Process Intensification approach for chemicals production from waste and biomass

This project aims to develop a sustainable approach to produce value-added products from waste and biomass. The industrial partner (Enerkem) uses municipal solid waste and other biomass to produce syngas, which is further converted to methanol or ethanol. Currently, the company seeks to enhance this capability by producing other value-added chemicals. One of the key steps in the desired technology is the production of methyl acetate. Enerkem recently patented a catalyst that is highly selective to methyl acetate during dimethyl ether carbonylation without the addition of a toxic iodide, as typically used in industry. The proposed project addresses the detailed regeneration study of the catalyst and the technology scale-up.

Faculty Supervisor:

Natalia Semagina

Student:

Mohammad Reza Fayaz

Partner:

Enerkem

Discipline:

Engineering - chemical / biological

Sector:

Alternative energy

University:

Program: