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854967 
Journal Article 
Separation of butanol from acetone–butanol–ethanol fermentation by a hybrid extraction–distillation process 
Kraemer, K; Harwardt, A; Bronneberg, R; Marquardt, W 
2011 
Yes 
Computers & Chemical Engineering
ISSN: 0098-1354 
35 
5 
949-963 
WOS:000290572800019 
is also published as 994977 Separation of butanol from acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation by a hybrid extraction-distillation process
The alternative fuel butanol can be produced via acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation from biomass. The high costs for the separation of ABE from the dilute fermentation broth have so far prohibited the industrial-scale production of bio-butanol. In order to facilitate an effective and energy-efficient product removal, we suggest a hybrid extraction-distillation downstream process with ABE extraction in an external column. By means of computer-aided molecular design (CAMD), mesitylene is identified as novel solvent with excellent properties for ABE extraction from the fermentation broth. An optimal flowsheet is developed by systematic process synthesis which combines shortcut and rigorous models with rigorous numerical optimization. Optimization of the flowsheet structure and the operating point, consideration of heat integration, and the evaluation of the minimum energy demands are covered. It is shown that the total annualized costs of the novel process are considerably lower compared to the costs of alternative hybrid or pure distillation processes. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 
Butanol; ABE fermentation; Solvent; Extraction; Downstream process; Process synthesis