JP2011101608A - Biomass treating system and method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a biomass treating method, by which a process for separating a solid acid catalyst from a solid product after a solid-liquid separation process can be omitted or simplified, and the recycling of a solid acid catalyst can be facilitated, when glucose is produced from a woody biomass in the presence of the solid acid catalyst, and the solid acid catalyst can easily be recycled. <P>SOLUTION: The biomass treating method includes performing a treatment for removing lignin contained in the woody biomass as a woody biomass pre-treatment, subjecting a hydrolysis treatment to a mixture of the woody biomass with the solid acid catalyst after the pre-treatment to produce the hydrolysis treatment product containing glucose, subjecting the hydrolysis treatment product to a solid-liquid separation to separate into the glucose-containing sugar solution and the solid product containing the solid acid catalyst, and then recovering the solid product to recycle for the hydrolysis treatment. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a biomass processing system and method.

  In recent years, biomass, which is a carbon neutral resource, has attracted attention as an alternative resource for fossil resources such as oil. As one of the utilization of such biomass, there is known a technique for producing glucose by saccharifying and hydrolyzing cellulose contained in woody biomass, and further producing bioethanol by subjecting this glucose to alcohol fermentation. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1 below).

  Conventionally, as described in Patent Document 1 below, it is common to generate glucose by adding sulfuric acid to woody biomass and performing a hydrolysis treatment. It was necessary to perform separation, acid recovery and neutralization, and there was a problem of high production costs.

 On the other hand, in recent years, a solid acid catalyst, which is an alternative catalyst for sulfuric acid, and woody biomass are mixed and subjected to hydrolysis treatment to produce glucose (this glucose is deposited on the surface of the solid acid catalyst or biomass residue). The solids such as solid acid catalyst and biomass residue are separated from glucose by solid-liquid separation of this hydrolyzed product containing glucose (which actually adheres as a sugar solution in which water is dissolved in water) In addition, a technology for separating the solid material obtained by the above-mentioned solid-liquid separation into a solid acid catalyst and a biomass residue and reusing the recovered solid acid catalyst for the above hydrolysis treatment has been developed. ing. In this way, by using a solid acid catalyst instead of sulfuric acid, processes such as separation of glucose and acid, acid recovery and neutralization can be simplified, and manufacturing costs can be reduced. .

JP 2006-75007 A

  When the solid acid catalyst is used as described above, it is necessary to separate and recover the solid acid catalyst from the solid after solid-liquid separation. Here, the woody biomass mainly contains cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Although cellulose and hemicellulose can be decomposed by acid, most of lignin does not dissolve in acid, so lignin and solid acid catalyst Therefore, a new problem arises that the separation process becomes complicated.

 The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and the process of separating the solid acid catalyst from the solid after solid-liquid separation can be omitted or simplified, and the reuse of the solid acid catalyst can be facilitated. It is an object to provide a biomass processing system and method.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a biomass processing system according to the present invention includes a pretreatment device that performs a removal process of lignin contained in the woody biomass as a pretreatment of the woody biomass, and the woody biomass after the pretreatment. And a solid acid catalyst to produce a hydrolyzed product containing glucose by hydrolyzing the mixture, a sugar solution containing glucose and the solid acid by solid-liquid separation of the hydrolyzed product A solid-liquid separation device that separates the solid material into a solid material containing a catalyst, collects the solid material, and supplies the solid material to the decomposition device.
Moreover, in the biomass processing system according to the present invention, the pretreatment device performs pretreatment for promoting the glucose formation reaction in the decomposition device in addition to the lignin removal treatment as the woody biomass pretreatment. It is characterized by performing.
In addition, the biomass processing system according to the present invention further includes a fermentation apparatus that generates bioethanol by fermenting the sugar solution obtained from the solid-liquid separator.
On the other hand, the biomass treatment method according to the present invention performs a treatment for removing lignin contained in the woody biomass as a pretreatment of the woody biomass, and hydrolyzes the mixture of the woody biomass after the pretreatment and the solid acid catalyst. A hydrolyzed product containing glucose is produced by the treatment, and the hydrolyzed product is separated into a solid solution containing the glucose solution containing the glucose and a solid product containing the solid acid catalyst by solid-liquid separation. Is recovered and reused in the hydrolysis treatment.
In addition, the biomass treatment method according to the present invention is characterized in that, in addition to the lignin removal treatment, pretreatment for promoting the glucose production reaction is performed as the woody biomass pretreatment.
The biomass processing method according to the present invention is characterized in that bioethanol is produced by fermenting the sugar solution obtained by solid-liquid separation of the hydrolyzed product.

In the present invention, since the lignin contained in the woody biomass is removed as a pretreatment of the woody biomass in advance, among cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin contained in the woody biomass, cellulose and hemicellulose which are easily soluble in acid are later. The sugar solution containing glucose and the solid acid by hydrolyzing the mixture of the woody biomass after the pretreatment and the solid acid catalyst, and subjecting the hydrolyzed product to solid-liquid separation. When separated into a solid material containing a catalyst, the solid material is mainly occupied by a solid acid catalyst.
That is, according to the present invention, the step of separating the solid matter after solid-liquid separation into a solid acid catalyst and biomass residue (lignin) is omitted, and the solid matter (solid acid catalyst) obtained after solid-liquid separation is recovered as it is. Can be reused for hydrolysis treatment.
Moreover, even if some biomass residue (lignin) remains in the solid material after solid-liquid separation, the ratio is small, so the solid material after solid-liquid separation is converted into a solid acid catalyst and biomass residue (lignin). The separation process can be simplified.
Thus, according to the present invention, in the case of producing glucose from woody biomass using a solid acid catalyst, the step of separating the solid acid catalyst from the solid after solid-liquid separation can be omitted or simplified. It becomes possible to facilitate the reuse of the catalyst.

It is a block diagram of biomass processing system A concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is the experimental result which performed the alkali treatment and carbonated water treatment as a removal process of the lignin in the pre-processing apparatus 1. FIG. It is the experimental result which performed the hydrolysis process using the carbon type solid acid catalyst about the sample which pre-processed by each method of FIG.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a biomass processing system A according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the biomass processing system A according to the present embodiment uses, as raw materials, woody biomass containing cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin as main components, such as wood chips and waste building materials, which are types of biomass. A chemical plant system to be generated, which includes a pretreatment device 1, a decomposition device 2, a solid-liquid separation device 3, and a bioreactor (fermentation device) 4.

As is well known, cellulose contained in woody biomass is a polysaccharide represented by the chemical formula (C ₆ H ₁₀ O ₅ ) _n , and only glucose (monosaccharide) containing 6 carbon atoms is polymerized. It is a polymer compound. The hemicellulose is a polysaccharide polymer compound excluding cellulose obtained by polymerizing not only glucose but also monosaccharides such as xylose and galactose. Lignin is a polymer compound that has a three-dimensional grain structure and forms wood by surrounding the cellulose and hemicellulose.

  The pretreatment apparatus 1 performs a lignin removal treatment as a pretreatment of the woody biomass supplied as a raw material, and also cuts or amorphizes cellulose fibers contained in the woody biomass, and decomposes hemicellulose. For example, a pretreatment for promoting a glucose production reaction (cellulose saccharification reaction) in the decomposition apparatus 2 described later is performed.

For example, either of the following two can be adopted as the lignin removal process performed in the pretreatment apparatus 1 described above.
(1) Alkali treatment The lignin contained in the woody biomass is solubilized and separated by subjecting the woody biomass to an alkali treatment using NaOH or ammonia.
(2) Bleaching The lignin contained in the woody biomass is decomposed by bleaching the woody biomass using chlorine, carbon dioxide or sodium hypochlorite.

  The pretreatment device 1 performs the pretreatment as described above, and then supplies the woody biomass after the pretreatment (hereinafter referred to as pretreated biomass) to the decomposition device 2. The pretreated biomass supplied from the pretreatment device 1 to the decomposition device 2 in this way includes cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin which are easily dissolved in acid among cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin contained in the woody biomass before pretreatment. It will be included mainly.

  The cracking device 2 mixes the pretreated biomass supplied from the pretreatment device 1 and the solid acid catalyst supplied from the solid-liquid separation device 3, and hydrolyzes the mixture. By this hydrolysis treatment, a saccharification reaction of cellulose contained in the pretreated biomass occurs, and the cellulose is decomposed into glucose which is a kind of hexasaccharide. Here, the solid acid catalyst is a solid acid having catalytic performance comparable to sulfuric acid, and various types of solid acid catalysts have been developed. The present applicant has succeeded in developing a carbon-based solid acid catalyst that exceeds the cellulose saccharification performance of conventional solid acid catalysts from inexpensive raw materials such as plants and sugar. By using a catalyst, glucose can be produced from cellulose with high efficiency.

In addition, since both the pretreated biomass and the solid acid catalyst are solid, in order to promote the saccharification reaction of cellulose, the pretreated biomass and the solid acid catalyst are sufficiently stirred and mixed to contact each other. It is necessary to let Therefore, as the decomposing apparatus 2, it is desirable to use an apparatus for kneading solids such as a stirrer, a kneader, a blender, and a fluidized bed reactor presented in Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-28358. Moreover, in order to perform a hydrolysis process, the decomposition apparatus 2 is equipped with the mechanism which supplies heat and water from the outside.
As described above, the decomposition apparatus 2 generates a hydrolyzed product containing glucose (glucose is attached to the surface of the solid acid catalyst) and supplies it to the solid-liquid separation apparatus 3.

  The solid-liquid separation device 3 separates the hydrolyzed product supplied from the decomposition device 2 into a sugar solution containing glucose and a solid material containing a solid acid catalyst by solid-liquid separation, and collects the solid material. Then, the sugar solution containing glucose is supplied to the bioreactor 4 while being supplied (reused) to the above-described decomposition apparatus 2. As such a solid-liquid separator 3, a tank / decanter device can be used. Water is stored in the tank of this tank / decanter device, the hydrolyzed product produced by the decomposition device 2 is supplied into the water, and glucose adhering to the surface of the solid acid catalyst dissolves in the water. . Since the solid acid catalyst, which is a solid material, accumulates in the lower part of the tank, the solid material is supplied to the decomposition apparatus 2 by opening and closing a valve.

  Further, as a method of solid-liquid separation, water is sprayed and washed on the hydrolyzed product, and a sugar solution obtained by dissolving glucose in water is collected and supplied to the bioreactor 4, while the remaining solid product May adopt a method of supplying to the disassembling apparatus 2 by a conveying apparatus such as a conveyor or a feeder.

  The bioreactor 4 adds an ethanol-fermenting microorganism such as yeast and a nutrient source such as nitrogen and phosphorus to the sugar solution supplied from the solid-liquid separation device 3 under conditions such as an appropriate temperature and pH. Bioethanol is produced by culturing microorganisms and subjecting the sugar solution to alcohol fermentation. As the ethanol fermentation microorganism, various known microorganisms such as Saccharomyces yeast can be used.

 In the biomass processing system A according to the present embodiment described above, since the lignin contained in the woody biomass is removed by the pretreatment device 1 as a pretreatment of the woody biomass in advance, cellulose, hemicellulose, and Among the lignins, cellulose and hemicellulose that are easily soluble in acid are sent to the subsequent process. Then, the decomposition apparatus 2 hydrolyzes the mixture of the pretreated woody biomass (pretreated biomass) and the solid acid catalyst to produce a hydrolyzed product containing glucose, and further, a solid-liquid separation apparatus 3, when the hydrolyzed product is separated into a solid solution containing glucose and a solid product containing a solid acid catalyst, the solid product is mainly occupied by the solid acid catalyst (biomass residue ( There is almost no lignin).

That is, according to this embodiment, the process of separating the solid after solid-liquid separation into a solid acid catalyst and biomass residue (lignin) as in the prior art can be omitted, and the solid obtained after solid-liquid separation ( The solid acid catalyst) can be recovered as it is and reused in the hydrolysis treatment.
Moreover, even if some biomass residue (lignin) remains in the solid material after solid-liquid separation, the ratio is small, so the solid material after solid-liquid separation is converted into a solid acid catalyst and biomass residue (lignin). The separation process can be simplified.
Thus, according to this embodiment, when producing glucose from woody biomass using a solid acid catalyst, the step of separating the solid acid catalyst from the solid after solid-liquid separation can be omitted or simplified, It becomes possible to facilitate the reuse of the acid catalyst.

(Example)
FIG. 2 shows the experimental results of alkali treatment and carbonated water treatment as the lignin removal treatment in the pretreatment apparatus 1 described above. FIG. 2 (a) shows the reduction rate of the wood-containing component by the alkali treatment (1% NaOHaq.). FIG.2 (b) has shown the decreasing rate of the wood-containing component by alkali treatment (5% NaOHaq.). FIG.2 (c) has shown the decreasing rate of the wood-containing component by a carbonated water process. In FIG. 2, each processing time is 20 minutes.
From the experimental results shown in FIG. 2, it was found that lignin removal and cellulose component molecular weight reduction can be most efficiently performed under the conditions of alkali treatment (5% NaOHaq.) (Temperature 220 ° C., treatment time 20 minutes).

Then, the experimental result which performed the hydrolysis process using the carbon-type solid acid catalyst about the sample which performed pre-processing by said each method is shown in FIG. In FIG. 3, the conditions for the hydrolysis treatment are: reaction temperature: 373 K, catalyst amount: 3 g, larch: 1 g, water amount: 3.4 ml, stirring speed: 370 rpm.
From the experimental results shown in FIG. 3, compared to the sample not subjected to the pretreatment (“pulverization only” in FIG. 3), the sample subjected to the pretreatment (particularly “alkaline treatment (5% NaOHaq.)” In FIG. ), A significant improvement in catalytic activity by about 1.7 times was confirmed.

  A ... Biomass processing system, 1 ... Pretreatment device, 2 ... Decomposition device, 3 ... Solid-liquid separation device, 4 ... Bioreactor (fermentation device)

Claims (6)

A pretreatment device for removing lignin contained in the woody biomass as a pretreatment of the woody biomass;
A decomposing apparatus that generates a hydrolyzed product containing glucose by hydrolyzing a mixture of the woody biomass after the pretreatment and the solid acid catalyst;
A solid-liquid separation device that separates the hydrolyzed product into a liquid solution containing glucose and a solid material containing the solid acid catalyst by solid-liquid separation, collects the solid material, and supplies the solid product to the decomposition device; ,
A biomass processing system comprising:   The said pretreatment apparatus performs the pretreatment which accelerates | stimulates the production | generation reaction of the said glucose in the said decomposition | disassembly apparatus other than the removal process of the said lignin as a pretreatment of the said woody biomass. Biomass processing system.   The biomass processing system according to claim 1, further comprising a fermentation apparatus that produces bioethanol by fermenting the sugar solution obtained from the solid-liquid separation apparatus. As a pretreatment of the woody biomass, the lignin contained in the woody biomass is removed,
Producing a hydrolyzed product containing glucose by hydrolyzing the mixture of the woody biomass after the pretreatment and the solid acid catalyst,
The hydrolyzed product is separated into a solid solution containing the glucose solution and the solid product containing the solid acid catalyst by solid-liquid separation, and the solid product is recovered and reused for the hydrolysis treatment.
The biomass processing method characterized by the above-mentioned.   The biomass treatment method according to claim 4, wherein, in addition to the lignin removal treatment, pretreatment for promoting the glucose production reaction is performed as the woody biomass pretreatment.   The biomass processing method according to claim 4 or 5, wherein bioethanol is produced by fermenting the sugar solution obtained by solid-liquid separation of the hydrolyzed product.

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