Synthesis and intensification of a biorefinery to produce renewable aviation fuel, biofuels, bioenergy and chemical products from Jatropha Curcas fruit

Abstract

The production of renewable aviation fuel has been explored in recent years considering different types of biomasses and several conversion pathways. The technical feasibility of the production of renewable aviation fuel has already been proved; however, the main challenge is to achieve economic and environmental sustainability regarding to its fossil counterparts. In this context, the integrated biorefineries are a potential strategy to address these challenges. Therefore, in this work it is presented the conversion of Jatropha curcas fruit through a biorefinery to produce renewable aviation fuel, biofuels, bioenergy and chemical products. The synthesis, modelling and simulation of each processing stage in the biorefinery is presented, along with its economic and environmental assessment. Moreover, the intensification of the purification zone is addressed. According to the results, biojet fuel, biodiesel, glycerol, fertilizer, green diesel, naphtha and electricity are produced through the biorefinery. In addition, less than 1% of energy savings were obtained due to intensified sequence to separate biojet fuel. Also, 90% of the total electricity consumption is covered by its generation in situ, improving the environmental sustainability of the production of renewable aviation fuel.