Simulation and Design of a Lactose to Ethanol Conversion Unit in Cyprus

Professor Vassilis Gekas
Co-authors: George Botsaris, Alexandros Koulouris, Ioanna Christodoulidou, Photis Papademas
Department of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Food Science
Cyprus University of Technology
Limassol, Cyprus
E-mail: vassilis.gekas@cut.ac.cy
 

Abstract: Whey is produced as a byproduct following the halloumi cheese manufacturing process. Conversion of lactose, contained into the whey, to bioethanol would have a twofold benefit; (i) at getting rid of an environmental pollution problem andalso (ii) producing a biofuel thus contributing to the renewable energy balance of Cyprus. SuperPro Designer®, a simulation software, was used to run the model simulations because it contains a set of unit procedures that can be customized to the specific modeling needs throughout the lactose-to-ethanol conversion processes. This paper will attempt to first discuss quantitative and qualitative data of lactose production from whey, followed by the application of ethanol-plant simulation models that will be applied in order to convert lactose into biofuel. Finally, an example of an economic analysis generated by SuperPro® Designer will be presented assessing the financial feasibility of the proposed operation. The optimal conditions which such a unit can operate are also demonstrated in an attempt in increase the efficiency and efficacy of the proposed operation.

Short biography: VG was born in 1948 in Larissa of Greece, and graduated from the School of Chemical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) in 1971. He fulfilled his military obligations 1971-1973 in the Greek army and then he worked in the Greek Industry for ten years. .He has specialized in the area of Food Engineering at the University of Lund in Sweden . obtaining his Master Thesis (1986) in “Lactose Hydrolysis towards a mixture of glucose and galactose” and his Ph D thesis (1987) in “Mass Transfer Studies in Ultrafiltration and in Bioreactors”. He did a postdoctoral sejour at the Paul Sabatier University of Toulouse, France, in the academic year 1990/1991, He became Docent (Assistant/Associate) Professor in Sweden in the year 1992. On 23d April 1997, he was elected at the rank of the Professor in the subject of Transport Phenomena at the Department of Environmental Engineering in the Technical University of Crete working there in the period 1998-2010. In the year 2010 he became a Professor at the Department of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Food Science and Technology of the Cyprus University of Technology at the rank of Professor and at the subject of Food Technology and Engineering. His research interests focus on the unit operations concerning the recovery of bioactive substances from aromatic herbs. According to the Web of Science his articles in peer review journal are 69 with a citation index, excluding self-references, 1619 and an h-index of 23. He is also the author of books in DEnglish and Greek.