Early‐Stage Capital Cost Estimation of Biorefinery Processes: A Comparative Study of Heuristic Techniques. Issue 17 (3rd August 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Tsagkari, Mirela; Couturier, Jean‐Luc; Kokossis, Antonis; Dubois, Jean‐Luc
• Is Part Of: ChemSusChem. Volume 9:Issue 17(2016:Sep.)
• Page Start: 2284
• Page End: 2297
• Publication Date: 2016-08-03
• Subjects: biomass -- early-stage estimates -- investments -- process development -- sustainable chemistry; Green chemistry -- Periodicals; Sustainable engineering -- Periodicals; Chemistry -- Periodicals; Chemical engineering -- Periodicals; 660
• DOI: 10.1002/cssc.201600309
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1864-5631

Abstract

Abstract: Biorefineries offer a promising alternative to fossil‐based processing industries and have undergone rapid development in recent years. Limited financial resources and stringent company budgets necessitate quick capital estimation of pioneering biorefinery projects at the early stages of their conception to screen process alternatives, decide on project viability, and allocate resources to the most promising cases. Biorefineries are capital‐intensive projects that involve state‐of‐the‐art technologies for which there is no prior experience or sufficient historical data. This work reviews existing rapid cost estimation practices, which can be used by researchers with no previous cost estimating experience. It also comprises a comparative study of six cost methods on three well‐documented biorefinery processes to evaluate their accuracy and precision. The results illustrate discrepancies among the methods because their extrapolation on biorefinery data often violates inherent assumptions. This study recommends the most appropriate rapid cost methods and urges the development of an improved early‐stage capital cost estimation tool suitable for biorefinery processes. Abstract : Get in quick ! Rapid capital cost estimation during early stages of biorefinery process development is crucial for determining the viability and continuity of the project. This review discusses existing cost estimation techniques, investigates their accuracy for biorefineries, and suggests the most suitable ones for inexperienced estimators.