Energy-saving investigation and techno-economic analysis of separation of ibuprofen sodium mother liquor using thermally coupled distillation

Abstract

Abstract To further reduce the energy consumption, investment and operation cost of the distillation process, DWC-B and FTCDC are used to strengthen the separation process of ibuprofen sodium mother liquor. Based on the process simulation results, thermodynamic efficiency, economic and environmental impact assessment were carried out and compared with the benchmarked CTCD process. DWC-B and FTCDC have obvious advantages in economy, energy saving and environmental impact. Compared with the benchmarked CTCD process, the FTCDC process is more attractive economically, and its total annual cost is reduced by about 7.83%. The thermodynamic efficiency of DWC-B is 17.62%, and the CO2 emission is reduced by 11.39%. Compared with the benchmarked CTCD process, DWC-B and FTCDC have the advantages of high thermodynamic efficiency, low economic cost and low CO2 emission with a great industrial application prospect.