Araceli Guadalupe Romero-Izquierdo

In this work, the synthesis, design and optimization of a quaternary double dividing wall distillation column (QDDWC) is presented. The effect of the feed composition over the performance of this intensified configuration is studied. The synthesis and design of the QDDWC takes place using as basis a conventional direct sequence for the separation of a n-butane/n-pentane/n-hexane/n-heptane mixture. The column is tested for three molar feed compositions: 40/10/10/40, 25/25/25/25, and 10/40/40/10. The configurations are optimized through a multiobjective genetic algorithm to simultaneously minimize the total heat duty and the number of stages. According to the results, the proposed structure allows savings in heat duty up to 59% but requiring up to 28% more stages than the conventional sequences.

A systematic review of the scientific literature focused on the analysis of the main strategies related to the management of Eichhornia crassipes [water hyacinth] in Mexico is presented. The review was classified according to the levels of the biomass valorization pyramid, using specific inclusion and exclusion criteria: (i) eradication; (ii) physical control of the plant; and (iii) exploitation of its biomass. It focused on research conducted in Mexico from 1971 to 2023, which allowed for the analysis of a total of 147 studies. The results indicated that 73.4% of the research in Mexico is oriented towards the exploitation and valorization of water hyacinth biomass through the transformation of the plant into mid-value products, such as chemicals and materials (70.7%), energy (12.2%), food (7.3%) and health and lifestyle products (9.8%); however the sectors considered high-added-value, such as pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals and food, continue to be areas of opportunity. The remaining 26.6% focuses on control and eradication strategies, through the insertion of biological enemies, and physical control, by means of cutting and crushing the plant in situ. This situation underscores the importance of promoting integrated management approaches that incorporate biomass recovery, contributing to environmental sustainability and the responsible use of this invasive resource.

Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is a proven alternative to reduce CO₂ emissions in the aviation sector, supporting sustainable growth. However, SAF processes remain economically uncompetitive with fossil-derived jet fuel, prompting interest in strategies to address these challenges. In 2022, Carrasco-Suárez et al. explored process intensification in the SAF separation zone of a biorefinery using waste cooking oil (WCO), achieving a 3.07% reduction in CO₂ emissions and lower operational costs for steam and cooling water. Despite these gains, the WCO biorefinery remains economically unviable with high energy demands. This work presents the energy integration of the entire WCO biorefinery addressed from the pinch point methodology, combined with separation zones intensification (EI-PI-S), using the principles of sections movement for distillation columns; these energy efficiency strategies were applied on the biorefinery in Aspen Plus V.10.0 in order to improve the scheme. Key indicators-total annual cost (TAC), energy investment per product energy (EI-P), energy investment per main product mass (EI-MP), and CO₂ emissions per main product mass (CO₂-MP)-were used to compare the conventional scheme (CS) and the intensified scheme before energy integration (PI-S). The EI-PI-S scheme achieved the best performance, reducing steam and cooling water requirements by 14.34% and 31.06%, respectively, and CO₂ emissions by 13.85% and 14.13% compared to CS and PI-S. However, TAC for EI-PI-S was 0.89% higher than PI-S. Despite this, the integrated and intensified WCO biorefinery emerges as a feasible option for SAF production, adhering to energy minimisation principles and improving economic performance.

Water lily (Eichhornia crassipes) has been identified as an invasive exotic plant with high proliferation in Mexico, affecting aquatic bodies, such as lakes. After extraction, the water hyacinth biomass can be used as raw material for the production of bioproducts and bioenergy, however, the majority of them not covered the region's needs, and their economic profitability decreases significantly. Also, few reports present its use as raw material inside a biorefinery scheme. In this work, we propose a local biorefinery scheme to produce power and bioproducts from water lilies, using Aspen Plus V.10.0, per the needs of the Patzcuaro Lake community in Michoacán, Mexico. The scheme has been designed to process the harvested and sun-dried water lily from 197.6 kg/h of total wet harvested biomass, according to the extraction region schedule. The biomass is separated: root (RT) and stems-leaves (SL). The processing scheme involves the RT combustion to produce electric power, and two processes to SL; the first one, anaerobic digestion to produce fertilizer and biogas, while, pyrolysis and gasification as second one. The biogas is converted to electricity, while, the pyrolysis products are separated in bio-oil and biochar; the last one is inserted to gasification reactor to produce syngas, and then, electric power. According with results, this scheme produces 35.6 % of fertilizer, 1 % of bio-oil, and 3.5 kWh of electric power. The scheme requires energy efficiency tools to improve its energetic performance, however, is a potential solution for the use of water lily in the region.

Biofuels derived from lignocellulosic biomass residues provide a sustainable alternative, allowing a second use for waste and replacing fossil fuels. However, the direct profitability of biofuel production is limited, which has led to the approach of simultaneous production of other bioproducts through biorefinery schemes. Among biofuels, bioethanol stands out for its capacity to substitute gasoline in certain percentages. In the case of high value-added bioproducts, furfural and lactic acid can be mentioned. Notwithstanding these options, their viability may be compromised if economically competitive schemes against fossil sources are not established. In this context, process intensification plays a key role, as it could help to have compact processes with reduced energy consumption. This work performs an analysis of the existing proposals in biomass to bioethanol conversion processes, as well as in the purification processes of bioproducts such as lactic acid and furfural, both conventional and intensified. The objective is to highlight the biorefinery scheme and explore the potential of the co-production of bioethanol and bioproducts. The analysis is performed from both, economic and environmental perspectives.

El desarrollo de procesos para la producción de combustible renovable de aviación coadyuva a la recuperación sostenible del sector de aviación; en tales procesos, la aplicación de estrategias de eficiencia energética puede mejorar su competitividad económica y ambiental. En este trabajo se presenta la integración energética en una biorefinería de Jatropha curcas (JC) para la producción de bioturbosina, como producto principal, mediante la metodología del punto de pliegue. La aplicación de la integración energética se basa en la construcción de dos rutas, definidas por los intercambios de material entre los procesos que las integran. En la ruta 1 (R1) se consideran 7 y 6 corrientes calientes y frías, respectivamente; mientras que para la ruta 2 (R2), 6 y 8 corrientes calientes y frías, respectivamente. Los resultados muestran que es posible ahorrar hasta 82,41 % y 74,89 % de servicios de calentamiento y enfriamiento para R1, mientras que hasta 71 % y 87,28 % de ahorro de servicios de calentamiento y enfriamiento para R2. Estos resultados suponen menor impacto ambiental, respecto al esquema sin integración, debido al menor consumo de servicios externos, lo cual podría mejorar significativamente la economía del proceso.