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Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering

ISSN 2095-0179

ISSN 2095-0187(Online)

CN 11-5981/TQ

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Front. Chem. Sci. Eng.    2023, Vol. 17 Issue (8) : 1109-1121    https://doi.org/10.1007/s11705-022-2296-2
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of the production of wood vinegar from Eucommia stem: a case study
Ji-Lu Zheng1, Ya-Hong Zhu1, Yan-Yan Dong3, Ming-Qiang Zhu1,2()
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
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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.
Keywords life-cycle assessment      techno-economic analysis      wood vinegar      activated carbon      Eucommia     
Corresponding Author(s): Ming-Qiang Zhu   
Online First Date: 07 June 2023    Issue Date: 20 July 2023
 Cite this article:   
Ji-Lu Zheng,Ya-Hong Zhu,Yan-Yan Dong, et al. Life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of the production of wood vinegar from Eucommia stem: a case study[J]. Front. Chem. Sci. Eng., 2023, 17(8): 1109-1121.
 URL:  
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fcse/EN/10.1007/s11705-022-2296-2
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fcse/EN/Y2023/V17/I8/1109
Fig.1  System boundary of wood vinegar production for LCA.
Fig.2  Sketch diagram of the joint production of wood vinegar and activated carbon from Eucommia stem.
ItemValue (per ton wood vinegar)
Materials
Eucommia stem/(dry ton)3.00
Process water/ton2.98 × 10–1
30 wt % NaOH/ton2.63 × 10–3
Energy
Transport/(ton·km)2.33 × 102
Electricity/kWh3.49 × 102
Diesel for Eucommia collection/kg1.29 × 10
Waste
PM/ton1.57 × 10–3
SO2/ton4.51 × 10–4
NOx/ton1.82 × 10–3
CO2/ton4.05 × 10–2
CH4/ton1.37 × 10–6
Product
Wood vinegar/ton1.00
Activated carbon/ton3.20 × 10–1
Tab.1  LCI data for the production of wood vinegar from Eucommia stem
ItemValue
Plant size9000 ton·year–1
Economic analysis basis year300 days per year
Equipment depreciation period20 years
Building depreciation period40 years
Amortization period5 years
Type of depreciation or amortizationStraight line
Insurance rate0.12%
Value added tax (agricultural products) rate9%
Value added tax (industrial products) rate13%
Value added tax (tap water) rate9%
Value added tax (electricity) rate13%
Income tax rate20%
Urban construction tax rate5%
Education surcharge rate3%
Service life20 years
Construction period1 years
Working days per year300
Salvage value at end of service lifeWorking capital + salvage value of buildings
Price of wood vinegar￥1200 per ton
Price of activated carbon￥3200 per ton
Tab.2  Necessary parameters for TEA
Fig.3  LCIA results for the production of one ton of wood vinegar and the contribution of LCI data to the results using economic value-based allocation.
Category subgroupsMain contributor
GWP, PED, WUElectricity
ODP, POFP, ADPTransport
AP, EP, RIDirect contribution
Tab.3  Three subgroups of the nine categories
IndicatorValue (per ton of wood vinegar)
ADP (kg antimony eq)4.95 × 10–4
AP (kg SO2 eq)3.19
EP (kg PO43– eq)2.70 × 10–1
GWP (kg CO2 eq)3.29 × 102
ODP (kg CFC-11 eq)1.36 × 10–5
PED (MJ)4.56 × 103
POFP (kg NMVOC eq)5.55 × 10–1
RI (kg PM2.5 eq)8.05 × 10–1
WU (kg water)–6.48 × 102
Tab.4  LCIA results for the production of one ton of wood vinegar using the system expansion method
IndicatorValue (per ton activated carbon)
ADP (kg antimony eq)1.02 × 10–3
AP (kg SO2 eq)5.83
EP (kg PO43– eq)6.44 × 10–1
GWP (kg CO2 eq)6.31 × 102
ODP (kg CFC-11 eq)1.99 × 10–5
PED (MJ)8.41 × 103
POFP (kg NMVOC eq)8.89 × 10–1
RI (kg PM2.5 eq)1.64
WU (kg water)2.20 × 103
Tab.5  LCIA results for coproducts using economic value-based allocation
Fig.4  Comparison of the LCIA results using economic value-based allocation (W) with the LCIA results for the production of one ton of dilute acetic acid (12 wt %) via acetaldehyde oxidation (A) and methanol carbonylation (M).
IndicatorsVariables (+20%–?20%) (LCI data)Variation
GWPElectricity14.95%–14.95%
Transport2.64%–2.64%
CO21.85%–1.85%
PEDElectricity14.88%–14.88%
Transport2.96%–2.96%
Diesel for collection2.06%–2.06%
ADPTransport8.62%–8.62%
Diesel for collection6.00%–6.00%
Electricity5.34%–5.34%
WUElectricity14.21%–14.21%
Process water3.97%–3.97%
Transport0.99%–0.99%
APElectricity8.52%–8.52%
NOx6.28%–6.28%
Transport2.69%–2.69%
EPNOx10.57%–10.57%
Electricity5.05%–5.05%
Transport4.01%–4.01%
RIElectricity8.92%–8.92%
PM4.21%–4.21%
NOx4.07%–4.07%
ODPTransport11.26%–11.26%
Diesel for collection7.86%–7.86%
Electricity0.87%–0.87%
POFPTransport13.49%–13.49%
Electricity4.02%–4.02%
Diesel for collection1.28%–1.28%
Tab.6  Sensitivity analysis of the LCIA results using economic value-based allocation
QuantileGWPPEDADPWUAPEPRIODPPOFP
5%2.12 × 1022.83 × 1033.53 × 10–47.41 × 1022.022.21 × 10–15.66 × 10–16.75 × 10–63.02 × 10–1
10%2.16 × 1022.89 × 1033.61 × 10–47.57 × 1022.062.26 × 10–15.75 × 10–16.90 × 10–63.08 × 10–1
25%2.26 × 1023.02 × 1033.72 × 10–47.90 × 1022.122.33 × 10–15.93 × 10–17.16 × 10–63.20 × 10–1
50%2.37 × 1023.16 × 1033.85 × 10–48.27 × 1022.192.42 × 10–16.13 × 10–17.48 × 10–63.34 × 10–1
75%2.47 × 1023.30 × 1033.98 × 10–48.61 × 1022.262.50 × 10–16.31 × 10–17.75 × 10–63.49 × 10–1
90%2.56 × 1023.42 × 1034.09 × 10–48.94 × 1022.322.58 × 10–16.48 × 10–18.02 × 10–63.59 × 10–1
95%2.61 × 1023.49 × 1034.15 × 10–49.09 × 1022.352.62 × 10–16.57 × 10–18.15 × 10–63.65 × 10–1
Tab.7  Uncertainty analysis of the LCIA results using economic value-based allocation
Fig.5  (a) Investment and (b) cost in this production process.
Variables (+20%–?20%)(The prices of materials, energy or products)Variation
Wood vinegar2421%–2421%
Activated carbon2066%–2066%
Transport–1369%1369%
Eucommia stem–755%755%
Electricity–704%704%
Diesel for Eucommia collection–169%169%
Process water–3%3%
The yield of wood vinegar2421%–2421%
The yield of activated carbon2066%–2066%
Tab.8  The sensitivity analysis of the NPV
Variable(The prices of materials, energy, or products)Variation(IRR and DPP)
Wood vinegar (+20%)142%–74%
Activated carbon (+20%)122%–71%
Transport (–20%)83%–63%
Eucommia stem (–20%)47%–49%
Electricity (–20%)44%–47%
Diesel for Eucommia collection (–20%)11%–18%
Process water (–20%)0.16%–0.12%
The yield of wood vinegar (+20%)142%–74%
The yield of activated carbon (+20%)122%–71%
Tab.9  Sensitivity analysis of IRR and DPP
Fig.6  Empirical cumulative distribution of NPV from MC simulations.
QuantileNPV/￥
5%–4246913
10%–3266730
25%–1726368
50%72253
75%1915316
90%3561304
95%4356796
Tab.10  Uncertainty analysis of NPV
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