Last week, Gas Technology Institute (GTI) hosted an open house at its new Pilot-Scale IH(2) Plant in Chicago (US) to demonstrate the successful efforts to broaden biomass-to-liquid hydrocarbon fuel conversion.
The IH(2) Technology is a catalytic thermochemical process that promises to be a very cost-effective route to produce liquid transportation fuels from renewable resources. Based on assessments and calculations by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the technology has the capability to produce fuel with a US Department of Energy estimated selling price of less than $2.00/gallon in commercial production.
The IH(2)process can convert virtually any type of non-food biomass feedstock--such as wood, agricultural residues, algae, aquatic plants and solid waste--to a liquid transportation fuel that is interchangeable with crude-oil-derived fuels and is compatible with current fueling and vehicle infrastructure. In this way, the IH(2) process differs from other biofuel technologies that produce crude or oxygen-containing intermediates that need substantial upgrading to meet current specifications for transportation fuels.
Using non-food biomass as a feedstock also allows IH(2) to address two major concerns of the global economy--feeding and fueling the world's growing populations. IH(2) technology does not compete with the public food supply to provide the fuel needed for transportation markets.
In his welcoming remarks, David Carroll, GTI President and CEO, noted: "One critical issue we're tackling is the creation of sustainable energy that can help meet US Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) obligations. The IH(2) technology promises to be a cost-effective route to produce liquid transportation fuel from renewable resources, with the potential to convert biomass feedstock directly into gasoline, diesel and jet fuel."
"The versatility in feedstocks that can be used allows for regional production using local resources--good for our economies, the environment, and beneficial to energy security. The technology could increase the supply of economical and sustainable transportation fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector."
Short lead time to market
GTI has licensed the IH(2) technology to CRI Catalyst Company (CRI), a company headquartered in Houston for worldwide deployment, with commercial introduction expected in early 2014.
"Before new technologies can effectively compete for a presence in the market, the potential economic advantage has to be compelling along with a high probability of success," adds Vann Bush, GTI Managing Director of Energy Conversion. "Our collaboration with CRI is providing the necessary results to reduce market and technology risk. CRI provided much of the funding for the new pilot plant... They will commercialize the technology and deploy it worldwide."
Pilot plant operation is a critical step along the IH(2) technology commercialization pathway, as it provides valuable information to confirm and refine commercial design. In the two months that the IH(2) pilot plant has been on line, the basic design principles have been validated.
The pilot plant studies will provide validation of the operational and performance factors which are key to achieving commercial deployment in 2014, when total advanced biofuels RFS mandates are 3.75 billion gallons. Woody biomass has been successfully fed through the IH(2) pilot plant, and has been converted to gasoline, kerosene and diesel product, comparable to those produced in the R&D project phase. Subsequent testing will proceed with a variety of feedstocks in support of US Department of Energy projects and potential technology licensors.
"This pilot plant aims to demonstrate the IH(2)process as a differentiated biofuels technology. The process is designed to have low environmental impact. Since the commercial IH(2) technology produces its own hydrogen and a surplus of water to be self-sufficient, it can operate in a stand-alone configuration anywhere there is sufficient biomass feed for conversion," explains Alan Del Paggio, CRI Vice President, Upstream and Renewables. "Independent life cycle analyses conducted by Michigan Technology University have shown the process can achieve >90% greenhouse gas reductions in comparison to fossil fuels with common feedstocks."
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