Economically feasible thermochemical process for methanol production from kenaf

Abstract This paper presents a thermochemical process design and techno-economic analysis for the production of methanol (MeOH) from Kenaf cultivated in Korea. The proposed process combines three main subsystems to allow for the processing of 2000 tons of kenaf a day: kenaf-to-syngas, syngas-to-MeOH, and a combined heat and power cycle. In the first subsystem, clean syngas is produced from kenaf via a two-step carbonization and steam gasification process. The clean syngas is then catalytically upgraded to MeOH using a commercial Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst. The third subsystem allows for the generation of heat and electricity to close the energy balance by combusting the biomass residues. Energy analysis and optimization of the heat exchanger network allowed for all energy requirements to be satisfied internally, high overall energy efficiency (60.6%), and the selling of 3.3 MW of excess electricity. Furthermore, an economic feasibility analysis of the process showed that the minimum selling price of MeOH (99.9 wt%) was 0.413 US$/kgMeOH. Importantly, the process economics could be in the range of the market price with respect to incorporating different types of H2 production technology into the process.