Techno-economic evaluation and life cycle assessment of a biorefinery using winery waste streams for the production of succinic acid and value-added co-products

This study presents techno-economic evaluation and life cycle assessment of a novel biorefinery using the three main waste streams generated by wineries for the production of bio-based succinic acid (SA), crude phenolic-rich extract, grape-seed oil, calcium tartrate and crude tannin-rich extract. Process design has been employed for the estimation of material and energy balances and the sizing of unit operations. The Minimum Selling Price of succinic acid production within a winery waste biorefinery ranges from $1.23-2.76/kg(SA) depending on the market price and the potential end-uses of the extracted fractions. The Global Warming Potential and the Abiotic Depletion Potential of winery waste valorisation through the proposed biorefinery are 1.47 kg CO2-eq per kg dry waste and 25.2 MJ per kg dry waste, respectively. Biorefining of winery waste could lead to the development of a sustainable and novel bioeconomy business model with new market opportunities and efficient waste management.

Automated summary

This study presents a techno-economic evaluation and life cycle assessment of a novel biorefinery that utilizes waste streams generated by wineries to produce bio-based succinic acid, crude phenolic-rich extract, grape-seed oil, calcium tartrate, and crude tannin-rich extract. The research shows that this biorefinery has the potential to develop a sustainable and efficient waste management system.