Biofuels

The production of biofuels is expected to increase significantly over the next several years, as global demand for the reduction of CO2 emissions and dependence on conventional-oil continues to rise. A sharp increase in agricultural activities is also driving the demand for innovative biofuels production. Feedstocks for biofuels include plants such as trees, bushes and grasses, bio-degradable waste and also sugar for production of ethanol and oils like rapeseed oil, soya oil and palm oil for production of biodiesel.

We are investigating the various process routes from biomass to biofuels and especially those routes which may advantageously use heterogeneous catalysts. For example, converting wood into pyrolysis oil is done in pyrolysis equipment employing silica sand as a heat transfer medium. This process is rather similar to FCC and may give an improved pyrolysis oil product upon applying FCC type catalysts.

Another area is BTL, biomass to liquids, via gasification into syngas followed by Fischer Tropsch and hydrocracking / isomerization. For more info on catalysts for syngas conversion see CTL / GTL.

Especially in Europe, due to legislation, demand for biodiesel is increasing where biodiesel can be produced via two routes. In the first route, vegetable oils are reacted with methanol to produce biodiesel methyl-esters. This process uses a homogeneous catalyst (sodium methanolate), while heterogeneous catalysts, once developed may lead to significant process improvements. Clearly, this is an area where Albemarle is investigating new process routes. In the second route, the vegetable oil is converted into paraffins via a refinery type of hydrotreating process. Here we produce the catalysts for NExBTL, a process developed by Neste. The first commercial NExBTL unit has just begun operation.

A variation on the second route is the co-processing of vegetable oils in conventional hydrotreating equipment. For such processes we are able to deliver commercial catalysts. This new and exciting field is getting more and more attention. We also interact with a lot of companies to investigate their biomass conversion wishes. In addition to oil companies, these organizations include technology providers and engineering firms.