Production of Green Methanol from Waste-Derived Sources

This project investigates the synthesis of methanol through three alternative process pathways: biomass gasification, electrochemical (E-Methanol) synthesis, and direct air capture (DAC) integrated with E-methanol. Each pathway was evaluated to identify the most efficient, sustainable, and economically viable design. Material and energy analyses revealed key tradeoffs between carbon efficiency, waste generation, and energy demand. While the biomass route produces useful syngas, it generates waste and has lower carbon utilization. In contrast, the E-methanol and DAC-based pathways achieve significantly higher carbon efficiency, with DAC enabling near complete utilization of atmospheric CO2. Although these processes are more energy intensive due to electrolysis and CO2 capture, heat integration and process optimization improve overall feasibility. Based on these combined analyses, the DAC and E-methanol process was selected as the optimal design. It offers the best balance of sustainability, efficiency, and economic performance. Despite having higher energy requirements, its near-complete carbon utilization and minimal waste generation show it can be a promising pathway for future methanol production when coupled with renewable energy sources. Overall, this work demonstrates the importance of integrating carbon capture and renewable hydrogen in the development of cleaner, more sustainable chemical manufacturing processes.