Techno-Economic and FP2O Resilience Analysis of the Hydrogen Production Process from Palm Rachis in María La Baja, Bolívar

In Colombia, two main palm varieties, Elaeis guineensis and Elaeis oleifera, are cultivated for the production of crude palm oil (CPO). During the CPO extraction process, several residues are generated, including empty fruit bunches (EFB), nut fiber, palm kernel cake, and Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME), among others. These residues are commonly used for biochar and compost production to improve soil quality, for biogas generation, and for energy production through biomass combustion. Because the rachis is rich in lignocellulosic material and exhibits physicochemical properties suitable for thermochemical processes, it is proposed as a feedstock for hydrogen synthesis through gasification. In this study, a techno-economic analysis and an FP2O resilience assessment were conducted for a hydrogen production process based on the utilization of palm rachis generated in María la Baja, northern Colombia. The economic evaluation results indicate that the capital investment required for plant installation is USD 10,111,255.23. The economic indicators show favorable performance with a Return on Investment (ROI) of 58.83%, a Net Present Value (NPV) of USD 25.01 million, a B/C ratio of 3.29, and a Discounted Payback Period (DPBP) of 4.54 years. Regarding techno-economic resilience, critical values for processing capacity, selling price, and feedstock cost were identified through parameter variation. The findings suggest that the process has opportunities for improvement, since small changes in these variables could significantly reduce its resilience. Finally, an On-Stream efficiency of 39.65% at the break-even point was obtained, indicating that the process can operate at less than 50% of its maximum capacity while still generating significant profits.