Several companies engineer hydrolysis plants. One, the Biofine
process, is a commercialized technology that uses two-step dilute
mineral acid hydrolysis to break down biomass containing
lignocellulose into intermediate chemicals that can be further
transformed into MeTHF and chemical products. A brief description of
the process is:
(1) The waste is mixed with an acid-water solution to
form a slurry.
(2) The chemical structure is broken down into three
main chemicals, furfural, levulinic acid, and lignin in a two-stage
chemical reactor (a high temperature tubular reactor into which steam
is injected followed by a second stage mixed reactor).
(3) The
levulinic acid and furfural is concentrated and recovered.
(4) The
acid catalyst is recycled within the process and aqueous vapors are
condensed and recycled. Solid char formed from the lignin in the
feed is fed to a gasifier to make hydrogen. The furfural and the
levulinic acid are purified and hydrogenated to make the MeTHF.
The Biofine process was developed by BioMetics, Inc. with
funding from the U.S. DOE.
A pilot plant was built in South Glens Falls, New York and has been
operating since 1998. A commercial plant is near completion in
Caserta, Italy.
