Ethanol is a widely used commodity chemical with several applications, including use as a

solvent and as a gasoline blendstock in the fuel market. Globally, the major portion of ethanol
production is based on the fermentation of sugars from crop feedstocks, such as sugarcane, corn,
cellulosic material and others. World fuel ethanol production is about 85 billion liters annually,
with 60% resulting from corn ethanol production in the U.S., and another 25% from sugarcane
ethanol production in Brazil. In view of current environmental issues, including greenhouse gas
emissions, fermentation-based ethanol is considered an alternative to fossil fuels since it
originates from renewable resources.

Technology Description

Ethanol from sugarcane is traditionally produced by yeast fermentation of sugarcane molasses.

Commonly, raw sugar is obtained as a co-product, through crystallization of sugarcane raw juice.
The major process steps in sugarcane ethanol production are as follows:

Milling

Sugarcane is delivered from the field to the factory, where it is weighed, cut and shredded before
being conducted to the mills, where the raw cane juice is extracted. Sugarcane bagasse is
obtained as a residue, and it is burned to generate steam and electricity to supply process
demands.

Juice Treatment
The raw cane juice is clarified by treatment with phosphate and lime leading to mud formation,
which is separated in a clarifier. The clarifi ed juice is then concentrated under vacuum in a
multiple-effect evaporator, forming a sugar syrup.

Sugar Crystallization

Sugar crystallization is accomplished in two vacuum calandrias, where water is evaporated from
the syrup and crystallization is induced by the addition of a seeding solution. This process forms
a massecuite, a mixture of liquor and sugar crystals. Next, crystallization is completed by cooling
in a crystallizer. The raw sugar is centrifuged, dried and sent to storage. In a third calandria-
crystallizer set, a massecuite is formed that will become the seeding solution to be used at
crystallization, and also the molasses for subsequent fermentation.

Fermentation

The sugars contained in the molasses are fermented to ethanol by yeast. Gases released from the
fermentation are washed with recycle water in a gas-washing column. The fi nal broth is
centrifuged, and the yeast cells are treated with sulfuric acid and recycled to the first fermenter.
Meanwhile, the ethanol-containing wine is sent to a distillation apparatus.

Distillation

The ethanol solution is heated and fed to the concentration column. The overhead of this column
is sent to the gas-washing column and the vapor-side product stream, containing about 50%
ethanol, is fed to a rectifying column that generates a 90% ethanol vapor stream and recycle
water, which goes to the gas-washing column. The ethanol product stream undergoes
dehydration in a molecular sieve unit, leading to a product that is 99.5% pure ethanol.

Economic Performance
An economic evaluation of the process was conducted based on data from the fourth quarter of
2012 (chart). The following assumptions were taken into consideration:

A 6 million-ton/yr sugarcane processing unit producing 270 million of anhydrous ethanol

and 420,000 ton of raw sugar per year built in Brazil (the process equipment is represented in
the simplified flowsheet)

The unit operates 210 d/yr

Storage capacity equal to 30 days of operation for sugar and ethanol

Sugarcane cultivation and harvesting costs were not considered

The electricity surplus generated in the plant is sold to the electric grid

The estimated capital investment (including total fixed investment, working capital and other
capital expenses) is about $670 million.

The process reported here allows sugarcane ethanol manufacturers to balance ethanol and sugar
production yields according to demand, rendering the activity flexible to market fluctuations.

Brazil is the main sugarcane ethanol producer and experienced, in the first semester of 2013, a
7% increase in fuel ethanol consumption when compared to the same period of 2012.