Coprocessing Biomass Fast Pyrolysis and Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis Oils with Vacuum Gas Oil in Refinery Hydroprocessing

Abstract

Fast pyrolysis and catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP) have been considered to be promising approaches for converting lignocellulosic biomass into liquid bio-oils followed by upgrading to produce fuel-range hydrocarbon products. Coprocessing fast pyrolysis and CFP bio-oils with petroleum feedstocks leverages the existing petroleum refining infrastructure, which reduces capital expenditure for the overall conversion technologies for biomass to fuel and enables fast adoption of the technologies and biofuels. Here, we reported the coprocessing of different woody fast pyrolysis and CFP bio-oils with petroleum vacuum gas oil (VGO) at 5−25% bio-oil blending levels over a NiMo sulfide catalyst for hydrotreating/mild hydrocracking. The catalyst activities over ∼300 h time on stream, the product yield and properties, and the biogenic carbon content in products are provided. Coprocessing of the raw fast pyrolysis bio-oil in our configuration was not successful because the instability of the bio-oil resulted in reactor plugging, and bio-oil stabilization by hydrogenation enabled their stable coprocessing with VGO, whereas the CFP bio-oil can be coprocessed without pretreatment. Simultaneous hydrodesulfurization, hydrodeoxygenation, and hydrocracking reactions occurred during coprocessing, and no obvious decrease in hydrodesulfurization and hydrocracking conversion of VGO was observed, suggesting the minimal impact of coprocessed bio-oils on the reaction of VGO and also the simultaneous conversion of bio-oil and VGO to produce fuel products with muchreduced S and O content. Biogenic carbon content in coprocessed products calculated by yield mass balance, together with results from isotopic measurements, indicates biogenic carbon incorporation into liquid hydrocarbon products. Higher biogenic carbon incorporation into fuel products was observed when coprocessing CFP bio-oils as compared to the fast pyrolysis bio-oils, and over 90% of carbon in CFP bio-oil was incorporated into liquid hydrocarbon products.

Virtual Special Issue of Recent Advances in Biofuel Production via Co-refining Route

“…The overall results are promising because simple unit operations can be used to produce derivatized FPBOs that do not need additional standalone hydrotreating units but can be co-processed in existing units. Santosa et al 13 presented results on co-processing FPBO and CFP bio-oils with vacuum gas oil in refinery hydroprocessing. They reported higher biogenic carbon incorporation into fuel products when coprocessing CFP bio-oils compared to the FPBOs, and over 90% of carbon in CFP bio-oil was incorporated into liquid hydrocarbon products.…”

Multi‐Pathways for Sustainable Fuel Production from Biomass Using Zirconium‐Based Catalysts: A Comprehensive Review

“…The cracked fragments are subsequently recombined to form smaller molecules like isoparaffins, cycloparaffins, and aromatics, which are lighter and more suitable for use as transportation fuels. [178][179][180] The resulting product mixture is cooled and separated into various fractions, which are further processed to eliminate impurities and adjust their properties according to specific product requirements.…”

“…Catalysts play a crucial role in hydrocracking by reducing the activation energy required for chemical reactions, resulting in improved efficiency and effectiveness. [26,43,44,[176][177][178][179][180]182,183] In hydrocracking, catalysts aid in breaking carbon-carbon bonds within hydrocarbon molecules and facilitating H 2 saturation of the resulting fragments. They also help control reaction selectivity and prevent the formation of undesired byproducts like coke and CH 4 .…”

“…These products can be further refined and processed to produce valuable fuels and chemicals such as diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel. [26,43,44,[176][177][178][179][180]182,183] Numerous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of zirconium-based catalysts in the hydrocracking of various biomass feedstocks, including WCO, [26,43,183] crude palm oil, [187] palm oil, [188,189] coconut oil, [182,190] lignocellulosic biomass, [87,191] tar, [192] sugarcane bagasse, [193] and algae. [194] It is essential to highlight that solid feedstocks, typically undergo a preliminary pyrolysis step to produce bio-oil, which is then suitable for hydrocracking with zirconium-based catalysts.…”

Circular Synergy between Biomass and Petroleum Industry in Process and Supply Chain Integration

“…Alternatively, catalytic processes ( e.g. , catalytic pyrolysis, catalytic hydrothermal liquefaction) can achieve better bio-oil stability, which is suitable for direct co-processing with VGO . The presence of certain catalysts (usually Ni, Co, or zeolite-based) may lead to quality enhancement (calorific value increased from 26.84 to 31.18 MJ/kg), but with a trade-off in product yield (reduced from 44 to 36 wt %) .…”