Assessment of Conversion Technologies for Bioalcohol Fuel ...

Future Plans–The company has licensed its technology to Marubeni Corporation to
operate a 323,424 gallon per year plant in Osaka, Japan, expected to be operational
in 2007 and expanded to a capacity of 1.057 million gallons in 2008. With completion
of Celunol’s merger with Diversa, the combined companies intend to accelerate the
commercialization of their cellulosic ethanol production technology. A commercialscale
facility at the Jennings, LA site is among the future projects under consideration.
Dedini Industrias de Base, Piracicaiba, SP, Brazil
Organizational Background–The Brazilian company Dedini, formed in 1920, is one
of Brazil’s largest and most diverse industrial corporations,with areas of business
ranging from chemicals, to food and beverages, to mining and cement, and including a
number of energy-related business areas. One of Dedini’s primary areas of
specialization is equipment for sugar and ethanol production plants as well as
complete turn-key plants. Over 80% of the ethanol produced in Brazil reportedly
employs Dedini equipment. In 1987, Dedini began development of biomass-to-ethanol
production technology, in partnership with the Brazilian sugar and ethanol producer
Copersucar and the State of Sao Paulo Research Supporting Foundation (FAPESP),
with funding support from the World Bank.
Technology Characteristics–Dedini’s technology, shown in Figure A10, is known
as the Dedini Hidrolise Rapida (DHR) process, Portuguese for Rapid Hydrolysis. DHR
uses the “organosolve” hydrolysis process to convert sugarcane bagasse into sugars
which are then fermented and distilled into ethanol via conventional ethanol plant
processes. The single-stage process employs both a very dilute acid for reduction of
cellulose and hemicellulose to sugars and a strong solvent for lignin extraction. Of
many lignin solvents tested, ethanol itself proved most effective and was selected for
application. Both the ethanol solvent and the acid are recycled in the process, and
lignin is recovered for use as a supplementary boiler fuel. DHR’s main unique feature
is reduced hydrolysis reaction time (only a few minutes) in a continuous highthroughput
process, with quick cooling of the hydrolysate. This is said to enable low
capital and operating costs, higher yields and reduced operating complexity. Patents
for the DHR process have been issued (beginning in 1996) in Brazil, the U.S.,
Canada, the European Union, and Russia, and applied for in Japan and other
countries.
Development Status–Following initial laboratory-scale testing, Dedini developed a
100 liters-per-day pilot plant at the Copersucar Technology Center in Piracicaiba,
which has undergone 345 test runs over 2,100 hours with the DHR process.
Technical-economic feasibility of the process is said to be confirmed by the pilot plant.
Since 1992, Dedini and its partners have also operated a “semi-industrial”
demonstration plant with the DHR technology, located at the Sao Luiz Sugar and
Ethanol Plant in Pirassununga, Sao Paulo State. The DHR demonstration plant is
coupled with the conventional sugarcane-to-ethanol plant, sharing various utility and
82