Techno-Economic Analysis of Succinic Acid Production from Sugar-Rich Wastewater

Succinic acid (SA) is a valuable platform chemical that can be converted into biodegradable plastics, resins, solvents, etc. The emerging biological routes for SA production are gaining more attention because they exploit the natural abilities of bacteria to fixate carbon dioxide (CO2). On the other hand, an inexpensive organic carbon source that can fulfill the energetic requirements of the microbial strain is also a significant challenge for industrial SA production. The current work presents a holistic techno-economic analysis of SA production using sugar-rich residual streams and biogas as raw materials. Simulation results showed that by establishing an integrated process, high SA production can be simultaneously achieved with biogas upgrading. The CO2 provided from biogas and carbohydrates, which are provided from organic by-products is converted into two products: biomethane (CH4 > 95%, a clean biofuel), and SA. The mass and energy balances and techno-economic indicators were simulated and calculated using SuperPro Designer®. The total capital investment and the total production cost for a facility producing 1000 tSA/year were estimated to be EUR 5,211,000 and EUR 2,339,000 per year, respectively. The total revenue was calculated to be EUR 2,811,000 per year, while the revenue due to biomethane produced, namely, 198,150 Nm3 corresponded to EUR 205,284 per year. The return on investment, payback period, and internal rate of return of the project were found to be 11.68%, 8.56 years, and 11.11%, respectively.