Simulation and optimization of a methanol synthesis process from different biogas sources

Nowadays the exploitation of conventional natural gas resources has been contributing to the problem of increasing CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and consequently increasing the global warming. The natural gas accounted for a majority of the feedstock used for methanol manufacture. Nevertheless, in the next years, methanol will have to be produced from less polluting sources that release small quantities of CO2 and methane to the atmosphere. In this regard, the use of biogas for producing methanol appears to be a viable alternative. However, few studies have studied the optimization of methanol production plants from renewable sources. Thereby, the main purpose of this paper is to make a comparative analysis, throughout mathematical modeling and simulation, of different methanol production routes, by considering four biogas sources: landfill, palm oil effluent, corn cobs and sorghum fermentation. For all cases, an optimization study was performed, with the goal of maximizing the methanol production. The results evidenced that the biogas from palm oil showed to be the most profitable concerning the other sources. On the other hand, the landfill gas showed to be a very limited capacity for methanol supply. Finally, the process optimization indicate that the operating conditions must be adjusted with respect of the biogas composition, in order to allow the maximum production. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.