Sustainability of Thermochemical Waste Conversion Technologies

本書詳細探討了透過熱化學轉換途徑生產生物燃料和生物化學品的可持續性。可持續性涵蓋了生產技術的社會、經濟、環境、政治和熱力學效率。評估廢棄物轉換途徑的可持續性有助於找出低效率之處，從而在經濟、環境和熱力學上改善過程。本書討論了熱化學轉換為生物產品（如生物柴油和生物電力）的主要可持續潛在原料/廢棄物。儘管存在許多熱化學廢棄物轉換途徑（如燃燒、氣化和熱解），這些途徑在實驗室、試點和商業規模上運作，但其可持續性指標卻稀少，因為幫助找出低效率的可持續性評估工具不多。本書使用技術經濟分析以及外部生命週期評估工具來評估各類熱化學轉換途徑的可持續性。本書詳細說明了常見的可持續性問題以及未來可持續熱化學廢棄物轉換為生物產品的方向。為了整體可持續性，本書還討論了熱化學廢棄物轉換過程開發的替代方案。考慮到其範疇，這是對可再生能源政策制定者、學術界及相關產業的生物過程研究者、學習綠色化學、化學和機械工程領域的學生，以及對可持續發展的生物燃料有濃厚興趣的公眾來說，都是一個寶貴的資源。幾乎所有關於熱化學生物質轉換的書籍僅針對過程和新技術進行探討，但很少有書籍關注與可持續性相關的技術和熱力學問題，這是因為在製造過程中使用了化石燃料。本書填補了這一知識空白，並隨後概述了生物燃料和生物化學品生產的具體外部改進選項，這在文獻中相對稀缺。本書以更簡明的方式評估生物過程技術的可持續性，幫助學生理解並在未來的工程職業中應用這些知識。

Dr. Cynthia Ofori-Boateng is currently an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown with a BSc., MSc. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering. Prior to her current role, she was a Senior Scientist supporting Upstream Process Development Projects at the Center for Breakthrough Medicines at the Discovery Labs and Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories, Inc. with Janssen Pharmaceutical Company of Johnson and Johnson in Pennsylvania, USA. Cynthia has about 15 years of both academic and industrial experience through which she has been able to achieve excellence through publications, research, scholarships, and teaching. Cynthia was part of a team that designed and installed a 10 m3 biogas plant as well as built a fuel analytical testing laboratory for Koforidua Technical University in Ghana. Whilst at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA/ARS) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, Cynthia helped her team to develop a new technology (Tail Gas Reactive Pyrolysis/TGRP) which was more sustainable than the existing pyrolysis plant. Cynthia led the team to assess and improve the sustainability of the TGRP plant which could produce biofuel to generate electricity at about 65% cheaper selling price compared to conventional electricity production from crude oil. With the same innovative engineering and entrepreneurial ideas and skills, Cynthia has supervised many groups of students to design pilot and commercial biofuel production plants utilizing waste materials for potential funding, set up and operation. Cynthia's Bioproducts Sustainability Research Group also performs laboratory experiments on how to improve biofuel production plants by optimizing and modeling processes in Aspen Plus software and performing sustainability assessment via the exergetic life cycle (ExLCA) and exergo-economic analyses tools. Cynthia's main career focus has been on the Sustainability of Biorefineries and Waste Management Technologies. Cynthia has attended numerous international conferences to present her research findings, and has published numerous research articles, a couple of books and book chapters. Cynthia is a member of the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE), American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) and American Chemical Society (ACS).

Dr. Cynthia Ofori-Boateng 目前是匹茲堡大學約翰斯鎮校區的化學工程助理教授，擁有化學工程的學士、碩士及博士學位。在擔任目前職位之前，她曾是突破醫藥中心的高級科學家，支持上游過程開發專案，並在美國賓夕法尼亞州的Discovery Labs和Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories, Inc. 與強生製藥公司合作。Cynthia 擁有約15年的學術和產業經驗，透過發表論文、研究、獎學金和教學等方式取得卓越成就。Cynthia 是設計並安裝一座10立方米生物氣體廠的團隊成員，並為加納的科福里杜亞技術大學建立了一個燃料分析測試實驗室。在美國農業部（USDA/ARS）賓夕法尼亞州Wyndmoor的工作期間，Cynthia 協助她的團隊開發了一項新技術（尾氣反應熱解/Tail Gas Reactive Pyrolysis, TGRP），其可持續性優於現有的熱解廠。Cynthia 帶領團隊評估並改善TGRP廠的可持續性，該廠能以約65%較低的售價生產生物燃料以發電，相較於傳統的原油發電。憑藉相同的創新工程和企業家思維及技能，Cynthia 指導多組學生設計利用廢料的生物燃料生產試點和商業化工廠，以尋求潛在資金、設置及運營。Cynthia 的生物產品可持續性研究小組還進行實驗室實驗，研究如何通過在Aspen Plus軟體中優化和建模過程來改善生物燃料生產廠，並通過外部生命週期（ExLCA）和外部經濟分析工具進行可持續性評估。Cynthia 的主要職業重點是生物精煉廠的可持續性和廢物管理技術。Cynthia 參加了多次國際會議以發表她的研究成果，並發表了多篇研究文章、幾本書籍和書章。Cynthia 是加納工程師協會（GhIE）、美國化學工程師學會（AIChE）和美國化學學會（ACS）的成員。