With increasing environmental concerns with respect to the petroleum-based adhesive production process, bio-based adhesive has been explored as a promising replacement. The purpose of this paper was to explore the economic feasibility of structural bio-adhesives made from glycerol, a byproduct of biodiesel production. SuperPro Designer software was employed to perform the techno-economic analysis. Several key parameters were analyzed, such as total capital investment, annual operating costs and revenues. It was found that the unit production cost of structural bio-adhesives ($2.45/kg) was compatible with that in the current market. Three different scenarios were built to investigate the worst-case scenario and the best-case scenario associated with this production process. Sensitivity analysis was also performed to evaluate the key parameters significantly influencing the economic result. In this study, material cost was determined to be the most significant factor throughout the production process. Discounted cash flow analysis was conducted to explore the influence of the time value of money. The minimum selling price obtained was $3.11/kg for this bioadhesive production process. Underlying issues and areas needed for improvement were also discussed in this study.

随着关于石油基粘合剂生产工艺的环境问题的日益关注，已经研究了生物基粘合剂作为有前途的替代品。本文的目的是探讨由甘油（一种生物柴油生产的副产品）制成的结构生物粘合剂的经济可行性。SuperPro Designer软件用于执行技术经济分析。分析了几个关键参数，例如总资本投资，年度运营成本和收入。发现结构生物胶粘剂的单位生产成本（$ 2.45 / kg）与当前市场相当。构建了三种不同的方案来调查与此生产过程相关的最坏情况和最佳情况。还进行了敏感性分析，以评估对经济结果有重大影响的关键参数。在这项研究中，材料成本被确定为整个生产过程中最重要的因素。进行了现金流量折现分析，以探讨货币时间价值的影响。此生物粘合剂生产工艺的最低销售价格为3.11美元/公斤。本研究还讨论了需要改进的基本问题和领域。