Low-energy route for alcohol/gasohol recovery from fermentor beer. Final report

Technical Report · Mon Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1982

OSTI ID:6467376

Mix, T W

The production of gasohol directly from fermentor beer and gasoline is feasible and will enable a major reduction in the energy requirements for gasohol production. The fermentor beer is first enriched in a beer still to a 69 mol % ethanol, 31 mol % water product which is then dehydrated by extractive distillation with gasoline as the extractive agent. Gasohol is produced directly. In one version of the process, a heavy cut of gasoline, presumed available at a refinery before blending in of light components, is used as the extractive agent. The enriching column overhead vapors are used to reboil the extractive distillation and steam stripping columns and to contribute to the preheating of the fermentor beer feed. Light components are blended into the heavy cut-ethanol bottom product from the extractive distillation column to form the desired gasohol. Energy requirements, including feed preheat, are 11,000 Btu per gallon of ethanol in the product gasohol. One hundred and fifty pound steam is required. In a second version, full range gasoline is used as the extractive agent. The enriching column overhead vapors are again used to reboil the extractive distillation and steam stripping columns and to contribute to the preheating of the fermentor beer feed. Light gasoline components recovered from the decanter following the overhead condenser of the extractive distillation column are blended in with the gasoline-ethanol product leaving the bottom of the extractive distillation column to form the desired gasohol. Energy requirements in this case are 13,000 Btu/gallon of ethanol in the product gasohol. In both of the above cases it is energy-conservative and desirable from a process standpoint to feed the enriched alcohol to the extractive distillation column as a liquid rather than as a vapor.

• Research Organization: Merix Corp., Babson Park, MA (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: FG07-81ID12321
• OSTI ID: 6467376
• Report Number(s): DOE/ID/12321-T1; ON: DE83009665
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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ALCOHOLS
BIOCONVERSION
DISTILLATION
DISTILLATION EQUIPMENT
EQUIPMENT
ETHANOL
EXTRACTION
FERMENTATION
FUELS
GASOHOL
GASOLINE
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
LIQUID FUELS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLVENT EXTRACTION
SOLVENT PROPERTIES