Gasoline from Wood via Integrated Gasification, Synthesis, and Methanol-to-Gasoline Technologies

Abstract

Executive SummaryThis report documents the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) assessment of the feasibility of making gasoline via the methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) route using syngas from a 2,000 dry metric tonne/day (2,205 U.S. ton/day) biomass-fed facility.The thermochemical route of biomass gasification produces a syngas rich in hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The syngas is then converted into methanol, and the methanol is converted to gasoline using the methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) process first developed by Exxon Mobil. Using a methodology similar to that used in previous NREL design reports and a feedstock cost of $50.70/dry U.S. ton ($55.89/dry metric tonne), a plant gate price (PGP) was estimated. For the base case the PGP is predicted to be $16.60/MMBtu ($15.73/GJ) (U.S. $2007) for gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) produced from biomass via gasification of wood, methanol synthesis, and the methanol-to-gasoline process (MTG). The corresponding unit prices for gasoline and LPG are $1.95/gallon ($0.52/liter) and $1.53/gallon ($0.40/liter) with yields of 55.1 and 9.3 gallons per U.S. ton of dry biomass (229.9 and 38.8 liters per metric tonne of dry biomass), respectively. For comparison to ethanol, this is $1.39 per gallon ($0.37/liter) ethanol on an energy equivalent basis. In comparison, based on analysis work completed at NREL, the predicted plant gate prices for ethanol produced via the thermochemical and biochemical pathways are $1.57 per gallon ($0.41 per liter) and $1.49 per gallon ($0.39 per liter), respectively (OBP 2009). Note that the PGP is for the base case. A sensitivity analysis is included in the report to demonstrate the impact that modifications in the design and costing assumptions have on the PGP. A range of PGP values is to be expected due to uncertainties in capital costs, yields, and technoeconomic factors.This report is a future look at the potential of the described biomass-to-gasoline process, based on calculations for a mature plant (also called the n th plant) and 2012 technology targets as established in the Multi-Year Technical Plan of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of the Biomass Program. In order to achieve the $1.95/gallon ($0.52/liter) PGP, there are critical research milestones that must be achieved. First, the 2012 tar reforming targets of 99.9% tar and 80% methane conversion (among others) are essential. Also, utilization of a fluidized bed MTG reactor, instead of the commercially proven fixed bed, is pertinent in keeping capital costs down. Thus, further research on this type of reactor is needed 1) to verify that at the conditions specified the products generated match the model assumptions and 2) to analyze effects of scaleup on product distribution. It should be emphasized that the PGP for a first-of-a-kind plant will be significantly higher than the PGP for an n th plant.To predict the PGP for this study, a new technoeconomic model was developed in Aspen Plus, based on the model developed for NREL's thermochemical ethanol design report )....

Research on gasification of low-grade fuels in a continuous layer

“…The collected and analyzed data reflect the world's demonstration and commercial gasification units having continuous layers. It is shown that wood gasification technology has achieved significant development at both laboratory and pilot levels [4,[6][7][8]; a number of demonstration and commercial plants operate, although the efficiency of wood gasification in a continuous layer to obtain high-energy synthesis gas remains an urgent problem.…”

Thermochemical biorefinery based on dimethyl ether as intermediate: Technoeconomic assessment

“…For tar and light hydrocarbon reforming some alternatives have been studied in previous BTL/G publications (SR, ATR and TR, used alone or in combination with removal systems for H 2 and CO 2 ) [15,16,[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]. In this work, three alternatives for syngas reforming are considered: SR, secondary reformer (secondary-ATR) and TR.…”

Biomass Gasification: Documented Information for Adoption/Adaptation and Further Improvements toward Sustainable Utilisation of Renewable Natural Resources

“…It can also be used as a feedstock (syngas) in the synthesis of chemicals such as methanol and fuel production [2,9,14,23], although it is noteworthy at this stage that there is no standard gasifier that is able to handle a wide range of biomass types, as a result of nonhomogeneous character of most biomass resources, which pose difficulties in maintaining constant feed rates to gasification units; therefore, there is the need for proper equipment design for the gasification process.…”

“…In addition, irrespective of the fact that the advanced countries are presently heavily reliant on fossil fuels, researchers in these countries are also optimising efforts in bioenergy-related researches (e.g., [2,9]), as biomass is estimated to be contributing in order of 10-14% of the world's power supply [10,11], with a likelihood of an increase in this contribution in the near future. The increasing research in and utilisation of bioenergy is partly in preparation for future unpredictability in supply, demand, and price of fossil fuels and associated products as a result 2 ISRN Renewable Energy of current increasing usage of these types of fuels and their supposed expected future finiteness [1,9,12].…”

“…The increasing research in and utilisation of bioenergy is partly in preparation for future unpredictability in supply, demand, and price of fossil fuels and associated products as a result 2 ISRN Renewable Energy of current increasing usage of these types of fuels and their supposed expected future finiteness [1,9,12].…”