RESEARCH ARTICLE

Life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of the production of wood vinegar from Eucommia stem: a case study

  • Ji-Lu Zheng 1 ,
  • Ya-Hong Zhu 1 ,
  • Yan-Yan Dong 3 ,
  • Ming-Qiang Zhu , 1,2
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  • 1. College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
  • 2. College of Mechanical and Electronic Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
  • 3. Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
zmqsx@nwsuaf.edu.cn

Received date: 08 Oct 2022

Accepted date: 26 Dec 2022

Published date: 15 Aug 2023

Copyright

2023 Higher Education Press

Abstract

This research undertook a case study of the life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of the slow pyrolysis of Eucommia stem for the production of wood vinegar and activated carbon. The results showed that the production of one ton of wood vinegar via the slow pyrolysis of Eucommia stem show comparatively low global warming potential (2.37 × 102 kg CO2 eq), primary energy demand (3.16 × 103 MJ), acidification potential (2.19 kg SO2 eq), antimony depletion potential (3.86 × 10–4 kg antimony eq), and ozone depletion potential (7.46 × 10–6 kg CFC-11 eq) and was more environmentally friendly than the production of dilute acetic acid (12 wt %) via petrochemical routes. Meanwhile, the total capital investment, total product cost, and cash flowsheet were provided in the techno-economic analysis. Then, the net present value, internal rate of return, and dynamic payback period of the production process were evaluated. The findings indicated that while this production process is cost-effective, it might not be economically attractive or could generate investment risks. An increase in the added value of the wood vinegar and the activated carbon could remarkably improve the economic feasibility of this production process.

Cite this article

Ji-Lu Zheng , Ya-Hong Zhu , Yan-Yan Dong , Ming-Qiang Zhu . Life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of the production of wood vinegar from Eucommia stem: a case study[J]. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2023 , 17(8) : 1109 -1121 . DOI: 10.1007/s11705-022-2296-2

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to express their gratitude for the financial supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2018YFE0127000), the Young Tip-top Talent Project of Science and Technology Innovation by State Forestry and Grassland Administration of China (Grant No. 2019132616), the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Drive Project of Shaanxi Province (Grant Nos. NYKJ-2021-YLXN15, K3030821093), the Forestry Science and Technology Development Project by State Forestry and Grassland Administration of China (Grant No. KJZXZZ2019005).

Electronic Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at https://doi.org/10.1007/s11705-022-2296-2 and is accessible for authorized users.
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