Full Title: Optimizing fermentation process miscanthus-to-ethanol biorefinery scale under uncertain conditions
Author(s): Matthew Bomberg, Daniel L Sanchez, and Timothy E Lipman
Publisher(s): Environmental Research Letters
Publication Date: June 1, 2014
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Description (excerpt):
One outstanding question in the development of a mature cellulosic ethanol industry is the optimal scale of biorefining activities. This question is important for companies and entrepreneurs seeking to construct and operate cellulosic ethanol biorefineries as it determines the size of investment needed and the amount of feedstock for which they must contract. The question also has important implications for the nature and location of lifecycle environmental impacts from cellulosic ethanol. We use an optimization framework similar to previous studies, but add richer details by treating many of these critical parameters as random variables and incorporating a stochastic sub-model for land conversion. We then use Monte Carlo simulation to obtain a probability distribution for the optimal scale of a biorefinery using a fermentation process and miscanthus feedstock.