Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

Production of bioethanol as a renewable fuel is economically and environmentally significant in Canada, and globally. First-generation bioethanol production is a mature industry primarily based upon starch or sugar-rich feedstock, such as corn or sugarcane. However, the improved environmental benefits of using second-generation feedstock, such as agricultural residue and other cellulosics, are driving the development of new processes to handle those feedstocks. There are many technical challenges that must be addressed before second-generation processes can become commercially viable. Low ethanol concentrations in the fermentation broth of second-generation processes make downstream separation difficult from an engineering and economic perspective. Drystill Holding Inc.'s patented hybrid distillation and gas absorption separation technology may be an economical solution to this problem. Known as ""Pass-Through Distillation"" technology, Drystill's innovation allows for the removal of ethanol from the fermentation broth to be decoupled from the rectification of ethanol to reach higher purity without the requirement for additional energy by recovering the heat of absorption of ethanol vapours in an aqueous phase.Sheridan College and Drystill propose to collaborate to conduct a pilot-scale optimization of the pass-through distillation technology's parameters to maximize ethanol removal from a dilute ethanol-water solution while minimizing boil-up by utilizing the pilot-scale distillation equipment available at Sheridan's Davis Campus Chemical Engineering Lab to complete the process. The overall objective is to prove that by using Drystill's invention, ethanol can be stripped from the fermentation broth at low temperatures, offering ethanol producers the potential to recycle and reuse the fermenting organism, as well as eliminate thermally-induced fouling in distillation equipment.