Browsing by Author "Inayat, Abrar"

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Cleaner and Sustainable Synthesis of High Quality Monoglycerides by use of Enzyme Technologies: Techno-economic and Environmental study for Monolaurin
(2022-09) Mustafa, Ahmad; Fathy, Sara; Kutlu, Ozben; Niikura, Fumiya; Inayat, Abrar; Mustafa, Muhammad; Abdellatie, Tamer M.M.; Bokhari, Awais; Samuel, David; Pastore, Carlo; Bitonto, Luigi; Mohsen, Reham
Currently, monoglycerides (MG) are produced using a complicated energy intensive technology that contributes negatively toward greenhouse gas mitigation. This work suggests a cleaner and simpler one-step enzymatic production of α-monolaurin in an inert membrane reactor, where the reaction and enzyme separation are conducted simultaneously in one unit. Candida antarctica lipase (Lipozyme 435) was used to catalyze the esterification reaction between lauric acid and glycerin in a solvent-free system under mild temperatures. Response surface methodology was used to optimize the reaction conditions. The optimal conditions were a molecular sieve of 14.85% w/w, a temperature of 56.95°C, an enzyme amount of 5.38% w/w, and a molar ratio of 4.75% w/w. The gas chromatography (GC) analysis showed that the α-monolaurin percentage was 49.5% when the enzymatic process (ENZ) was used. The conventional chemical (CHEM) and autocatalytic (AUT) esterification methods were also performed to study their proportional MG yields. The GC results showed the MG percentages of 43.9% and 41.7% for CHEM and AUT, respectively. Economic analysis was also conducted for the suggested enzymatic technique, and the findings were compared with those of the CHEM and AUT technologies. Using a plant capacity of 4950 t/year and 11% interest for the proposed ENZ process, the total capital investment of α-monolaurin production was preferably four times less than that of the CHEM process and three times less than that of the AUT method, presenting investment possibilities. However, the ENZ process showed the least profitability (net profit per day) among the three processes. Nevertheless, the return on investment and net present value for the ENZ process were preferably higher than those of CHEM and AUT because of its interestingly lower inside battery limit plant cost and less energy consumption. The AUT/CHEM processes generated a total carbon dioxide (CO2 ) exhaust of t CO2 678.7 eq./year. In contrast, the ENZ process exhausted a total CO2 of only 50 t CO2 eq./year. The present integrated techno-economic and environmental study of α-monolaurin production emphasizes the green and cost benefits of the proposed ENZ technology.
Eco-friendly isopropyl myristate production in a fixed bed reactor: Leveraging energy-saving enzymatic techniques with a comprehensive evaluation of techno-economic feasibility
(Elsevier Ltd, 2024-06) Mustafa, Ahmad; Sadek, M. Shaaban; Abou Taleb, Manal F; Munir, Mamoona; Kutlu, Ozben; Pastore, Carlo; Bitonto, Luigi di; Faisal, Shah; Hammad, Hossam; Ibrahim, Mohamed M; Abdellatief, Tamer M.M; Bokhari, Awais; Samuel, Olusegun David; Inayat, Abrar; El-Bahy, Zeinhom M
This study aims to develop a straightforward, eco-friendly, and energy-saving approach for producing isopropyl myristate (IPM) through lipase-catalyzed esterification in a fixed bed reactor. The reaction between isopropyl alcohol and myristic acid was catalyzed using Novozym 435. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was utilized to examine the interaction of various reaction parameters on the yield of IPM. The highest observed and predicted conversion rates were 95 % and 94.2 %, respectively. The optimum conditions included a molar ratio of isopropyl alcohol to myristic acid of 15:1, a time of 12 h, and a flow rate of 1.25 ml/min. The synthesized IPM was isolated and comprehensively characterized using GC–MS, FTIR, 1H, and 13C NMR techniques. To further validate the applicability of this method, a Process Simulation Diagram (PSD) was developed using ASPEN PLUS software to simulate IPM production under the optimized conditions. Economic analysis revealed a positive net present value (NPV) of $169,664,820.33 and a return on investment (ROI) of 536.52 %, indicating that this sustainable approach offers low investment risks and high profitability.
Has the time finally come for green oleochemicals and biodiesel production using large-scale enzyme technologies? Current status and new developments
(Elsevier Inc., 2023-10) Mustafa, Ahmad; Faisal, Shah; Ahmed, Inas A; Munir, Mamoona; Cipolatti, Eliane Pereira; Manoel, Evelin Andrade; Pastore, Carlo; di Bitonto, Luigi; Hanelt, Dieter; Nitbani, Febri Odel; El-Bahy, Zeinhom M; Inayat, Abrar; Abdellatief, Tamer M.M; Tonova, Konstantza; Bokhari, Awais; Abomohra, Abdelfatah
With the growth of the chemical industry over the last decade, the need for cheaper (and more environmentally friendly) alternatives to petrochemicals of ever-increasing cost has grown steadily. Oleochemicals and biodiesel (OC/BD) are considered as green alternatives to petroleum derivatives, because they come from renewable oils and fats. OC/BD are currently produced by the traditional energy intensive chemical catalyzed methods, which have several economic and environmental drawbacks. For these reasons, the enzymatic production of OC/BD has attracted a growing attention for their greener pathway with respect to the chemically catalyzed processes. Lipase-catalyzed processes have a low energy requirement, since reactions are performed under atmospheric pressure and mild temperature and without the creation of side reactions. Furthermore, utilization of enzyme catalysts offers many advantages such as reducing the initial capital investment due to simplified downstream processing steps. Despite all the previous advantages, however, the high cost of lipases restricted their large-scale utilization. In the past decade, efforts have been made to reduce the cost of the enzymatic-catalyzed synthesis of OC/BD. However, most previous studies have studied only the technical feasibility of the lipase-catalyzed re- actions and overlocked the economic viability. This review critically discusses the factors affecting the promotion of the economic feasibility of the enzymatic processes from the lab to large scale. These include reactor configuration, type of feedstock, conditions optimization, immobilization, lipase-producing microorganisms
Has the time finally come for green oleochemicals and biodiesel production using large-scale enzyme technologies? Current status and new developments
(Elsevier Inc, 2023-12) Mustafa, Ahmad; Faisal, Shah; Ahmed, Inas A; Munir, Mamoona; Cipolatti, Eliane Pereira; Manoel, Evelin Andrade; Pastore, Carlo; Bitonto, Luigi di; Hanelt, Dieter; Nitbani, Febri Odel; El-Bahy, Zeinhom M; Inayat, Abrar; Abdellatief, Tamer M.M; Tonova, Konstantza; Bokhari, Awais; Abomohra, Abdelfatah
With the growth of the chemical industry over the last decade, the need for cheaper (and more environmentally friendly) alternatives to petrochemicals of ever-increasing cost has grown steadily. Oleochemicals and biodiesel (OC/BD) are considered as green alternatives to petroleum derivatives, because they come from renewable oils and fats. OC/BD are currently produced by the traditional energy intensive chemical catalyzed methods, which have several economic and environmental drawbacks. For these reasons, the enzymatic production of OC/BD has attracted a growing attention for their greener pathway with respect to the chemically catalyzed processes. Lipase-catalyzed processes have a low energy requirement, since reactions are performed under atmospheric pressure and mild temperature and without the creation of side reactions. Furthermore, utilization of enzyme catalysts offers many advantages such as reducing the initial capital investment due to simplified downstream processing steps. Despite all the previous advantages, however, the high cost of lipases restricted their large-scale utilization. In the past decade, efforts have been made to reduce the cost of the enzymatic-catalyzed synthesis of OC/BD. However, most previous studies have studied only the technical feasibility of the lipase-catalyzed reactions and overlocked the economic viability. This review critically discusses the factors affecting the promotion of the economic feasibility of the enzymatic processes from the lab to large scale. These include reactor configuration, type of feedstock, conditions optimization, immobilization, lipase-producing microorganisms.
Highly selective synthesis of glyceryl monostearate via lipase catalyzed esterification of triple pressed stearic acid and glycerin
(Elsevier Ltd., 2023-04) Mustafa, Ahmad; Ramadan, Rehab; Niikura, Fumiya; Inayat, Abrar; Hafez, H
The synthesis of value-added products from glycerin is an attractive research area that aims to valorize this abundant by-product of the biodiesel industry. Thus, raising the economic feasibility and mitigating the envi- ronmental consequences. In this work, an alternative green, energy-efficient, and selective enzymatic (ENZ) esterification of triple-pressed stearic acid (TPSA) and glycerin was carried out to produce glyceryl monostearate (GMS). Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the reaction conditions; the optimum con- ditions were a 6:1 glycerin to TPSA molar ratio, 8% w/w Lipozyme 435 amount, and 350% w/w solvent amount. It is worth mentioning that the solvent addition greatly enhanced the yield of GMS compared to the conventional autocatalytic esterification (AUT) process. The proposed ENZ approach was also economically assessed, and the findings were compared to those of the AUT method. Considering a plant capacity of 4,950 t year− 1 and an interest of 11%, the total capital investment of the ENZ GMS production was 1.8 times cheaper than the AUT process, suggesting a favorable investment opportunity. In addition, the positively obtained net present value (NPV) and return on investment (ROI) for the ENZ process’s total production costs reveal the proposed method’s economic feasibility. The suggested approach for synthesizing GMS can be seen as a baseline for a cleaner large- scale monoglycerides synthesis
Parametric study for N2O conversion and reduction using cobalt-oxide-based catalysts Lisandra
(John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2022-08-29) Rocha-Meneses, Lisandra; Inayat, Abrar; Ayoub, Muhammad; Ullah, Sami; Naqvi, Salman R; Farrukh, Sarah; Mustafa, Ahmad; Abdullah, Ahmad Z; Bhat, Aamir H
Nitrous oxide is a highly reactive gas with several well-known environmental impacts. Its presence in the atmosphere can decrease the stratospheric ozone levels, cause an increase in the greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to acid-rain formation. Therefore, in this paper the potential and performance of different types of cobalt oxide (Co3O4) catalysts in N2O decomposition and conversion was studied. For this, the catalytic activity of these materials was tested in a differential fixed-bed reactor, operated under steady state conditions. The results obtained in this study show reduced CoO achieved 100% N2O conversion at 250°C; that CoO has a great performance (>95%) in the absence of oxygen and humidity, regardless of the W/F; even at low space velocities (0.1g-sec/mL) and in the absence of humidity the N2O conversion efficiency is still very high (100%); 10% La/CoO has a higher catalytic activity than 10% Ba/CoO, 10% Na/CoO, and 10% W/CoO. The highest catalytic activity (>90%) was reported in samples with 50%La/CoO, even in the presence of 5% H2O and 15% O2.
Selective synthesis of alpha monoglycerides by a clean method: Techno-economic and environmental assessment
(Elsevier, 2022-04-12) Mustafa, Ahmad; Niikura, Fumiya; Pastore, Carlo; Allam, Hoda A; Hassan, Omnia Bassam; Mustafa, Muhamad; Inayat, Abrar; Salah, Sameh A; Abdel Salam, Ahmed; Mohsen, Reham
This work proposes an alternative green and selective biocatalytic route for Glycerin Mono- stearate (α-monostearin) production. The conventional method of production uses an elevated temperature. Apart from the high energy consumption, such high temperatures darken the final product’s color, lead to random reactions, and produce high orders of diglycerides and tri- glycerides instead of monoglycerides. The proposed production process was performed by esterifying stearic acid with glycerin in an organic medium using Candida antarctica lipase (Novozym 435) at a mild temperature. The reaction conditions were optimized using the response surface methodology (RSM): optimum conditions were a temperature of 60 ◦C, glycerin to stearic acid molar ratio of 8:1, and Novozym 435 amount of 6% w/w. The solvent addition remarkably improved the α-monostearin yield to nearly 80% without the need for the energy-intensive distillation step. The conventional autocatalytic esterification (AUT) process was also per- formed to investigate the comparative monoglyceride yield, and it was found to be 22.5%. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance and gas-chromatography confirmed that α-monostearin could be produced with the highest purity using the proposed enzymatic method (ENZ). Economic and environmental analyses were also conducted for the proposed ENZ process, and the results were compared with those of the AUT process. The total capital investment of α-monostearin pro- duction, considering a projected capacity of 4950 t year− 1 and 11% interest for the proposed ENZ process, was favorably 2.5 times lower than that of the AUT process, suggesting a promising investment opportunity. However, the total production costs showed unfavorable negative net present value (NPV) and return on investment (ROI) for the ENZ process and favorable positive NPV and ROI for the AUT process, indicating that the proposed venture is not profitable for α-monostearin production. However, the process can be profitable at improved operational sta- bility of Novozym 435 up to 1 kg per 3-ton product. The carbon footprint was calculated on the basis of the given capacity and conditions of 50 and 656 t CO2 eq./year for the ENZ and AUT processes, respectively. The synthesis of α-monostearin using the proposed route can be consid- ered a building block toward a cleaner large-scale production of α-monoglycerides.
Techno-economic assessment of benzyl benzoate clean production using conventional heating or microwaves
(Elsevier BV, 2023-09) Aprile, Simona; Venturi, Valentina; Presini, Francesco; Mustafa, Ahmad; Sadek, M. Shaaban; Inayat, Abrar; Remonatto, Daniela; Giovannini, Pier Paolo; Lerin, Lindomar Alberto
Benzyl benzoate is an important anti-scabies agent, so finding sustainable production processes is essential. This work involved the techno-economic assessment of benzyl benzoate production in a solventless system with conventional heating or microwave-assisted. The proposed processes' conditions were optimized by transesterifying methyl benzoate and benzyl alcohol in a solventless system using the Lipozyme 435 lipase as the catalyst. The optimized conditions were an ester/alcohol molar ratio of 1:6, a temperature of 73 °C, and enzyme loading of 10% and 16% (w/w), for conventional heating and microwave-assisted, respectively. Under these conditions, the two reactions reached conversions greater than 90% in 24 h and 82% in 7 h. The tests on lipase reusability showed that the ester production remains stable for up to 4 use cycles. Gas chromatography and proton NMR confirmed that benzyl benzoate could be produced biocatalytically, and a high purity can be obtained by simple distillation. The economic analysis of the process showed that the total capital investment was favorable, suggesting a promising investment opportunity. Furthermore, a production total cost showed a favorable positive net present value and returned on investment for benzyl benzoate production. Hence, the proposed clean production of benzyl benzoate can be considered for industrial scale-up.
Thermal degradation characteristics, kinetic and thermodynamic analyses of date palm surface fibers at different heating rates
(Elsevier BV, 2022-12) Inayat, Abrar; Jamil, Farrukh; Ahmed, Shams Forruque; Ayoub, Muhammad; Abdul, Peer Mohamed; Aslam, Muhammad; Mofijur, M; Khan, Zakir; Mustafa, Ahmad
The potential of the least-exploited date pam waste was presented as feedstock for bio-oil production. The surface fibers of the date palm are widely available as waste material in the Gulf region, the Middle East, and Africa. Chemical composition analysis and physiochemical characterization showed that surface fibers are valuable feedstock for energy production. Surface fibers were analyzed thermogravimetrically at different heating rates (10, 20, and 30 ◦C /min) in an inert atmosphere. Decomposition was carried out in three stages: dehydration, devolatilization, and solid combustion. Kinetic analysis was performed on the devolatilization region using the Coats–Redfern model–fitting method using twenty–one reaction mechanisms from four different solid-state re- action mechanisms. Two diffusion models: one–way transport (g(x) = α2 ) and Valensi equation (g(x) = α+(1-α) × ln(1-α)) showed the highest regression coefficient (R2 ) with the experimental data. The activation energy (Ea) and the pre-exponential factor (A) was estimated to be 91.40 kJ/mol and 1.59 × 103 –29.39 × 103 min− 1 , respectively. The kinetic parameters were found to be dependent on the heating rate. The surface fibers’ ther- modynamic parameters ΔH, ΔG, and ΔS were 80–97, 151–164, and − 0.17- − 0.18 kJ/mol, respectively. This indicates that the pyrolysis of surface fibers is endothermal and not spontaneous. Since there is not much experimental work on the pyrolysis of surface fibers available in the literature, the reported results are crucial for designing the pyrolysis process.