Biomass chemical production by thermochemical conversion

Concepts are reviewed for the production of chemicals by the thermochemical conversion of biomass. An engineering and economic analysis builds upon recent laboratory developments to provide a perspective of new process potentials and identifies areas requiring further investigation. Candidate processes fall into two categories: (1) production of acetate esters, vinyl acetate, and acetic anhydride by biomass gasification; and (2) production of aromatic chemicals by the hydroprocessing of biomass. Engineering design bases are developed from fundamental data and process economics are then estimated and compared to conventional routes to the same products. 13 references, 10 figures, 9 tables.