Biorefineries value chains

It is also necessary to study the whole value chain as well as the biorefinery value chain for optimization of costs, CO2 reduction, and energy usage. 

A thorough analysis of value chains and the development of alternative value chains starting from biomass derived feedstocks, including assessment of the economic viability of the transformation of the chains, is required. This should be followed by the identification of easy entry points for the implementation of novel value chains. Technical key issues are generic methods to cope with the variability of raw materials derived from biomass and higher susceptibility to contamination by microorganisms and suitable catalysts for biorefineries. 

The biorefinery concept that has emerged is analogous to today s petroleum refineries. However, many current endeavors focus on single technologies and feedstock such as starch or vegetable oils that could compete with food or feed. We need to create flexible, zero-waste biorefineries that can accept a variety of low-value local feedstock. Biorefineries will then be able to compete with existing industries (Clark et al., 2012). Further down the value chain the development of green chemistry fills the gap between the sustainable resource and the product (Poliakoff and License, 2007). 

Development of a Biorefinery Fact Sheet to document and report facts and figures of biorefmeries in a common and compact format, consisting of a brief description, the classification scheme, mass and energy balance as well as a whole value chain-based sustainability assessment in comparison to conventional systems. ... 

The Pine Biorefinery Platform Chemicals Value Chain... 

The Pine Biorefinery Piatform Chernicais Value Chain 135... 

To compete with the traditional fossil-based refineries, biorefineries have to exploit optimally raw materials firom plants and create multiple value chains. Therefore, the concept of a whole-plant biorefinery appears as a more convenient model. Despite the diversity of oil crops, such as soy, rapeseed, sunflower, and palm, the whole-plant biorefinery concept can be applied similarly to all of them. Differences can emerge due to the nature of the plant and the way to recover its seeds containing the vegetable oil. Palm trees, for instance, remain in the soil, and their fruits are harvested, where plants such as rapeseed or sunflower are cut every year. In both cases, the first step of the biorefinery process is to separate the oil-rich seeds firom the lignocellulosic fraction of the plant. 

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