Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery

A hemicellulose-first approach can offer advantages for biorefineries utilizing wheat straw as it combines lignocellulose fractionation and potentially higher added value from pentose-based hemicellulose. Therefore, a tailored hydrothermal concept for the production of xylooligosaccharides and xylan...

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Main Authors: Stanislav Parsin, Marvin Scherzinger, Martin Kaltschmitt
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Molecules
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/3/602
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author Stanislav Parsin
Marvin Scherzinger
Martin Kaltschmitt
author_facet Stanislav Parsin
Marvin Scherzinger
Martin Kaltschmitt
author_sort Stanislav Parsin
collection DOAJ
description A hemicellulose-first approach can offer advantages for biorefineries utilizing wheat straw as it combines lignocellulose fractionation and potentially higher added value from pentose-based hemicellulose. Therefore, a tailored hydrothermal concept for the production of xylooligosaccharides and xylan was investigated. The focus was on assessing the energy requirements and potential improvements based on experimental results. The wheat straw pretreatment and the downstream processing of hemicellulose hydrolysate were modeled at a scale of 30,000 tons of wheat straw dry mass per year. The results confirmed that the hydrothermal concept can be implemented in an energy-efficient manner without the need for additional auxiliaries, due to targeted process design, heat integration and a high solids loading during hydrolysis. The resulting specific energy requirements for pretreatment and hydrolysate processing are 0.28 kWh/kg and 0.13 kWh/kg of wheat straw dry mass, respectively. Compared to thermal hydrolysate processing alone, the combination of a multi-effect evaporator and pressure-driven ultrafiltration can reduce the heating and cooling energy by 29% and 44%, respectively. However, the ultrafiltration requirements (e.g., electrical energy, membrane area and costs) depend heavily on the properties of the hydrolysate and its interactions with the membrane. This work can contribute to the commercially viable ramp-up of wheat straw multi-product biorefineries.
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spelling doaj-art-5d450aa9705a4fcda3e4c348f8a408352025-08-20T02:12:31ZengMDPI AGMolecules1420-30492025-01-0130360210.3390/molecules30030602Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw BiorefineryStanislav Parsin0Marvin Scherzinger1Martin Kaltschmitt2Institute of Environmental Technology and Energy Economics (IUE), Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Eissendorfer Strasse 40, 21073 Hamburg, GermanyInstitute of Environmental Technology and Energy Economics (IUE), Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Eissendorfer Strasse 40, 21073 Hamburg, GermanyInstitute of Environmental Technology and Energy Economics (IUE), Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Eissendorfer Strasse 40, 21073 Hamburg, GermanyA hemicellulose-first approach can offer advantages for biorefineries utilizing wheat straw as it combines lignocellulose fractionation and potentially higher added value from pentose-based hemicellulose. Therefore, a tailored hydrothermal concept for the production of xylooligosaccharides and xylan was investigated. The focus was on assessing the energy requirements and potential improvements based on experimental results. The wheat straw pretreatment and the downstream processing of hemicellulose hydrolysate were modeled at a scale of 30,000 tons of wheat straw dry mass per year. The results confirmed that the hydrothermal concept can be implemented in an energy-efficient manner without the need for additional auxiliaries, due to targeted process design, heat integration and a high solids loading during hydrolysis. The resulting specific energy requirements for pretreatment and hydrolysate processing are 0.28 kWh/kg and 0.13 kWh/kg of wheat straw dry mass, respectively. Compared to thermal hydrolysate processing alone, the combination of a multi-effect evaporator and pressure-driven ultrafiltration can reduce the heating and cooling energy by 29% and 44%, respectively. However, the ultrafiltration requirements (e.g., electrical energy, membrane area and costs) depend heavily on the properties of the hydrolysate and its interactions with the membrane. This work can contribute to the commercially viable ramp-up of wheat straw multi-product biorefineries.https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/3/602autohydrolysissteamingxylooligosaccharides (XOS)xylanfractionationultrafiltration
spellingShingle Stanislav Parsin
Marvin Scherzinger
Martin Kaltschmitt
Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
Molecules
autohydrolysis
steaming
xylooligosaccharides (XOS)
xylan
fractionation
ultrafiltration
title Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
title_full Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
title_fullStr Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
title_full_unstemmed Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
title_short Energy-Related Assessment of a Hemicellulose-First Concept—Debottlenecking of a Hydrothermal Wheat Straw Biorefinery
title_sort energy related assessment of a hemicellulose first concept debottlenecking of a hydrothermal wheat straw biorefinery
topic autohydrolysis
steaming
xylooligosaccharides (XOS)
xylan
fractionation
ultrafiltration
url https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/3/602
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AT marvinscherzinger energyrelatedassessmentofahemicellulosefirstconceptdebottleneckingofahydrothermalwheatstrawbiorefinery
AT martinkaltschmitt energyrelatedassessmentofahemicellulosefirstconceptdebottleneckingofahydrothermalwheatstrawbiorefinery