Techno-economic Analysis and Life Cycle Assessment of Gluconic Acid and Xylonic Acid Production from Waste Materials

Abstract

Organic acid-based bioleaching has attracted significant research interest for the recovery of rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical metals. Utilizing biologically produced leaching agents, known as biolixiviants, derived from waste materials holds great promise for enhancing the economic viability and environmental sustainability of bioleaching processes. This study focuses on the modeling and optimization of biolixiviant production using corn stover (CS), date palm clippings (DP), and nonrecyclable paper (NP). Techno-economic analysis revealed that gluconic acid production from NP is more cost-effective than that from CS and DP, with respective costs of $0.04/kg, $0.06–0.08/kg, and $0.06–0.09/kg of the biolixiviant, yielding gluconic acid concentrations of 135.39, 172.90, and 176.87 mM, respectively. Life cycle assessment demonstrated that biolixiviant production from NP exerts the lowest environmental impact compared with the other evaluated substrates. When applied to the bioleaching of a neodymium–iron–boron magnet swarf, the biolixiviant derived from NP exhibits the highest leaching efficiencies, confirming its cost and environmental competitiveness in comparison to CS and DP.