Bio-processing may involve aerobic fermentation, whereas ethanol and chemicals from starches and lignocellulosic materials are generally anaerobic processes. Aerobic fermentation is a metabolic process by which cells metabolize sugars via fermentation in the presence of oxygen and occurs through the repression of normal respiratory metabolism. Aerobic fermentation occurs in the presence of oxygen. It usually occurs at the beginning of the fermentation process. Aerobic fermentation is usually a shorter and more intense process than anaerobic fermentation. Aerobic fermentation is also essential for multiple industries, resulting in human domestication of several yeast strains.
Fermentation has several kinds of process steps and equipment to consider such as media prep (dealing with blending-tanks, agitators, or heat exchangers); propagation (dealing with agitators and other vessels); production fermenters (dealing with vessels or agitators, and internal & external heat exchangers); separations (dealing with evaporators, centrifuges, distillation, or membrane/ultra-filtration); purification (dealing with crystallizers, heat exchangers, and ultra-filtration); and product packaging (dealing with bulk containers (totes), packing lines, and other things.
Lignocellulosic and starch-based fuels and chemicals have several steps to consider as well, such as material prep (dealing with conveying equipment, screening equipment, particle size reduction equipment, and air classifying equipment); hydrolysis (dealing with pretreatment-tanks, agitators, heat exchangers, hydrolysis reactor-tanks, agitators, saccharification, fermentation-tanks, agitators); separations (dealing with screw presses, filtration, centrifuges, distillation, and pressure swing absorption) and co-product preparation (dealing with filtration, drying equipment, conveying equipment, and packaging equipment such as bulk bags, and rail car loaders).
Large renewable energy and biochemical consulting firms will certainly have experts in these areas and the more common areas like biofuels, biomaterials, biomass, biomass power, bio-based chemicals, biotechnologies and renewable fuels and chemicals in general. Energy consultants should be willing to discuss client’s initial questions about renewable energy sources, the types of biofuels, biofuel companies, synthetic biology, the fermentation process, biomass renewable energy, biofuel energy, conversion technologies for things like tires and railroad ties, and about the circular economy in general. These clean energy experts would optimally be part of a larger, multidisciplinary group of green energy consultants with a wide variety of expertise in more specialized areas like biomass production, financial due diligence, organic synthesis, fuel additives, ethanol gas, biodiesel fuel including algae biofuels, solid state and industrial fermentation, green energy grants, ag biotech, agricultural waste, alcohol fuels, alternative proteins and animal-free products, sustainable foods, beverage fermentation, biocatalysis, biodiesel conversion, biogas production, biomass power, carbon intensity, co2 utilization, combined heat & power, Fischer-Tropsch technology, food waste, hydrothermal carbonization, industrial enzymes, landfill management, microbial fermentation, organic synthesis, plastic pyrolysis, plastic recycling, plastic waste, pyrolysis oil, reactor design, renewable identification number, the Renewable Fuel Standard (rfs2), solid recovered fuels, torrefaction and torrefied biomass, waste to energy, and waste-to-hydrogen. Finally, members and strategic partners of these green energy consulting firms should also have the availability to do things like engineering, technical feasibility studies and techno-economic analysis, due diligence, and feasibility studies, and provide expert witness testimony, and should have the contacts to assist with renewable energy finance, accounting, plant safety and insurance, legal, and virtually any other services related to the bioeconomy.
Lee Enterprises Consulting is the world’s premier bioeconomy consulting group, with over 150 highly qualified experts serving in all these areas. Look at our experts and the services we provide. Most of our experts are also available to advise and serve as expert witnesses in bioeconomy litigation matters. For the larger projects, we specialize in putting together full service, interdisciplinary teams with one point of contact. Call us at 1+ (501) 833-8511 or email us for more information.
