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Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Production and Fractionation of Bio-Oil Derived from Palm Kernel Shell: a Gate-to-Gate Case Study

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Abstract

This paper presents the life cycle assessment (LCA) of a novel process involving hydrothermal liquefaction of palm kernel shell (PKS) to produce bio-oil and subsequent extraction using supercritical CO2 (sc-CO2) to obtain a phenol-rich extract. In this study, five environmental impact categories, namely global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP), eutrophication potential (EP), human toxicity potential (HTP), and photochemical ozone creation potential (POCP), were considered. In addition, a qualitative analysis on technology readiness level (TRL) on the interpretation of the LCA results was included. Lastly, conventional production of crude phenol was chosen as the benchmark for comparison to identify the environmental impact margins that need to be bridged in the future through process improvements.

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Funding

This research is supported by Long-Term Research Grant Scheme (LRGS) under the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), Malaysia and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Bilateral Joint Research Program in collaboration with Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia, De La Salle University, Philippines, and Kumamoto University, Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biomass Processing Lab, Center of Biofuel and Biochemical Research, Institute of Self-Sustainable Building, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610, Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia

    Yi Herng Chan, Suzana Yusup & Yoshimitsu Uemura

  2. Chemical Engineering Department, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610, Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia

    Yi Herng Chan, Suzana Yusup & Yoshimitsu Uemura

  3. Chemical Engineering Department, De La Salle University, 2401 Taft Avenue, 0922, Manila, Philippines

    Raymond R. Tan

  4. Department of Applied Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Chuo-ku, Kumamoto, 860-8555, Japan

    Armando T. Quitain

  5. International Research Organization for Advanced Science and Technology, Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Chuo-ku, Kumamoto, 860-8555, Japan

    Armando T. Quitain

  6. Energy and Environmental Unit, Engineering and Processing Division, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, 6, Persiaran Institusi, Bandar Baru Bangi, 43000, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Soh Kheang Loh

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  1. Yi Herng Chan
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Correspondence to Suzana Yusup.

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Chan, Y.H., Tan, R.R., Yusup, S. et al. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Production and Fractionation of Bio-Oil Derived from Palm Kernel Shell: a Gate-to-Gate Case Study. Process Integr Optim Sustain 2, 343–351 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41660-018-0052-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41660-018-0052-3

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