Course syllabus

Course-PM

KBT145 Biorefinery lp1 HT23 (7.5 hp)

Course is offered by the department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

Contact details

• examiner: Merima Hasani (MH), Chalmers, merima.hasani@chalmers.se 
  

• teachers:

Merima Hasani (MH), Chalmers, merima.hasani@chalmers.se 

Ulrika Palme (UP),    Chalmers, ulrika.palme@chalmers.se  

Henrik Thunman (HT), Chalmers, henrik.thunman@chalmers.se

• mini project supervisor:

Lucas Azambuja (LA), Chalmers,  azambuja@chalmers.se

 

Course purpose

Within the next 50 years we will see a gradual transition from an oil-based society to a bio-based society. In this transition there will be a necessity to find new process routes to produce some of the materials used today as well as new materials that can replace some of the materials normally used today.

The aim of this course is to give basic knowledge needed to understand how biomaterial can be used and how different biorefinery concepts can be developed based on both environmental and economic criteria. The focus will be on wood based biorefinery concepts, but also other sources of biomaterials will be discussed in the course.

After this course the students should have knowledge in:

• Availability and chemical composition of the most common biomass sources, including both global and national perspective as well as aspects of sustainable cultivation and use
• Methods and processes (both current and potential future ones) available for recovery and post-treatment of biomass components, including theoretical and sustainability aspects

and understanding for

• Ethical and societal issues raised by different approaches of utilizing biomass (e.g. use of the arable land resources and utilization of food-related biomass sources)
• Risks of overusing biological resources, e.g. in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem service losses

 

Schedule

29/8, 13.00-15:00   Introduction

31/8,   13:00-15:00    Introduction to miniprojects

1/9,   13:00-15:00   Easily accessible biomass: carbohydrates and starch rich plants

5/9,   13:00-15:00   Easily accessible biomass - fats and vegetable oil based biorefinery

7/9, 13:00-15:00  Lignocellulose 1: Lignocellulosic biomass, basic wood structure and composition

8/9, 13:00-15:00  Lignocellulose 2: Cellulose and hemicelluloses - structure, reactions and processes

12/9, 13:00-15:00 Lignocellulose 2: Forest and forestry nationally and around the world

14/9, 13:00-15:00 Lignocellulose 4: Lignin and extractives - structure, reactions and processes

15/9, 13:00-15:00 Kraft based biorefinery 1: The Kraft process

19/9, 13:00-15:00 Kraft based biorefinery 2: The modified process

21/9, 13.00-15:00 Sulfite based biorefinery: sulfite pulping and biorefining

26/9, 13:00-15:00 Ethanol production and the ethanol platform; Waste as a biomass source

28/9, 13:00-15:00 Mini projects consultation

29/9, 13.00-15:00 Biomass gasification

3/10, 13.00-15:00  Current and future biorefineries and products

5/10, 13.00-15:00 Lignocellulose 5: Analytic methods in wood based biorefinery

10/10, 13.00-15:00 Workshop on Ethics in Biorefinery

12/10 07:00-19:00 Study visit to Borregaard, Norway

13/10 12:45-15:00 Presentations of the miniprojects

17/10 Summary and consultations

19/10 No lecture

20/10 No lecture

23/10 08:30 Written exam

TimeEdit

Course literature

1.  Wood Chemistry and Wood Biotechnology (Monica Ek, Göran Gellerstedt, Gunnar

   Henriksson), available as an e-book through Chalmers library and Knovel.

2. Hand-outs, material available on WWW (list will be handed out) and lecture notes

Course design

The course will explore some general questions regarding structure and availability of different types of biomass and how these can be utilized as a feedstock for materials and chemicals from the processability and application point of view. The course can be divided in the following parts:

Part I, An overview:

What kinds of biomass and bio-building blocks are available (their structure, abundance,
cultivation aspects and implications for use as raw materials) and how should these be utilized? What kinds of biorefinery concepts can be developed from these resources based on technological, environmental and societal considerations? Different types and generations of biorefineries and their implications for a sustainable development will be discussed.

Part II, Principles of utilization of forest biomass (globally the most abundant lignocellulosic biomass) as a raw material basis for a biorefinery:

Forest biomass as a feedstock. How can current processes employed in valorization of forest biomass be further developed and diversified towards a wood-based biorefinery?

Part III, Current and future wood-based biorefineries and platforms:

Through case studies of existing biorefinery concepts (including a study visit and a guest lecture) the need and feasibility of various future processes and products are discussed.

Organisation

The course consists of:

• 15 lectures
• a workshop on ethical issues related to different aspects of biomass utilization (compulsory)
• a study visit (compulsory)
• a project work preformed in groups on selected biomass components (compulsory)

Mini projects

From raw material to product. In this assessment you should work with one raw material and describe how this material can be processed to different products. The assessment may give 0-8p extra points on the written exam. For details see the Mini project PM.

Learning objectives and syllabus

Learning objectives:

After this course the students should have knowledge in:

• Availability and chemical composition of the most common biomass sources, Including both global and national perspective as well as aspects of sustainable cultivation and use
• Methods and processes (both current and potential future ones) available for recovery and post-treatment of biomass components, including theoretical, economical and sustainability aspects

and understanding of:

• Ethical and societal issues raised by different approaches of utilizing biomass (e.g. use of the arable land resources and utilization of food-related biomass sources)

Examination form

The examination includes a written exam, the mini project and the study visit. The final grade will be set by the written exam and the mini project.

Grading of the written exam:

Maximum point is          80p + extra points from the mini project

Grade 3:                              40p

Grade 4:                              52p

Grade 5:                              64p

The mini project may give 0-8p extra points on the written exam. 

Grading of the mini projects:

The report may give extra 7credits to the exam and the presentations one extra credit. Writing a report with all required parts and presenting are minimum requirements to pass. Extra credits are only awarded if the student has shown deeper understanding of the subject and handed in a well written report with the arguments well motivated. To get the total 1extra credits for the presentation it should be clear and well-presented.

Report requirements:

All arguments must be well motivated. The focus should be on the feasibility of the product. The listed items below should be included, but it is not a proposed disposition:

-Raw material: description and availability (also the chemical composition)

- Product description

- Outline possible production process (e.g. from raw materialto desired productin a biorefinery)

- Economic considerations (raw material supply, feasibility of the process and the potential value of the product–compare with an existing product)

- Environmental considerations (include comparison with conventionalmaterials on the market, in termsof quality and sustainability)both process and raw material extraction

- References (example of a good database: Ullmann’s encyclopedia of industrial chemistry, available via Chalmers library websiteand review articles)

Earlier students have written between 10 –30 pages, but the quality of the report matters, not the length.

Presentation:

The presentations should be max 10min. When you send in your final report you will receive the report of another group to read before the presentations.