Abstract

PEREZ SANCHEZ, Amaury et al. Simulation and conceptual design of a dl-methionine production process by the chemical synthesis route. Rev. ion [online]. 2024, vol.37, n.1, pp.65-81.  Epub May 06, 2024. ISSN 0120-100X.  https://doi.org/10.18273/revion.v37n1-2024005.

Methionine is one of the two sulfur-containing amino acids demanded in the diet of humans, other mammals and avian species, while most of the produced methionine is consumed as an animal feed additive, especially in livestock production and the poultry market. In this paper, the techno-economic assessment and conceptual design of an industrial scale, feed grade dl-methionine production process was carried out using SuperPro Designer® simulator. The plant was designed to produce 109 tons of dl-methionine per year through the chemical synthesis route. The total capital investment and annual operating cost of the proposed plant were USD $ 8.282 million and USD $ 1.323 million, respectively, while the net present value, the internal rate of return and payback time of the project were USD $ 4.436 million, 20.33 % and 4.74 years, respectively. The findings indicated that the proposed production process is feasible and profitable for a dl-methionine selling price of USD $ 35/kg. The innovative simulation model obtained in this work could be used for further optimization studies, as well as to increase the productivity and profitability of the proposed plant.

Keywords : Dl-methionine; Process simulation; Profitability indicators; SuperPro Designer®; Techno-economic evaluation.

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