Technoeconomic Feasibility Analysis and Aspen Plus Simulation of the Production of Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) via Chemical Cell Lysis in the Philippines

This study discusses the design and a feasibility study of a Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) manufacturing plant in the Philippines to be named PAEUVA Corporation. The increasing use of single-use plastics worldwide has prompted countries such as China to produce easily biodegradable plastics, and PAEUVA Corporation aims to capitalize on this trend. The proposed plant will have a total capacity of 30,957 MT and will be located in Daiichi Industrial Park. The manufacturing process of PHB via chemical cell lysis was simulated using Aspen Plus V11. A class 1 economic analysis was performed, indicating a fixed capital investment of Php 5,882,083,209, with a calculated return of investment of 37.51% at year 3, and a payback period of about 2 years. Although there are no PHB manufacturing plants currently established in the country, the study suggests that setting up such a plant in the Philippines would be a feasible choice for PAEUVA Corporation.