Techno-economic and environmental assessment of triacetin production from crude glycerol at industrial scale

As global energy use continues to rise, renewable fuels like biodiesel are becoming more important. The biodiesel market is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. During biodiesel production, a large amount of crude glycerol is created as a by-product. Due to its availability and low cost, crude gylcerol has become an attractive raw material to generate high-value chemicals, however, it is often contaminated and difficult to use, which means it is usually discarded or burned, adding extra cost and waste.

There is growing interest in finding better ways to clean and reuse crude glycerol. This study presents a practical, large-scale solution that transforms glycerol from biodiesel production into a high-value product called triacetin, helping reduce waste while creating new economic value.

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