Ecodesign of a process for dimethyl carbonate: Influence of the degree of modelling of the methanolysis of urea

Abstract

The environmental performance of emerging bio-based technologies must be assessed at an early stage of their development, when the process can still be modified for sustainable optimization, i.e. including environmental, social and economic aspects. The Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) methodology is already recognized as an effective solution for environmental analysis. However, the data obtained at the laboratory scale are incomplete in the initial stage of the eco-design of a new synthesis route, which complicates the inventory of the life cycle. Coupling a process modelling/simulation tool with LCA has proven to be an effective solution for providing inventory data. The simulation of a process is based on the selection of models allowing the environmental, energy and economic optimization of a technology to be developed on the production scale. The choice of models for the reaction and separation steps will certainly have a significant impact on the results of the environmental assessment. This article is dedicated to the study of the impact of the degree of complexity of the modelling of the reaction pathway on the environmental assessment of the process of methanolysis of urea to produce dimethyl carbonate (DMC).