Production of 1,3-Butadiene and Associated Coproducts Ethylene and Propylene from Lignin

• Published in: Industrial & engineering chemistry research Vol. 58; no. 35; pp. 16182 - 16189
• Main Authors: Tripathi, Namit, Palanki, Srinivas, Xu, Qiang, Nigam, Krishna D. P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Chemical Society 04.09.2019
• ISSN: 0888-5885; 1520-5045
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b00664

1,3-Butadiene is used in the production of commercially important elastomers. However, the sustained production of 1,3-butadiene is facing challenges due to the reduction in availability of heavier cracker feedstock. In this article, three different routes that utilize biomass to produce 1,3-butadiene and associated coproducts ethylene and propylene from lignin are explored. Steady-state simulation models are developed, and it is shown that, while all three routes are feasible, the yield of 1,3-butadiene is low in all cases. For this reason, it is necessary to consider the production of other useful products, such as ethylene and propylene, in an integrated plant that is used to make up the shortfall of 1,3-butadiene. The simulation models provide an estimate of the amount of lignin needed to produce additional 1,3-butadiene to augment the shortfall from a traditional 1,3-butadiene plant. Furthermore, the simulation models can be used to calculate the emissions of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.