Sequential hydrothermal process for production of flavanones and sugars from orange peel: an economic assessment.

An economic evaluation was conducted of flavanone and sugar production from orange peel (OP) using a sequential hydrothermal process. The process was conducted at laboratory (2 × 5 L), pilot (3 × 10 L), and industrial (3 × 500 L) scales. The results demonstrate that the scale‐up process decreased the cost of manufacturing (COM) with a significant increase in flavanone and sugar production. The lowest COM was of US$ 25.72/kg flavanones and US$ 1.43/kg sugars, both on an industrial scale. The predominant costs at the industrial scale (>90%) were the cost of utilities and the cost of raw materials. A low capital payback time was obtained, which decreased as return on investment and gross margin increased. A strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats matrix demonstrates the relevant business topics related to the scale‐up of OP processing. Thus, the current scale‐up project can be considered as a promising approach to the production of flavanones and sugar from OP on an industrial scale. © 2020 Society of Industrial Chemistry and John Wiley & Sons Ltd [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]