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Process Intensification in the Production of Liquid Biofuels: Strategies to Minimize Environmental Impact

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Process Intensification in Chemical Engineering

Abstract

Process intensification is a branch of Chemical Engineering which has taken importance in the last decades, because through its application it is possible to obtain alternative processes with smaller/multitask equipment and reduced energy requirements. Such reductions may have a positive benefit to the environment, since smaller equipment implies less use of material for its construction; while reductions on energy requirements imply lowering direct emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. In this contribution, examples of intensification alternatives recently proposed for enhancement of processes is presented. In particular, process intensification in the production of liquid biofuels is analyzed. The application of such tool in the production of biofuels, which are expected to reduce environmental impact when compared to the use of fossil fuel, has both energy savings and further reductions in terms of pollutant emissions.

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Correspondence to Fernando I. Gómez-Castro .

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Gómez-Castro, F.I., Cano-Rodríguez, I., Gamiño-Arroyo, Z. (2016). Process Intensification in the Production of Liquid Biofuels: Strategies to Minimize Environmental Impact. In: Segovia-Hernández, J., Bonilla-Petriciolet, A. (eds) Process Intensification in Chemical Engineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28392-0_10

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