Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Roquette produces more than 600 carbohydrate derivatives worldwide and is
now leading a major programme (the BioHub
TM
programme) aiming to develop
cereal-based biorefineries and a portfolio of cereals-based platform chemicals
(e.g. isosorbide) for biopolymers as well as specialty and commodity chemicals
production.
Ultimately, all phase I biorefineries could be converted into phase II biorefiner-
ies if methods of upgrading the various side streams could be identified. For
example, a phase I biodiesel processing plant could be turned into a phase II
biorefinery if the operator started to convert the (crude) glycerol into valuable
energy and/or chemical products (see Chapter 4 for potential chemical products
from glycerol). It is in fact recognised that energy or biofuel generation will prob-
ably form the initial backbone of numerous phase II biorefineries. Indeed, crude
oil refining also started with the production of energy; it now employs sophisti-
cated process chemistry and engineering to produce complex materials and chem-
icals that 'squeeze every ounce of value' from each barrel of oil [31].
1.5.2.3
Phase III Biorefinery
Phase III biorefineries correspond to the most developed/advanced type of biore-
finery. They are not only able to produce a variety of energy and chemical prod-
ucts (as phase II biorefineries do), but can also use various types of feedstocks and
processing technologies to produce the multiplicity of industrial products our
society requires. The diversity of the products gives a high degree of flexibility to
changing market demands (a current by-product might become a key product in
the future) and provides phase III biorefineries with various options to achieve
profitability and maximise returns [33]. In addition, their multi-feedstock nature
helps them to secure feedstock availability and offers these highly integrated
biorefineries the possibility of selecting the most profitable combination of raw
materials [39, 40]. Although no commercial phase III biorefineries exist, exten-
sive work is currently being carried out in the EU, the US (the present leading
player in this field) and elsewhere on the design and feasibility of such facilities.
According to a recent report from the Biofuels Research Advisory Council, full-
scale phase III (zero-waste) biorefineries are not expected to become established
in Europe until around 2020 [5].
Currently, there are five phase III biorefinery systems being pursued in research
and development, which will be discussed in more detail in the following
sections:
1. lignocellulosic feedstock biorefinery;
2. whole-crop biorefinery;
3. green biorefinery;
4. two-platform biorefinery; and
5. marine biorefinery.
