BioEconomy, lots of opportunities
Copenhagen, 4 December 2014
Johan Sanders, Em professor Biobased Commodity Chemicals, Innovation
Manager Food and Biobased Research Wageningen UR
The new challenges in a biobased Economy:
1st Agro logistics
Food pretreatment Foodconversion Food production
New production
Performance materials
Base&platform chemicals
Performance chemicals
Bio Energy
Food/feed
€
Healthy, tasty, sufficient
Biobased
Products
€
Biomass
Biomass sources
Logistics&storage
production Agro-food production
NL production
By products
Imports
& waste
Existing conversion
Existing production
• Biobased
materials
• Bio-based
chemicals
• Bio-fuels
• Bio-energy
€
Existing
non- food:
•Paper
•Construction wood
• Additives
• Fibres/ clothes
• Wood for cooking
.
Many drivers for the Biobased Economy
 Shortage of cheap oil
 High energy prices
 Security of energy supply
 Climate change by green house gasses
 Rural development
 Developing countries
 Geo-political conditions
Different countries/groups are confident however that a
BbE can contribute to their goals.
Biomass use today and in 2050
Mton
 Food incl. feed*
 Wood, paper, cotton
 Wood for cooking
4 – 5000
 30% of 1000EJ in 2050=
20 000
* Excluding grass and seafood
2000
4000
Design rules for a sustainable Bio-economy
People, Planet, Profit
● Increase field yield but keep components on the field
that are required for soil fertility
● Use all biomass components and choose the right raw
material
● Use each component at its highest value:
(molecular) structure is much better than caloric
● Reduce capital cost to speed up innovation and to
benefit from small scale without the disadvantages
Our daily food needs a twenty fold higher
energy input
Biomass
NL 635 PJ
EU 20.000 PJ
Fossil
NL 575 PJ
EU 20.000 PJ
Net Import
160
Food Industry
150
Household
165
100
Dutch Agriculture
475
Transportion Food
Greenhouses/Food
100
EU 1.800 PJ
2500 kcal/day = 55 PJ
Other Agriculture
60
Total energy NL fossil 3.300 PJ
EU fossil 85.000 PJ
From: PBL, the Protein Puzzle, 2011
F - ladder
How to get the
best value from
biomass?
€/ton
Farma
High
Fun
High
Food ingredients
5 - 20000
Food nutritional
100-500
Feed/ Food nutritional
protein
600-1000
Feed pigs
100-300
Feed cattle
50-250
Functional chemical
500-800
Fibre
500
Fermentation
150-400
Fermentation bulk
100-300
Fuel
100-300
Fertilizer
-/- 200-100
Fire
50-150
Flare
0
Fill
-/- 300
How biomass can best compete with fossil
feedstocks
Production costs
€/GJ end product
Cost of fossil products
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Raw material costs
Capital
Oil/gas
Coal
Value of biomass is 10 times higher as
chemical building block than to use it for
biogas or bio-electricity
Capital costs per ton of bulkchemical product vs heat dissipation
1600
Capital cost (€/ton)
1200
800
400
0
0
20
40
60
80
100
-400
-800
-1200
Energy input – product caloric value
(GJ/ton)
Raw material
cost
Capital costs per ton of bulkchemical product vs heat dissipation
1600
Capital cost (€/ton)
1200
Capital
800
Raw material
400
0
0
20
40
60
80
100
-400
-800
-1200
Energy input – product caloric value
(GJ/ton
)
Energieverlies
(GJ/ton)
heatexchange leads to high capital cost
 In the (petrochemical) industry this leads to Economies
of scale as the major competitive factor
 Reducing the capital cost for heatexchange will offer
1. more economic room for raw material costs and cost of
labour
2. More opportunities to operate on smaller scales
Processes with lower need for heat exchange, have lower capital
costs per ton of product and can be economical at smaller scale.
1600
Capital
800
900
400
0
0
-400
20
40
60
80
today
900
Integral cost price (900 €/ton)
1200
50% substituted
-800
-1200
Future
potential
Energy loss (GJ/ton)
100
Raw material
Employability can grow with 40 000 jobs to supply the dutch chemical
Production costs billion € /y
industry with 50% of biomass raw materials (now being ca 80 000 fte)
16
15
15
14
4.000 FTE
12
Factory Construction
process
45.000 FTE
10
6.000 FTE
8
6
9
31.000 FTE
6
27.000 FTE
4
2
0
2.000 FTE
Chemicals
(fossil)
Chemicaliën
(fossiel)
Chemicals ( (biomassa)
50% biobased)
Chemicaliën
Raw materials
Major economic carriers for European energy production
main product
(M ton/y)
 Feed-protein
 Animal compound Feed
 + grassland




300
150
Materials
Paper
75
timber wood
300
Other materials such as
adhesives, fillers, etc
....
 Chemicals
75
for energy
(M ton/y)
150
50
75
150
100
Example 1: Animal feed:
The separated components of grass
value 700 – 800 €/ton as compared to 60€/ton raw materials
More North than the Netherlands the value is a lot higher
Fresh grass
Fibers 30 % 100
Oligo-saccharides 3% 1500
Lipids 3 % 2000
water
80-90 %
Organic acids 5% 2000
Mono/di- saccharides 150
Protein /
Amino acids
20 % 1000
Minerals 10 % 500-1000
dry
substance
10-20%
Polysaccharides 15 % 1500
Second generation ethanol costs a lot of capital and
energy and will not give much value! False hope?
Wheat straw
pretreated
and Enzymatic treatment
Biorefining of agricultural residues ..
Protein content
Examples
Cost (€/ton)
0
5%
15 %
35 %
50 %
Wheatsstraw
cocoahulls
Corncobs
Sugarcane leaf
Coffee pulp
Rape straw
Beet leaf
Rape meal
Soy meal
50-80
50-110
100-140
150-180
300-350
Mobile grass refinery unit Grassa (the Netherlands)
Grass protein (products)
Protein
Grass juice
white grass protein
compound feed
Green grass protein
Fibers
Grass juice
concentrate
compound feed
+ .....
Ethanol
Cattle feed
Construction
material
+ paper
Polymer
extrusion
products
Just protein is not sufficient to cover the costs
bioraffinery
3 products
income
8 products
costs
income
costs
Grass costs
60
60
Process costs
120
440
protein
120
120
fibers
30
30
Juice components 55
minerals
75
Organ. acids
60
Amino acids
75
sugars
12
sugarpolymeren
225
fat
60
totaal
205
180
657
500
Biorefinery enables power generation at 45€/ton
and high quality 2nd generation fermentation raw
materials for 200€/ ton
800
50
Animal
feed
Amino
acids
600
500
30
400
20
300
200
10
100
3
0
0
Wood Straw Straw
Straw
chips (field) (collected) (washed)
Rape
meal
Multiproduct
biorefinery
€/ton
40
€/GJ
Protein
700
Ferment.
substrates
Lignocellulose
Fibres
Phosphorus
Rest
Protein as economic carrier in BioEconomy in
North Netherlands / Weser Ems area
rapeseed
rapeseed meal
maize
grass
grass
60
not applic.
465
70
620
3000
5200
2500
3
50
1.2
max. area (kha)
yield (€/ha)
1800
inv. / unit (M€)
0.1
20
Grassa
15%
beet leaves
50%
roadside grass
HarvestaGG
bermgras
ZeaFuels
maize
10%
wheat
MIMOSA
rapeseed
meal
TCE GoFour
rapeseed
35%
20%
35%
10%
35%
oil
10%
protein
30%
fibre
5%
K + biogas feed
20%
protein
amino acids
lactic acid
K+P
fuel
(electricity)
50%
20%
5%
5%
protein
starch
ethanol
maize oil
K+P
10%
50%
40%
protein
15%
10%
biogas
5%
soil improver
protein
fibres
grass juice
amino + organic
acids
K+P
Example 2: Paper industry is not very
efficient with raw materials and energy
 Only about 50% of the wood dry mass ends up in paperpulp
 Other half is used to fuel the process: pulping and
concentration of black liquor which contains:
 Hemicellulose with valuable sugars with specialty
applications but also bulk fermentation!
 Lignin can be applied as material as well as (aromatic)
chemical building block
 Sugars and sugar derivatives
Valorisation of these other 50% will contribute to a
better economic margin as well as to sustainability
Lignin production versus utilisation
Lignin conversion @ WUR
Polymerisation
Binders/resins
O
  

Chemical/
Enzymatic
upgrading
Depolymerisation
Fractionation
Oligomeric fragments
(Bio-)catalysis
Monomeric chemicals
 
cobinders
Composites
Coatings
Surfactants
Confidential
26
Example 3: Chemical production in the Port of Rotterdam
Low energy density
High energy density
heat exchange means capital
costs!
mass loss and/or energy loss <--O energy loss and heat exchange
-4
-3
-2
-1
0
+1
+2 +3
+4
methane
ethene
MEG
sugar
citric acid
CO2
ethanol BDO
succinate
ethane
butanol
Terephthalic acid
xylene
Use of plant molecular structures
N-Vinylpyrrolidone
Acrylonitrile
COOH
H2N
COOH
Glutamic acid
N-Methylpyrrolidone
Diaminobutane
The route to NEP, new vs conventional NMP
New route
step 1
step 2
COOH
- CO2
Biomass
hydrolysis,
separation
NH2
COOH
NH2
enzyme,
30 oC
COOH
ethanol
+ CH OH
3
CH3
CH3
2
N
O
cat,
250 oC
Glutamic acid
NEP
Conventional route
Gas
CH3OH
O
CH2
+
cat,
90-150 oC
OH
HO
+ H2
- H2
HO
OH
cat,
80 oC
cat
N2 + 3 H2
NH3
+ CH3OH
300-550 oC
150-250 bar
Amino acids contain N and O.
Less steps (= factories) & energy for the same product!
O
O
cat,
180-240 oC
200-350 oC
100 bar
CH3NH2
cat
400 oC
CH3
N
O
Biobased NMP, makes an ethanol plant profitable
500 Million liters bioethanol
(~ 400 kton) =200M€
360 kton DDGS (~130 € / ton) =46M€
36 kton glutamic acid 
COOH
OH
H2N
O
23 kton NMP
(~2500 € / ton)
=58
M€/y
Epichlorohydrin
H2C CHCH3 +
Cl2
H2C CHCH2Cl
+
HCl

HOCl
H2C CHCH2Cl
O

Ca(OH)2
H2C CHCH2Cl
Cl OH
+
H2C CHCH2Cl 
OH Cl
Solvay ‘Epicerol’ process: glycerol to epichlorohydrin
Price:
€ 1300 - 1500
per tonne
Volume:
0.5 mln tonnes
per annum
3D-foamed polylactic structures
(Wageningen UR)
 Expandable bead technique
● Good cell structure
● Density <30 g/l
Sheet: Karin Molenveld
Anaerobic
fermentation of
bulkchemicals
Yield: 0.95 g/g or J/J
Productivity: up to 5 times
higher
4 projects running
What type of fermentation?
Ethanol: 0.95 J/J
Anaerobic:
Lactate: 0.95 g/g
Aceton+ butanol+H2: 0.95J/J
Aerobic:
L-glutamic acid: 0.62 g/g
Itaconic acid: 0.47 g/g
29
Functionalised buildingblocks such as amino
acids and sugars can be used for commodity
chemicals in reasonably small scale factories
By chemical/ enzymatic conversion or by
Anaerobic fermentation
Annual volumes: 10 000 tonnes/ year
investment: approx 15 M€
Exaample 4: Small scale biorefinery reduces
transport cost and seasonality
Fields
Farm
Processing
Present
100%
100%
Concept
100%
Return flow 10%
concentration
Small scale
processing
30%
Return flow 70%
fermentation
small scale beet sugar production(2-500ha)
can beet large scale factories !
Less energy
Less transport
Minerals recycled to field
•
•
•
Much lower energy inputs
Lower transport
Equal costs
Kolfschoten et al
Mobile Cassava starch refinery in Africa
Source: Duteso
protein/oil/ethanol/biogas from small scale corn-biorefinery
Biogas
fermentation
Electricity
Biogas
biogas
CHP
minerals
Stem
heat
Maize
Grain
Pretreatment
& Ethanol
fermentation
Filtration
Distillation
60%
ethanol
Protein
Less investment costs/liter
ethanol than American ethanol
production that operate at
200 x larger scale
Feed/food
Corn
oil
Byosis/Zeafuels (Lelystad, Netherlands)
optimisation of rape meal into protein and pre
treated fibers ( Mobile, pilot in definition phase)
alkali
Acid, 90˚C
K, organic
materials
Protein,
potassium
oilmill rapemeal
fibers
95˚C
Pretreated
fibers(50% ds)
Electricity or cattle
protein
(50% ds)
pigs
field
Coupling two chains can increase value, employment
and reduce our manure problem
Raw materials
From abroad
Raw materials
From abroad
Energy
Fibres
Biorefinery
Protein
Maize
Grass
Manure
Now
Manure
Manure
Field
zField
Reduction of soy import from Brazil reduces ILUC and
manure problem and creates regional income
Potential Climate benefits and products
•
Grass 3Mha = 5% of EU; 1500- 3000 units
– Mineral recycling: 200 PJ of energy: 14 Mt CO2
– Efficient cattle feed (protein basis):
4-5 MtCO2e
– less indirect land use change :
1.5Mha
– Employment + 18 000 fte;
T/O= 6000 M€/y
•
Corn 1.3Mha = 10% of EU; 1300 units
– Mineral recycling: 50 PJ of energy:
3.5 Mt CO2
– Efficient cattle feed (protein basis):
3 MtCO2e
– less indirect land use change :
0.4Mha
– Employment +5000 fte;
T/O 3000 M€/y
•
Rape seed 0.7Mha = 10% of EU; 1000 units
– Mineral recycling: 3PJ of energy: 0.2 Mt CO2
– Efficient pig/ cattle feed (protein basis): 0.3 Mt CO2e
– less indirect land use change :
0.2Mha
– Employment +2000 fte;
T/O 500M€/y
•
•
•
•
protein
fibers
aminoacids
phosphate
•
•
•
•
•
protein
food-oil
starch for pigs
ethanol
biogas
•
•
protein
fibers for cattle
and/or biogas
Conclusions
•
Biorefinery for feed,
materials and chemicals
will create good income for
agriculture and enables
even to compete with coal,
natural gas and Brazilian
biomass!
•
Small scale processing
reduces capital as well as
costs for energy and
transportation and
•
will lead to higher
employment
Earthscan, ISBN 978-1-84407-770-0