Platform chemicals generated from bio-based resources can be converted to a range of chemicals and value-added products with negligible externalities to the environment. Among the range of commodity chemicals produced from the petroleum route, exploring production of trimellitic acid (TMLA) from bio-based routes is an increased interest among researchers due to its utilizability in numerous applications and worldwide growing market demand. T.S. Khan et al. has recently proposed a set of bio-renewable routes for the production of oxanorbornene cyclo-adduct, a precursor for the production of trimellitic acid (TMLA) via Diels–Alder reaction of bio-based dienes ( HMF, DMF, HMFA, FDCA, FDCA-ester) and dienophiles (propylene, acrolein, methyl acrylate, and acrylic acid) using density functional theory (DFT) simulations. FMO gap theory and (Ionization Potentialdiene + Electron Affinitydienophile)/2 descriptors used in the DFT study to validate the proposed TMLA production pathways. Present work is an attempt to examine the techno-economic feasibility of TMLA bio-refinery utilizing bio-based HMF as input feed stream. Simulation of prospective TMLA production scenarios using bio-based HMF performed on ASPEN plus V10. Non-random two liquid (NRTL) activity coefficient model is employed for predicting thermodynamic properties of the liquid-liquid and liquid-vapor interactions in the process. In the proposed ASPEN plus simulation, reactor 1 converts HMF and hydrogen into DMF with 100% conversion and 50% selectivity. Further DMF, propionic acid, and oxygen produces TMLA in reactor 2 with 100 % conversion and 100% selectivity. The results showed that &gt; 99% pure TMLA obtained at the distillation column exit stream. To evaluate the economic viability of the proposed bio-refinery, ASPEN plus economic analyzer employed for the assessment. Payback period, investor rate of return (IRR), and net present value (NPV) are chosen as validation criteria’s for the economic viability. The results suggest that TMLA from bio-based routes can be produced at competitive market prices.

Techno-economic analysis to produce trimellitic acid from biorenewable sources

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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