised/poor communities (the UN Sustainable Development Goals, SDG7). Bioenergy can curb > 90% of the greenhouse gas emissions and primary energy use, 6 kt CO2 eq and 74 TJ annually. Bioenergy reduces other environmental impacts considerably, water consumption, acidification and eutrophication by 87–53%, and urban smog and ecotoxicity by 29–18%. Bioenergy can improve all five social themes in the Central American cluster countries. In addition to the SDG7, the forestry-based bioenergy system can also achieve the SDG6: "clean water and sanitation for all". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conversion of carbon dioxide (CO 2) into valuable chemicals has emerged as a prominent research field. This study attempts to uncover the rigorous design and comprehensive analysis of an innovative process that produces Isopropyl N-phenylcarbamate (IPPhCM) through direct synthesis involving CO 2 , 2-Propanol (IPA), and phenylamine (PHAM). The reaction system utilizes CeO 2 as a catalyst and 2-Cyanopyridine (2-CP) as a chemical dehydrant. In general, this work presents alternative designs in a rigorous manner, with different combinations of conversion and yield. It also evaluates various strategies, such as heat integration, thermal coupling, and the addition of a co-reactant, to enhance the efficiency of the system. Based on the results, the configuration designed with a 92% yield of IPPhCM and incorporating both dividing-wall columns and direct heat integration was determined to be the best scenario. The corresponding minimum required selling price (MRSP) for IPPhCM is 1.996 USD/kg (at a 15% internal rate of return, measured without considering the cost of 2-CP), and the amount of CO 2 emission per unit amount of product formed is + 0.075 kg/kg. However, the overall exergy efficiency of this process is only 42.7%. The main reason is the formation of mixtures that are difficult to separate, involving side products such as isopropyl picolinate (IPP), diisopropyl carbonate (DIPC), and others. To enhance the scheme, retrofitting it by adding ammonia to the reaction section enables the conversion of IPP and DIPC into valuable and separable by-products, namely 2-picolinamide (2-PA) and isopropyl carbamate (IPCM). This arrangement significantly enhances the exergy efficiency to 71.8% and reduces the MRSP to 1.759 USD/kg, at the cost of a slight increase in CO 2 -e to 0.118 kg/kg. With these results, the regeneration of byproducts can make the entire process more appealing and sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study techno-economic evaluation of scaled-up microalgae production and simultaneous dairy effluent treatment was performed. It includes 'Base case' comprising a 3 m3 H igh V olume V -shape P ond (HVVP) and ' Projected case(s)' in million liters per day (MLD) treatment capacity plant of ≤0.25, ∼0.5 and ≥ 1.0 MLD dairy industries for 10-, 20- and 30-yrs lifetime span, respectively. Economic analysis includes capital expenditure (CapEx), operational expenditure (OpEx), payback period, internal rate of return (IRR), net present value and minimum biomass production price. As expected, centrifuge and its electricity consumption charges are major contributors of CapEx and OpEx, respectively. ≥1 MLD plant for 20 yrs showed most feasible with an IRR and payback period of 118% and 1.9 yrs, respectively. Annual algal production was 504 ton at $0.482/kg with ∼240,000 m3 of treated clean water. HVVP is found to be one of the cost-effective and area efficient microalgal cultivation systems for mass production. Besides, the process aids in resolving environmental concerns associated with current practices of direct discharge of dairy effluents. This study aims to overcome some of the key hindering factors viz., high land foot-print and cost-intensive cultivation systems that are associated in commercialization of microalgae production. Image 1 • HVVP is scalable and one of the most cost-effective microalgal cultivation system. • The cost of microalga biomass is determined to be $ 0.482/kg. • ≥1.0 MLD plant capacity with a plant life of 20 yrs is economically viable. • Utilization of 100% raw dairy wastewater without any treatment used as source of nutrients. • Production of clean and odourless water for recycle and reuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a techno-economic analysis of bioethanol production from the olive waste cake in Iran has been performed. The biofuel plant with a capacity of 300 tonnes/day of feedstock was simulated using Aspen HYSYS V10, and the economic results were obtained from Aspen Process Economic Analyzer. Total capital investment (TCI), minimum ethanol selling price (MESP), and utility costs were compared for the production of ethanol with different purity(97%, 98%, and 99%). Based on the results, 98% was chosen as the basis for ethanol purity. Mass and energy balances, the sizing parameter, and the cost of the main equipment were estimated. The values of TCI and total production cost (TPC) for this case were around 9,413,951 $ and 24,812,426 $/year, respectively. MESP, internal rate of return, and payout period were obtained 0.95 $/L, 20.4%, and 19.1 years, respectively. The net present value will be positive after almost 14 years. A 3-column configuration was suggested in the distillation unit, which resulted in a slightly higher TCI than the base case, while the raw material values and TPC declined notably. An MESP of 0.30 $/L was achieved for the suggested process, which approves this suggestion's profitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Microalgae-based high-density fuels offer an efficient and environmental pathway towards decarbonization of the transport sector and could be produced as part of a globally distributed network without competing with food systems for arable land. Variations in climatic and economic conditions significantly impact the economic feasibility and productivity of such fuel systems, requiring harmonized technoeconomic assessments to identify important conditions required for commercial scale up. Methods: Here, our previously validated Techno-economic and Lifecycle Analysis (TELCA) platform was extended to provide a direct performance comparison of microalgae diesel production at 12 international locations with variable climatic and economic settings. For each location, historical weather data, and jurisdiction-specific policy and economic inputs were used to simulate algal productivity, evaporation rates, harvest regime, CapEx and OpEx, interest and tax under location-specific operational parameters optimized for Minimum Diesel Selling Price (MDSP, US$ L−1). The economic feasibility, production capacity and CO2-eq emissions of a defined 500 ha algae-based diesel production facility is reported for each. Results: Under a for-profit business model, 10 of the 12 locations achieved a minimum diesel selling price (MDSP) under US$ 1.85 L−1 / US$ 6.99 gal−1. At a fixed theoretical MDSP of US$ 2 L−1 (US$ 7.57 gal−1) these locations could achieve a profitable Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 9.5–22.1%. Under a public utility model (0% profit, 0% tax) eight locations delivered cost-competitive renewable diesel at an MDSP of < US$ 1.24 L−1 (US$ 4.69 gal−1). The CO2-eq emissions of microalgae diesel were about one-third of fossil-based diesel. Conclusions: The public utility approach could reduce the fuel price toward cost-competitiveness, providing a key step on the path to a profitable fully commercial renewable fuel industry by attracting the investment needed to advance technology and commercial biorefinery co-production options. Governments' adoption of such an approach could accelerate decarbonization, improve fuel security, and help support a local COVID-19 economic recovery. This study highlights the benefits and limitations of different factors at each location (e.g., climate, labour costs, policy, C-credits) in terms of the development of the technology—providing insights on how governments, investors and industry can drive the technology forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Plant-wide process models for non-oxidative methane dehydroaromatization developed. • Conventional and microwave-enhanced thermo-catalytic processes modeled. • A multi-step shale gas to aromatics process via methanol synthesis modeled. • IRR of microwave-enhanced process is the highest among all processes investigated. • NPV of the microwave-enhanced process is superior to other processes. Direct non-oxidative methane dehydroaromatization (DHA) process via conventional and microwave (MW)-assisted thermo-catalytic catalysis is studied. Rate models for methane DHA reactions, including the effect of catalyst deactivation, are developed by using the in-house experimental data. Model results for gas concentration profile and catalyst deactivation are in good agreement with the experimental data. This rate model is then used for the development of dynamic multi-scale, multi-physics commercial-scale reactor models. Total number of fixed bed reactors desired for a cyclic steady state process is estimated. Plant-wide models are then developed for conventional and MW-assisted processes for producing products of desired specifications. Techno-economic analysis of the methane DHA process is undertaken. Economics of these methane DHA processes are compared with the typical multi-step natural gas to aromatics production process via methanol synthesis. Sensitivity of internal rate of return (IRR) and net present value (NPV) to various economic and process parameters such as plant scale, desired rate of return, reactor cost, feedstock and utility cost, catalyst variable cost, and MW reactor cost is studied. Electric equivalent efficiency of the conventional methane DHA process is found to be 69.2 % and 67.3 % at 750 °C and 800 °C, respectively, while the MW-assisted methane DHA process has the electric equivalent efficiency of 48.9 % at 800 °C. IRRs of the conventional methane DHA process at 750 °C and 800 °C, and MW-assisted process are 15.2 %, 17.5 %, and 18.8 %, respectively for a methane feed flowrate of 19,782 kg/h, while the IRR of the multi-step natural gas to aromatics production process is estimated to be 0 % for the same plant scale. Impact of change in the methane price, electricity price, and catalyst cost is found to be considerable on the process economics, while the cost of the MW reactor is found to have negligible impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 24 billion pieces of surgical mask waste (WM) were generated in the EU region, with an acute shortage of their management and recycling. Pyrolysis and gasification are among the most promising treatments that were proposed to dispose of WMs and convert them into pyrolysis oil and hydrogen-rich syngas. This work aimed to investigate the techno-economic analysis (TEA) of both treatments in order to assess the feasibility of scaling up. The TEA was carried out using a discounted cash flow model and its data were collected from practical experiments conducted using a fluidised bed pyrolysis reactor and bubbling fluidised bed gasifier system with a capacity of 0.2 kg/h and 1 kg/h, respectively, then upscaling to one tonne/h. The technological evaluation was made based on the optimal conditions that could produce the maximum amount of pyrolysis oil (42.3%) and hydrogen-rich syngas (89.7%). These treatments were also compared to the incineration of WMs as a commercial solution. The discounted payback, simple payback, net present value (NPV), production cost, and internal rate of return (IRR) were the main indicators used in the economic feasibility analysis. Sensitivity analysis was performed using SimLab software with the help of Monte Carlo simulations. The results showed that the production cost of the main variables was estimated at 45.4 EUR/t (gate fee), 71.7 EUR/MWh (electricity), 30.5 EUR/MWh (heat), 356 EUR/t (oil), 221 EUR/t (gaseous), 237 EUR/t (char), and 257 EUR/t (syngas). Meanwhile, the IRR results showed that gasification (12.51%) and incineration (7.56%) have better economic performance, while pyrolysis can produce less revenue (1.73%). Based on the TEA results, it is highly recommended to use the gasification process to treat WMs, yielding higher revenue.

[Display omitted] • Biodiesel production from marine macroalgae Dictyota bartayresiana oil was studied. • CaO nanocatalyst was synthesized using waste collected from building demolition site. • The reaction parameters for efficient production of biodiesel was optimized. • Investigation on techno-economic aspects was studied for biodiesel production. • Sensitivity analysis was used to study the uncertainty of biodiesel production process. The investigation on utilizing macroalgae for industrial scale biodiesel production is an imperative action needed for commercialization. In the present research work, the biooil from marine macroalgae Dictyota bartayresiana was used for biodiesel production using calcium oxide nanocatalyst synthesized using waste collected from building demolition site. The optimization results obtained were the calcination temperature 573 °C, concentration of catalyst 5.62%, methanol to oil molar ratio 14.36:1, temperature 55.7 °C and time 67.57 min for the transesterification with the biodiesel yield of 89.6%. The techno-economic aspects of biodiesel production were investigated for 20 MT/batch. The return on investment and internal rate of return from the biodiesel production plant was found to be 25.39% and 31.13% respectively. The plant payback period was about 3.94 years with a positive NPV value of about 14,053,000 $/yr. Thus, Dictyota bartayresiana biomass can be efficiently used for the sustainable production of biodiesel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Adding biomass and hydrothermal treatment (HTT) increased hydrochar heating value. • HTT of sludge alone had the lowest capital and operational expenditures. • HTT of sludge–cane bagasse led to the highest hydrochar energy recovery. • HTT of sludge–softwood sawdust led to the highest hydrochar revenue. • Saved sludge disposal cost was the most significant factor affecting the economics. Digested sludge is a waste stream from anaerobic digestion (AD) in wastewater treatment plants. Hydrothermal treatment (HTT) of sludge mixed with lignocellulosic biomass is an attractive approach to improve sludge dewaterability and generate value-added products. However, process economics has not been well understood. In this study, firstly, the effect of biomass type on the energy properties of hydrochars was studied. Secondly, two scenarios were simulated to evaluate the effects of biomass type on the economics (processing 50,000 tonnes of sludge per year) of HTT of digested sludge for solid fuel and soil amendment applications. The two HTT scenarios included sludge alone and sludge-biomass mixtures (four cases for four biomass feedstocks) at 180 °C for 60 min. In both scenarios, HTT liquids were returned to existing AD facilities for biomethane production to offset the energy cost of the HTT process. The results showed that the higher heating value significantly increased from 16.0–17.0 MJ kg−1 in the sludge alone case to 18.0–23.0 MJ kg−1 in sludge–biomass mixtures (except for rice husk). With the use of saved transport cost as a revenue source, HTT of sludge–biomass led to a net present value (NPV) range of AU$ 9.9–20.3 million (20 years) and an internal rate of return (IRR) range of 25.0 %–45.2 % for solid fuel application of resulting hydrochar compared to an NPV of AU$ 18.4 million and an IRR of 55.0 % from HTT of sludge alone scenario. HTT of sludge-biomass led to a NPV range of AU$ 4.5–14.5 million and an IRR range of 17.2 %–35.7 % for soil amendment application while the hydrochar from HTT of sludge alone was not recommended for soil application due to the high contents of heavy metals. This study provides useful and critical information for process scale-up and commercialization for integration into wastewater treatment plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioproducts are chemicals derived from renewable biological resources and have the potential to replace petrochemicals in the future to tackle the arising environmental problems. Among them, lactic acid (LaA) is attracting significant focus from both academia and industry due to its wide application in our daily life. In this study, lactic acid is produced from the chemo-catalytic converting the glucose over the homogeneous ErCl 3 catalyst in an aqueous solution. The highest LaA yield of 97% was obtained at a full glucose conversion on this homogeneous catalyst at 260 °C through process optimization. Furthermore, the techno-economic analysis (TEA) was leveraged for the concept design of LaA biorefineries. Three parameters, namely the selling price of LaA, the price of glucose, and the catalyst recyclability were identified for the overall profit. Therefore, this work highlights the notable ability of TEA for the concept design or simulation to screen the promising biorefinery industrial process, and intuitively provide us with the internal rate of return of a certain chemical process. Thus, this work is supposed to provide the feasibility of LaA acid production from a chemo-catalytic process from both the technical and scientific points of view. [Display omitted] • A high lactic acid yield was obtained on the ErCl 3 homogeneous catalyst. • The potential of using converting glucose to lactic acid was analyzed. • Concept design and tech-economic analysis were performed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic feasibility and environmental burdens of a process extracting Eucommia powder, Eucommia gum, water-soluble polysaccharide, and alkali-extractable polysaccharide from Eucommia leaves are evaluated by modeling a 900 kg of Eucommia leaves per day facility. Total capital investment (TCI) and total product cost were separately estimated to be $2.64 million and $7.12 million while an internal facility rate of return (IRR) of 30.0% was calculated. The GWP100a emission for Eucommia powder is 111 kg of CO 2 eq per kg of Eucommia powder, the CED for Eucommia powder is 2200 MJ per kg of Eucommia powder, and the EI99 for Eucommia powder is 9.15 points per kg of Eucommia powder when using mass-based allocation. The life-cycle impact assessment (LCIA) results using economic value-based allocation is around 4 times higher than the corresponding LCIA results using mass-based allocation. Therefore, the joint extraction process could be economically attractive but could not be environmentally-friendly. [Display omitted] • A detailed analysis of four high value-added products from Eucommia was performed. • The joint extraction process is economically feasible at comparatively small scale. • Internal rates of return for the process is most sensitive to the treatment capacity. • The process could lead to relatively high environmental burdens. • Product yield improvement and energy recovery can reduce environmental burdens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activated carbon (AC), renowned for its versatile applications in water treatment, air purification, and industrial processes, is a critical component in environmental remediation and resource recovery strategies. This study encompasses the process modeling of AC production using anthracite coal as a precursor, involving multiple activation stages at different operating conditions, coupled with a detailed techno-economic analysis aimed at assessing the operational feasibility and financial viability of the plant. The economic analysis explores the investigation of economic feasibility by performing a detailed cashflow and sensitivity analysis to identify key parameters influencing the plant's economic performance, including raw material and energy prices, operational and process parameters. Capital and operational costs are meticulously evaluated, encompassing raw material acquisition, labor, energy consumption, and equipment investment. Financial metrics like Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and payout period (POP) are employed, and the results show that AC selling price, raw material cost and plant capacity are the most influential parameters determining the plant's feasibility. The minimum AC production cost of 1.28 $/kg is obtained, corresponding to coal flow rate of 14,550 kg/h. These findings provide valuable insights for stakeholders, policymakers, and investors seeking to engage in activated carbon production from anthracite. • Anthracite coal is used as the raw material to produce activated carbon (AC). • Various plant factors, operating and commercial parameters affect the techno-economic performance of AC production. • Process modeling and techno-economic analysis resulted in a minimum AC production cost of 1.28 $/kg. • Cashflow, CAPEX and OPEX calculations show economic feasibility of AC production plant. • AC selling price, raw material cost and plant capacity- the 3 most influential parameters determining plant economics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The downward trend of global sugar market prices, as well as rising energy prices, threaten the survival of the South African sugar industry. Operating a single‐stage sugar crystallization process, which produces less crystalline sugar along with sucrose‐rich A‐molasses as a by‐product, to which value can be added in an integrated biorefinery, could be a viable solution for the industry. It would offer a diversification option as opposed to the current three‐stage crystallization process designed to achieve maximum sugar recovery. This study presents a rigorous Aspen Plus simulation development and economic assessment of different biorefinery scenarios producing succinic acid (SA) and short‐chain fructooligosaccharides (scFOS) from A‐molasses at target market sizes of 440 kt/year and 160 kt/year, respectively, considering the production capacity and market price interplays. In all, seven scenarios of single‐ or multi‐product(s) biorefinery annexed to an existing sugar mill were developed and assessed. Due to the integration benefits, all scenarios studied delivered an internal rate of return (IRR) between 24.1–61.1%, significantly above the required discount rate of 9.7%. In particular, co‐production of SA and scFOS syrup at production rates 40.5 kt/year and 13.5 kt/year from 70% and 30% of the A‐molasses, respectively resulted in the IRR of 56.1% and was considered the most attractive scenario based on the diverse bio‐production, economic performance and easy market entry of the products determined by low minimum selling prices. The proposed integration can lead to the sustainable operation of existing sugar mills by utilizing resources more efficiently, employment of product diversification and job creation. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Renewable energy is essential for sustainable cities. • Transition to RE faces numerous hurdles, including RE financing. • Effective incentives are needed to encourage project owners to invest in RE. • Framework proposed offers three types of incentives: Capital-based, production-based, and grid support incentives. • Framework is evaluated through a detailed techno-economic analysis to consider power balance and grid constraints. The significance of renewable energy (RE) as an essential component of sustainable cities is widely acknowledged. Nevertheless, the global transition towards RE faces numerous hurdles, including RE financing, particularly in regions where electricity generation from fossil fuels is heavily subsidized. This necessitates the formulation of effective incentives that can encourage project owners to invest in the transition towards RE. This manuscript proposes a comprehensive framework for incentivizing RE project owners and offers three types of incentives: capital-based, production-based, and grid support incentives. The effectiveness of the proposed set of incentives is evaluated through a detailed techno-economic analysis which aims to minimize Net Present Cost while considering power balance and grid constraints. It encompasses various aspects of RE systems, including optimal sizing of photovoltaics, batteries, inverters, and optimal power flow, at different levels of RE penetration. Additionally, the framework explores the possibility of achieving 100 % RE through off-grid systems, shedding light on potential challenges and opportunities. Further, economic indicators such as the Cost of Energy, Payback Period, Return on Investment, and Internal Rate of Return are also analyzed to evaluate the acceptability of the proposed framework. Results demonstrate that the presented incentivizing framework has the potential to facilitate RE adoption, positioning it as a valuable policy and investment opportunity for RE project owners. This yields substantial benefits including reduced financial burdens, improved return on investment, and access to diverse revenue streams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oil and gas sector produces a considerable volume of greenhouse gas emissions, mainly generated from flaring and venting natural gas. Herein, a techno-economic analysis has been performed of a switchable catalytic process to convert the CH 4 and CO 2 in flared/vented natural gas into syngas or methanol. Specifically, it was shown that depending on greenhouse gas composition, dry methane reforming (DRM), reverse water-gas shift (RWGS), and CO 2 methanation could be chosen to valorise emissions in an overall profitable and flexible operation scenario. The switchable process produced methanol and synthetic natural gas as its products, resulting in an annual income of €687m and annual operating expenses of €452m. The pre-tax profit was calculated at €234m, and at the end of the project, the net present value was calculated as €1.9b with a profitability index of 4.7€/€. The expected payback time of this process was ca. 4 years, and with a 35% internal rate of return (IRR). Most importantly, this process consumed 42.8m tonnes of CO 2 annually. The sensitivity analysis revealed that variations in operation time, green hydrogen price, and products' prices significantly impacted the profitability of the process. Overall, this techno-economic analysis demonstrated that switchable catalysis in greenhouse gas utilisation processes is profitable, and thus it could play an important role in achieving net zero emissions. • A switchable CO 2 catalytic process that used flared/vented gas was investigated. • Methanol was produced via RWGS and DRM and natural gas via CO 2 methanation. • CO 2 consumption and profitability analyses were carried out. • The designed switchable catalytic plant was carbon negative. • The process was profitable, mainly due to the production of synthetic natural gas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hexane extraction is the most common method used in the industry to produce soybean oil due to its high oil recovery and lower production cost. With the demands of soybean oil increasing either in food or industrial applications, expansion plans are considered by many companies to increase production capacity. Techno-economic analysis is performed to evaluate the economic feasibility of soybean oil production by hexane extraction based on historical scenarios from 1980 to 2015. Capital investment, operating costs, revenues, and profits are main parameters to consider when estimating profits, gross margin, return on investment (ROI), and payback time and are the indices used to evaluate the profitability of the process. As the plant capacity increases in scale to over 34.64 million kg of annual soybean oil production, the break-even is met and the producing stream is able to earn profits. Additionally, sensitivity analysis is also applied to examine which factor affects profit the most. In the hexane extraction process, material costs, especially for soybean prices, have the most significant effect on profit. However, soybean meal is the main driving force for soybean oil production due to its significant amount of productivity and revenues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fresh water availability is gradually decreasing and may limit the primary needs of drinking water and irrigation, as well as other activities, such as energy conversion, tourism, etc. A high number of desalination plants are being built to provide clean water. One of the main strategies is the brine volume minimization by means of either membrane or thermal processes. The present study focuses on the development of a techno-economic analysis of a Single Effect-Mechanical Vapor Compression (SE-MVC) system for purposes of brine volume minimization. The aim is to evaluate the thermodynamic and economic performances as well as the capital and operating expenditures of the brine concentrator when being part of a near zero liquid discharge (near-ZLD) application. This is achieved by developing the thermodynamic and economic models of the system, which are then combined together in a single integrated procedure. Brackish water analysis is used as starting point for this work. Water properties are modeled using Pitzer's equations as well as correlations found in the literature. The economic evaluation of the investment is performed by calculating the Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Return, key parameters to assess the investment viability of the project. The evaporator model provides the necessary input variables for the economic model. For a feed flow of 10.147 kg∙s-1 and a heat duty of 18080 kW, the annualized capital cost of equipment is 594.93 k€∙y-1, while the operating expenses are 854.40 k€∙y-1 The total annualized cost of the process is 1449.33 k€∙y-1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilizing lignin feedstock along with cellulosic ethanol for the production of high‐energy‐density jet fuel offers a significant opportunity to enhance the overall operation efficiency, carbon conversion efficiency, economic viability, and sustainability of biofuel and chemical production. A patented catalytic process to produce lignin‐substructure‐based hydrocarbons in the jet‐fuel range from lignin was developed. Comprehensive techno‐economic analysis of this process was conducted through process simulation in this study. The discounted cash flow rate of return (DCFROR) method was used to evaluate a 2000 dry metric ton/day lignocellulosic ethanol biorefinery with the co‐production of lignin jet fuel. The minimum selling price of lignin jet fuel at a 10% discount rate was estimated to be in the range of $6.35–$1.76/gal depending on the lignin and conversion rate and capacity. With a production capacity of 1.5–16.6 million gallon jet fuel per year, capital costs ranged from $38.0 to $39.4 million. On the whole, the co‐production of jet fuel from lignin improved the overall economic viability of an integrated biorefinery process for corn ethanol production by raising co‐product revenue from jet fuels. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with climate change and the search for mitigation of CO2 emissions, biomass presents itself as a promising raw material to diversify the renewable energy matrix, as an example, cassava wastewater. In the present study, an analysis of the energy and economic viability of a hybrid solar-PV biogas system (HRES) for the generation of bioenergy from the energy recovery of cassava wastewater in the State of Pará (Brazil) was carried out. The energy and economic viability analyses were analyzed for two cases: (1) HRES and (2) HRES considering combined heat and power (CHP) and sale of surplus energy. The results of the analysis showed that the use of energy from cassava in 133,333 L per day, allowed the generation of bioenergy through anaerobic digestion with CO2 capture by microalgae, obtained an installed power of HRES of 14 MW, with a surplus of 1.02 MW. The global efficiency of the HRES for cases 1 and 2 was, respectively, 18% and 21.76%. The levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for cases 1 and 2 was 0.0446 US$/kWh and 0.0413 US$/kWh, respectively. The HRES Net present value (NPV) considering cases 1 and 2 was US$ 321,124.21 and US$ 339,174.89, respectively. The internal rate of return (IRR) for cases 1 and 2 was 35.08% and 49.94%, respectively, both above the MARR (minimum acceptable rate of return) of 12%. The payback was 5 years and 6 months for cases 1 and 3 years and 8 months for case 2. Therefore, case 2 presented greater technical–economic viability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, products based on herbaceous plants are receiving global attention due to the significant rise in human awareness of environmental protection and well-being. These products contain compounds with valuable medicinal and nutritional effects. However, extracting these substances via conventional methods can be challenging concerning economic and environmental effects. Compared to conventional techniques, supercritical CO 2 extraction is a clean technology that mitigates environmental issues and enhances extraction yields. This work focuses on developing a commercial-scale closed-cycle process using supercritical CO 2 as a solvent with the possibility of varying feedstock material. The full process encompasses the raw material pre-treatment, the scCO 2 extraction of compounds, and solvent recovery. This multiproduct processing unit includes three products: essential oil from garden angelica and extracts from roseroot and maral root. The process model was established using Aspen Plus®. Parallel to process design, safety was assessed by a hazard and operability study (HAZOP) to evaluate possible deviations during the operation. For assessing the feasibility of the process, a comprehensive techno-economic assessment was conducted. With this analysis, it can be seen that the designed production process is not only feasible but also economically profitable. For an annual production capacity of 13,240 kg, considering the three products, capital expenditure of 5.4 M€ was estimated. As to profitability, an internal rate of return of 40% and a payback time of 2.5 years resulted. In addition to economic benefits of the designed process, waste production was reduced by recycling used solvents and employing different approaches for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. • A multiproduct and mobile supercritical CO 2 extraction plant is designed. • The supercritical CO 2 extraction is a closed-cycle process with ∼ 99 % CO 2 recovery. • The profitability analysis shows the IRR and payback period are 40% and 2.5 years. • The safety of the high-pressure equipment is enhanced by conducting the HAZOP study. • Extraction process emissions were assessed considering direct and indirect factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Mixed plastic waste is converted into substitute natural gas and carbon black. • TEA and LCA obtain high IRR of 56.9% and low carbon emission of −449 kg CO2-eq. • APP for gas and carbon have better economy and lower emission than liquid fuels. The mass production, consumption, and disposal of plastics pose a considerable threat to the environment and human life; however, the recycling of plastic waste remains challenging. This study converted mixed plastic waste into gas and solid without generating a liquid product. The pyrolysis gas had a high CH 4 content and a high heat value. The solid product comprised 2–8 μm carbon spheres with a semicrystalline graphitic structure. The techno-economic and carbon footprint analyses revealed that the upcycling of mixed plastic waste into carbon black and natural gas substitutes produced a high internal rate of return (56.9%), a short payout period (3.46 years), and negative carbon emissions (−449 kg CO2-eq per t plastic waste). The product price and plant capacity are the main factors influencing the profitability of the project. Compared with autogenic pressure pyrolysis for the production of liquid fuels, this method showed considerably higher economic and environmental benefits. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a major technical route to utilize biomass energy, biomass combustion power generation (BCPG) has been shown to be of environmental and economic significance. According to the operating experience, the installed capacity has a decisive impact on the operation and economic return of BCPG projects. In China, an installed capacity of either 30 MW or 12 MW is often chosen for constructing a BCPG project. To explore which one is more suitable for China, this paper uses actual operating data to compare the operation performance and techno-economics of two representative BCPG projects with an installed capacity of 30 MW and 12 MW. The results show that the operation situation and electricity production of the 30 MW project are better than those of the 12 MW project. The 30 MW project has a lower biomass consumption than the 12 MW project to produce per unit of electricity. The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the 30 MW project is greater than the industry benchmark in China and is almost three times the IRR of the 12 MW project. Therefore, it is recommended to construct BCPG projects with installed capacity of 30 MW in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Techno-economic assessment of a small-scale waste gasification plant was performed. • Scenarios of electric energy and hydrogen production were analysed. • Electric energy production was the most attractive scenario in a short-term period. • Hydrogen production was more favourable at plant's end of life. • The economic viability was more affected by capital expenditures. The energetic valorisation of wastes through gasification is a promising solution with a better environmental impact in terms of pollutant emissions compared with incineration, landfilling, and heat and power generation from fossil fuels. However, techno-economic studies are imperative to define the viability of these technologies and to optimise heat and power consumptions and costs. This work intended to develop a techno-economic analysis for a small-scale gasification plant processing mixtures of solid recovered fuels and sewage sludge, assuming a capacity of 883 kg/h and two different sale scenarios: (A) production of electric energy, and (B) production of hydrogen. Gasification tests and mass and energy flow analyses were carried out for the economic assessment. The results showed that both scenarios presented viability for implementation. Although scenario A was more attractive in the short-term period due to the lower payback period (9 year) and higher internal rate of return (IRR, 7.5%), the other option was more favourable at the end of plant's life once the net present value was greater (1,801,700 €). Based on the results of a sensitivity analysis, a conclusion could be drawn that the economic indicators payback period and IRR were most influenced by capital expenditures applied in the plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work designed, modeled and performed economic analysis of the base case extraction and recovery of catechin mix (CM) from Camellia sinensis leaves (CSL) using deep eutectic solvent (DES) and microwave assisted extraction (MAE) with the assistance of SuperPro Designer software. Techno--economic analysis of three commercial scales of manufacture was also investigated and compared using profitability parameters. Sensitivity and uncertainty analyses were further carried out on the most viable commercial scale to determine input variable(s) of highest significance on the profitability of the process. The 3.30 kg CM/batch is the most economically desirable scale with return on investment of 324.65%, payback period of 0.31 years, internal rate of return of 163.83% and net present value of $1,059,595,224. Out of the input variables selected for the sensitivity and uncertainty analyses, CSL and DES costs have the least effect on the selected profitability parameters of the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Refine bleaching deodorized palm oil (RBDPO) is used for the bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD) production process. • Gaseous byproducts from BHD process are raw material for methanol synthesis, valuable co-product. • The comparison of stand-alone BHD process and BHD process coupled with methanol synthesis based on technical and economic aspect. • The BHD process couple with methanol synthesis performs the best option. A bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD) or green diesel is produced from refined bleached deodorized palm oil (RBDPO) via a heterogeneous catalytic reaction which requires high hydrogen to oil volumetric ratio for a complete conversion of oil. In this regard, a hydrogen recovery process is required to reduce a high amount of hydrogen loss in a gas by-product. This work proposes coupling the conventional BHD process with a production of methanol, a valuable co-product, and performs its techno-economic evaluation in comparison with the stand-alone BHD process. The results showed that the BHD process coupled with the methanol synthesis can recover by 46.3% of discharged hydrogen and reduce 14% of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide emissions from the production process. Furthermore, methanol synthesis could improve the internal rate of return (IRR) by 23.2%, shorten the payback period by 2.81 years, and increase the net present value (NPV) by 54.41 million USD relative to the BHD process. Finally, environment potential impact of both processes are analyzed. The most significant on the environment is hydro-processing stage and both processes provide same environmental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large-scale offshore wind power integration has a reverse peak regulation effect on the electric load and requires newly built transmission corridors. This work adopts a wind-thermal (WT) bundled system for offshore wind power integration and transmission line capacity factor improvement. The Qingzhou I-VII offshore wind farms (5000 MW) and the Yangxi coal-fired power plant units #5, #6 (2 × 1240 MW) are taken as a case study. The offshore wind farms (OWF) act as the must-take generator to increase the renewable fraction while the thermal power plants (TPP) provide peak regulation service to trace the changing net load. The OWF and TPP share the transmission line and point of interconnection. The OWF integration level is determined by the 8760-h production simulation and the wind-thermal (W-T) capacity ratio is 1.4516:1 (3600 MW OWF) in the studied site. The curtailment rate, electricity shortage rate, transmission line capacity factor (CF), load following precision, renewable fraction, CO 2 emission of WT-W3600 condition are 9.02%, 5.41%, 61.36%, 91.43%, 50.46%, 6.97 million ton/year. There is a trade-off relationship between renewable fraction and curtailment rate in the WT system which restricts higher OWF integration. The demand-side response technologies such as power-to-X and energy storage are required to break the trade-off relation and reduce the electricity shortage rate. The WT system is economically viable and the net present value (NPV), levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), internal rate of return (IRR) of WT-W3600 are 3.55 billion¥, 0.4859¥/kWh, 4.82%. Co-locating the OWF and the floating solar photovoltaic (PV) is the future direction that benefits the intensive exploitation of sea area and offshore renewable energy development. Fig. Schematic of offshore wind-thermal (WT) power system at the same point of interconnection (for illustrative purpose to show the connection). [Display omitted] • WT system combines offshore wind power and thermal power plants. • The recommended wind-thermal (W-T) capacity ratio in Yangxi is 1.4516:1. • WT system improves transmission line capacity factor to 61.36%. • WT system improves renewable fraction and reduces CO 2 emission. • The NPV, LCOE, IRR of WT-W3600 are 3.55 billion¥, 0.4859¥/kWh, 4.82%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detailed techno-economic assessment of different scenarios of waste printed circuit board (PCB) metallurgical processing was carried out in the context of Australia. The results show that the cost of recycling waste PCB through black copper smelting at a small scale (10,000 tonnes/year) is estimated to be AU$ 5.33/kg waste PCB, with a likely revenue ranging from AU$7.3 to AU$9.3/kg waste PCB. The result also shows that a small-scale centralised recycling facility could provide a cumulative net benefit of AU$ 175 million with 76% IRR (Internal Rate of Return) over 20 years of plant life. The NPV (Net Present Value) of the scenario is highly sensitive to waste input capacity, feed material composition and the metal market price. Overall, the current study suggests that a small local waste PCB recycling plant is highly likely to be economically viable in the context of Australia based on the current assumptions in this study. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Methods for optimal recovery of anthocyanins from corn pericarp were developed. • Anthocyanin recoveries increased with increase in extraction stages. • Techno-economic viability of anthocyanin and ethanol coproduction was evaluated. • Anthocyanin-ethanol coproduction had higher profitability than dry grind process. • Anthocyanins can be produced as a high value coproduct in corn dry grind process. High anthocyanin concentration in the pericarp, and bioethanol coproduction from remaining fractions make purple corn an attractive source for anthocyanin extraction. Water-based anthocyanin recovery would provide 'natural' anthocyanin extract with diverse applications in food industry. However, low anthocyanin recovery with water-based extraction is not economically feasible on a commercial scale. The objective of this study was to investigate various approaches for increasing water-based anthocyanin recovery from purple corn and assessing techno-economic feasibility of these process options for commercial scale application. Anthocyanin recoveries of 48.6, 68.6, 77.9 and 66.8 % with single-stage, two-stage, three-stage, and two-stage countercurrent water-based extractions, respectively, from pericarp, were higher than recoveries (30.8 %) with process conditions used in previous studies. Single-stage extraction with corn flour had 46.1 % higher anthocyanin yield than single-stage extraction with pericarp due to low pericarp yields. Annual ethanol and anthocyanin yields for plants processing 1113 MT purple corn/day were between 35.2 and 36.3 million gal and 496 and 795 MT, respectively for processes modified for water-based anthocyanin extraction, compared to 42 million gal for the conventional process. Capital costs for modified processes ($97.4–101.4 million) were higher than the conventional process ($87.2 million). Due to the high value of anthocyanins, ethanol production costs for modified processes ($0.98 to 0.48/gal) were lower than the conventional process ($1.34/gal). Internal rate of return for modified technologies was 1.9–3.1 times that of the conventional process, indicating an improvement in economic performance. Anthocyanin extraction process with three-stage anthocyanin recovery had the highest profitability among the processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel power generation system based on coal partial gasification has been proposed of which the coal feed rate is 50kg/s. It is mainly composed of oxygen‐blown CFB gasifier, CFB char combustor, heat recovery boiler and power generation unit. Coal is partly gasified with oxygen and steam to produce syngas and the syngas is sent to GT for power generation. The residue char is combusted in char combustor for power generation. Supercritical power generation technology is adopted in ST power generation unit and the parameter of the main steam is 560°C, 22.4MPa. Techno‐economic analysis of Partial Gasification Combined Cycle (PGCC) system is conducted and compared with IGCC. Law of conservation of energy and production capacity index method are adopted for thermodynamic and economic analysis, respectively. Efficiency of power generation, internal rate of return, and payback period are obtained by detailed calculation. The simulation results show that the efficiency of power generation of APGCC and PPGCC system are 49.44% and 51.37%, respectively, which are higher than that of IGCC. The fixed capital investment of PGCC is much lower than that of IGCC. The internal rate of return and payback period of APGCC 13.38% and 7.24 years, respectively which are ~9% higher and 8 years shorter than that of IGCC, respectively. This article provides a detailed analysis of PGCC which indicates that the PGCC technology has a promising prospect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Techno-economic analysis of multiple feedstocks for AD with biogas upgrading pathways. • SS-AD of ternary mixture benefited the digestate price and make SS-AD profitable. • SS-AD of binary mixture under bio-methane pathway was not financially attractive. • The introduction of a CHP unit highly improved the economics of SS-AD. • Production price and labor cost have the highest impact on the NPV value. In this work, techno-economic evaluation of anaerobic digestion (AD) system (8000 metric tons (MT)/year) with singular (dairy manure), binary (dairy manure and corn stalk), and ternary mixture (dairy manure, corn stalk, and tomato residues) under bio-methane and combined heat and power (CHP) pathways based on a plant service life of 20 years were carried out. Solid state-AD (SS-AD) of ternary mixture improved the efficiency of investment, benefited the digestate price, and was shown to be economic viability. The introduction of a CHP unit highly improved the economics of SS-AD. SS-AD of the binary mixture under CHP pathway was able to compensate the initial required investment, however was not financially attractive under bio-methane pathway. Besides, SS-AD of the ternary mixture under CHP pathway had higher net present value (NPV) ($0.60 million vs $0.40 million) and internal rate of return (IRR) (23% vs 20%) than that under bio-methane pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present energy and environmental scenario have been driving researchers to find alternative and renewable energy-based cooking sources. Inspection of Waste Cooking Oil (WCO) as alternative cooking fuel in a pressure cook-stove is the main focus of the present work. Comparative performance assessment of Conventional Kerosene Pressure Stove and Porous Radiant Burner (PRB) based Kerosene Pressure Stove fuelled with blends of WCO and kerosene are presented in this article. Three blend samples (volume % of kerosene and WCO) viz., BS 1 (90/10), BS 2 (75/25) and BS 3 (50/50) have been used for investigation. Emissions (CO and NO x) and efficiencies have been measured to learn about the burners thermal performance and to get additional insight, Control Cooking Test and Techno-economic Assessment have also been performed. Experimental results show that both the stoves are operational up to "BS 3 " blend sample. In the operational input power range of 1.5–3 kW, with maximum WCO blending, thermal efficiency varied in the range of 45.3–37.8% and 36.2–28.6%, for PRB and conventional cook-stove, respectively. In the case of the stove with PRB, the maximum percentage reduction in CO and NO x emissions are 60% and 83%, respectively, which proves the burner ability to mitigate emissions. Saving in cooking time of 49 min and fuel consumption of 59% on daily basis by the use of PRB also shows its superiority. For a life span of 10 years, the economic assessment of the stove shows that annual savings, cumulative present worth of annual savings, Internal Rate of Return and payback period of the newly developed stoves are $29.93, $244.97, 268.5% and less than five months, respectively. The overall performance assessment shows improved results in all three fronts of energy, emissions, and economy, and suggests WCO can be a potential alternative cooking source when used in PRB. • Reported waste cooking oil combustion in novel Porous Radiant Burner. • Up to 50% blending of Waste Cooking Oil with kerosene sustains stable combustion. • Improvement in thermal efficiency of 9% with Porous Radiant Burner is achieved. • Substantial reduction in CO and NO x emissions due to Porous Radiant Burner. • Reduction in daily cooking time of 49 min and annual saving of $244.97 are achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The requirement for ethylene glycol (EG) continues to surge owing to the booming demand for indispensable platform materials. Unfortunately, there is limited insight into engineering modeling, process enhancement, and process optimization to achieve carbon neutrality in ethylene glycol production. Herein, four biomass-to-ethylene glycol (BtEG) processes that integrate renewable energy for hydrogen production and CO 2 utilization are proposed to find the best strategy for the carbon-neutral and cost-effective development of the ethylene glycol industry. Rigorous steady-state modeling and simulation of the proposed BtEG processes with various gasification agents are conducted to investigate the effect of different gasification agents on the performance of the BtEG processes. The technoeconomic and environmental performance of the proposed processes is assessed and compared with the conventional process. Results show that the proposed BtEG processes can significantly boost the system performance of the conventional process. The carbon utilization efficiency, exergy efficiency, and internal rate of return of four proposed BtEG processes are improved by 38.96%–43.2%, 0.98%–7.13%, and 1.94%–11.28%, respectively. The environmental performance of the proposed BtEG processes is greatly superior to that of the conventional process since the life cycle GHG emissions of the proposed processes are negative, which are lower than −1.47 t/t. Therefore, this study provides a sustainable and cost-efficient improvement direction for the carbon-intensive ethylene glycol industries. [Display omitted] • Four BtEG processes with various gasification agents were designed and simulated. • Effect of various gasification agents on the technoeconomic performance of BtEG process are optimized. • Proposed BtEG process can increase carbon efficiency from 39.3% to 82.5%. • Proposed BtEG process can improve internal rate of return from 17.56% to 28.84%. • Life cycle GHG emissions of the proposed BtEG processes is negative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to develop a framework by incorporating well-proven project management techniques to help startup owners effectively set up ventures and secure early-stage financing. Startups not only open ways for innovative and updated technologies in the markets but also bring employment opportunities in a country that eventually increase productivity and the per capita income of a country. Despite all the benefits, the success rate of startups is meager, especially in developing countries, due to ineffective management and vague business plans. Therefore, this study aims to facilitate entrepreneurs using well-proven project management techniques from the literature and devise a new framework applied to a business case, as discussed in this paper. This study presents an approach to project management techniques for smartphone app-based startups. This study utilizes the fuzzy PERT (FPERT) for the best completion time and budget estimates. Experts' opinions from eight private limited companies have been analyzed using FPERT. The critical path method (CPM) is also used to schedule activities. Finally, a techno-economic analysis is also performed to show the growth potential of such a startup, e-Karsaz. This study aims to help startups secure early-stage financing. Tech-based business ideas need to be commercialized in developing countries like Pakistan. There is a need to show long-term profitability to make an idea stand out among others and secure early-stage financing. The scope of project management techniques is confined to construction-based projects. The results show that it would take around 692 days for the e-Karsaz startup to become fully operational, with the capital budget estimated at around PKR 1.3 billion. The techno-economic analysis shows the project is economically viable with an internal rate of return (IRR) equal to 92 percent and a benefit-to-cost ratio (BCR) equal to 10. The sensitivity analysis, including five scenarios of weighted average cost of capital (WACC), shows that the project remains economically viable even if the required rate of return goes over 20 percent. This study is helpful for startups to make time and budget estimates and to show the growth potential to secure early-stage financing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For shale gas resevoirs development, many researches focus on how to improve the estimated ultimate recovery (EUR), and ignore the relation of economic benefits and EUR. Therefore, based on the research of EUR evaluation procedure as the basis of economic estimation, the relation of economic benefits and EUR is revealed in detail, and the economy-geology-engineering (EGE) model is creatively built. The results show that six researched wells all have economic benefits: the average EUR is 1.60 × 108 m3, and the after-tax averages of net present value, financial internal rate of return and investment payback period (P t) are 434.32 × 104 USD, 10.39% and 4.45 years respectively. Combining with the seepage theory and on-site experience, the negative relation of P t and development degree of free gas is determined. The economic benefits for the unit volume of shale gas are close about 0.03 USD/m3 under the current development technologies. The influence degrees of economic parameters from large to small are gas price, drilling cost, fracturing cost, business cost and subsidy respectively. The proposed EGE model can effectively predict the economic benefits with the complex geology-engineering factors in the Changning block, and the corresponding method can be generalized to more fields. • Relations of EUR and economic benefits are innovatively proposed. • The economy-geology-engineering model is creatively built. • Techno-economic assessment for shale gas wells is done. • Complete the sensitivity analysis of key factors during the development. • Establish a EUR evaluation procedure as a basic for economic evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Processes producing DMC, DPC, IPPhCM and DEC were selected and simulated. • COSMO-based calculation was used to estimate the missing physical properties. • For each process, CO 2 -e = 0.067, 0.088, −0.040 and −0.154 (kg/kg), respectively. • For the first three, CO 2 -e = −0.122, −0.086, and −0.117 using less excess reactant. • The MRSP is 1.50–4.96, 2.29–4.24, 2.07–4.06 and 1.12–2.81 (USD/kg), respectively. This work aims at evaluating potential direct CO 2 conversion processes through systematic screening and process simulation. Fifteen direct routes converting CO 2 to carbonates or carbamates, with in situ chemical dehydration using 2-cyanopyridine (2-CP) are focused. The work covers an extensive examination (and supplement) on the physical properties, selection of promising routes, process simulation, optimization, environmental, and techno-economic evaluation. Firstly, three promising routes were selected, producing dimethyl carbonate (DMC), dipropyl carbonate (DPC), and Isopropyl N-phenylcarbamate (IPPhCM), based on three criteria: azeotropic search, product selectivity and reacting conditions. Next, the corresponding processes were simulated, optimized, heat-integrated, and systematically compared with the previously-proposed diethyl carbonate (DEC) process through environmental and economic analysis. From environmental analysis, the CO 2 emission rate (CO 2 -e, in kg/kg-product) was 0.067, 0.088, −0.040 and −0.154 for producing DMC, DPC, IPPhCM and DEC, respectively. By reducing the excess ratio used for reaction (i.e. 2-CP/alcohol or amine/alcohol), the CO 2 -e improved to −0.122, −0.086, and −0.117 for producing DMC, DPC and IPPhCM, respectively. Finally, the minimum required selling prices (MRSP) at 15 % internal rate of return (IRR) were determined, with the unit price of 2-CP, 2-picolinamide (2-PA), and the reactor residence time regarded as uncertainties. The MRSPs for DMC, DPC, IPPhCM and DEC are found in the range of 1.50–4.96, 2.29–4.24, 2.07–4.06 and 1.12–2.81 (all in USD/kg), respectively. Future studies exploring the commercial availability and the regeneration of 2-CP, and the feasibility of reducing the excess ratio and the reaction residence time are considered helpful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Pinch technology reduces 8% of BDO and 9–10% of MEK production costs. • Bio-based BDO is economically viable with a minimum selling price of US$ 1.54/kg. • Extractive MEK separation is the simplest process despite slightly higher production costs. • Renewable MEK is approximately 16–24% costlier than the petrochemical route. • Sugarcane (∼50 %), utilities (∼20 %), and direct cost (∼25 %) are major MEK operating costs. Butanediols are versatile platform chemicals that can be transformed into a spectrum of valuable products. This study examines the techno-commercial feasibility of an integrated biorefinery for fermentative production of 2,3-butanediol (BDO) from sucrose of sugarcane (SC), followed by chemo-catalytic upgrading of BDO to a carbon-conservative derivative, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), with established commercial demand. The techno-economics of three process configurations are compared for downstream MEK separation from water and co-product, isobutyraldehyde (IBA): (I) heterogeneous azeotropic distillation of MEK-water and extractive separation of (II) MEK and (III) MEK-IBA from water using p- xylene as a solvent. The thermal efficiency of these manufacturing processes is further improved using pinch technology. The implementation of pinch technology reduces 8% of BDO and 9–10% of MEK production costs. Despite these improvements, raw material and utility costs remain substantial. The capital expenditure is notably higher for MEK production from SC than BDO alone due to additional processing steps. The extraction based MEK separation is the simplest process configuration despite marginally higher capital requirements and utility consumption with slightly higher production costs than MEK-water azeotropic distillation. Economic analysis suggests that bio-based BDO is cost-competitive with its petrochemical counterpart, with a minimum gross unitary selling price of US$ 1.54, assuming a 15% internal rate of return over five-year payback periods. However, renewable MEK is approximately 16–24% costlier than the petrochemical route. Future strategies must focus on reducing feedstock costs, improving BDO fermentation efficacy, and developing a low-cost downstream separation process to make renewable MEK commercially viable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A Techno-economic analysis of a mechanical reclamation process for the waste foundry sand is conducted. • A multi-stakeholder analysis is presented for the new foundry sand ecosystem that adopts the proposed reclamation technology. • A plant size of 1 ton h −1 showed promising potential with NPV (₹57.21 million or $ 0.76 million), IRR (29.78%), and BCR (5.48). • A foundry that uses the reclaimed sand, instead of the fresh one, showed an annual saving of 10.80 million ($0.144 million). This article presents a holistic approach to promote waste foundry sand (WFS) reclamation in India by designing a framework for a multistakeholder approach that combines resources, technology, and potential market. The scale of WFS generation and dumping is estimated based on a survey, and a solution is proposed that integrates WFS collection and sand reclamation technology for foundry sand ecosystem development. The study further examined the economic feasibility of a mechanical reclamation process for WFS, using indicators such as net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), discounted payback period (DPBP), and benefit-cost ratio (BCR). A sand reclamation plant of 1 ton h −1 capacity showed promising economics, and the NPV, IRR, DPBP, and BCR were found to be ₹57.21 million ($0.76 million), 29.78%, 2.82 years, and 5.48, respectively. All the operating, manpower, raw material, and utility costs reasonably influence the economics of the reclamation process. In parallel, sensitivity and uncertainty analyses were carried out using a Monte Carlo simulation to understand the influence of the above-mentioned indicators on the economics of the process. This uncertainty analysis predicted an average NPV of ₹56.55 ± 2 million ($0.75 ± 0.027 million). The castings made up of reclaimed sand appeared to be cost competitive at the reclaimed sand price in the range of ₹1000–2000 ton−1 ($13.33–26.67 ton−1). Overall, the designed framework appears to encourage reduction in WFS disposal and promotion of reclaimed sand in Indian foundries. Policy interventions are suggested to promote the proposed solution in its initial phase. Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing concern on global warming directly related to CO2 emissions is steering the implementation of carbon capture and storage (CCS). With Malaysia having an estimated 37 Tscfd (Trillion standard cubic feet) of natural gas remains undeveloped in CO2 containing natural gas fields, there is a need to assess the viability of CCS implementation. This study performs a techno-economic analysis for CCS at an offshore natural gas field in Malaysia. The framework includes a gas field model, revenue model, and cost model. A techno-economic spreadsheet consisting of Net Present Value (NPV), Payback Period (PBP), and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is developed over the gas field's production life of 15 years for four distinctive CO2 capture technologies, which are membrane, chemical absorption, physical absorption, and cryogenics. Results predict that physical absorption solvent (Selexol) as CO2 capture technology is most feasible with IRR of 15% and PBP of 7.94 years. The output from the techno-economic model and associated risks of the CCS project are quantified by employing sensitivity analysis (SA), which indicated that the project NPV is exceptionally sensitive to gas price. On this basis, the economic performance of the project is reliant on revenues from gas sales, which is dictated by gas market price uncertainties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]