Sustainability metrics for a fossil- and renewable-based route for 1,2-propanediol production: A comparison

Historically 1,2-PDO had always been exclusively produced from fossil resources and many routes have been industrially commercialized. More recently, new strategies based on renewable resources have allowed for the development of technology for the commercial production of 1,2-PDO from glycerol. In the present study the fossil-based chlorhydrin process is taken as a reference and compared to the catalytic hydrogenolysis of glycerol route to evaluate which one is the most advantageous in terms of sustainability. To this extent, a concise and practical approach is employed that allows for an early stage comparison based on four preselected green metrics that estimate material and energy efficiency, economic added value and land use. The evaluation shows that the renewable-based routes can provide a viable alternative to the petrochemical route and both approaches must therefore be considered in a global process. Importantly, the production of valuable co-products needs to be included in such an assessment as these strongly influence its outcome. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.