Evaluation of the potential of a deep eutectic solvent for liquid-liquid extraction of furfural using optimization-based process design

Start Page
955
End Page
960
Citation
Computer Aided Chemical Engineering 52: 955-960 (2023)
Contribution to Conference
33rd European Symposium on Computer Aided Process Engineering, ESCAPE 2023  
Publisher DOI
10.1016/B978-0-443-15274-0.50152-9
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85166983763
Publisher
Elsevier
ISBN
978-0-443-15274-0
Reducing our environmental impact is the greatest challenge of our time and affects all areas of the chemical, biochemical, and pharmaceutical industries. The use of sustainable and biodegradable solvents in downstream processes, such as deep eutectic solvents (DESs), is one essential step in this direction. While many studies have focused on the investigation of- the thermo-physical properties of DESs, relatively little attention has been paid to solvent regeneration in the context of a closed-loop process, assuming a simple recovery due to the negligible vapor pressure of the DES. In order to evaluate the suitability of this assumption, the current work performs an optimization-based process design for the recovery of furfural from a diluted fermentation broth by liquid-liquid extraction, comparing a previously screened DES with toluene as an established organic solvent. The comparison reveals important limitations of the DES due to considerable water content in the raffinate and the high boiling point resulting in a more complex and energy-demanding process.
Subjects
distillation
green solvent
liquid-liquid extraction
process optimization
solvent selection
DDC Class
500: Science