@article{32185,
  keywords = {Life-cycle assessment, Catalysis, Biofuels, Greenhouse gases, Bioproducts, Butadiene},
  author = {Lipeng Wu and Amit A Gokhale and Konstantinos Goulas and John E Myers and F. F Dean Toste and Corinne D Scown},
  title = {Hybrid Biological–Chemical Approach Offers Flexibility and Reduces the Carbon Footprint of Biobased Plastics, Rubbers, and Fuels},
  abstract = {<p>A critical challenge for the bioenergy research community has been producing drop-in hydrocarbon fuels and chemicals at yields sufficient to compete with their petroleum-derived counterparts. Biological production of highly reduced compounds poses fundamental challenges. Conversely, glucose, xylose, and sucrose can be fermented to ethanol at near-theoretical yields. Just as olefin crackers are often considered a gateway for petrochemical complexes that produce an array of downstream products, catalytic ethanol upgrading can potentially enable an entire biorefining complex able to produce renewable, low-carbon fuels and chemicals. By doping the Ta2O5/SiO2&nbsp;catalyst with different transition metals, we show that Ostromyslensky catalysts can be utilized for direct conversion of ethanol to varying ratios of 1,3-butadiene (1,3-BD), dietheylether (DEE), and ethylene. These results are integrated into the first comprehensive analysis of ethanol conversion to 1,3-BD, DEE, and ethylene that incorporates empirical data with chemical process modeling and life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) assessment. We find that the suite of products can replace conventional rubber, plastics, and diesel, achieving as much as a 150% reduction in GHG-intensity relative to fossil pathways (net carbon sequestration). Selecting the route with the greatest ethylene and DEE output can maximize total potential emission reductions.</p>},
  year = {2018},
  journal = {ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering},
  volume = {6},
  pages = {14523 - 14532},
  month = {10/2018},
  issn = {2168-0485},
  url = {https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.8b03158https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/acssuschemeng.8b03158},
  doi = {10.1021/acssuschemeng.8b03158},
  language = {eng},
}