Power Biomass to Liquid — an option for Europe’s sustainable and independent aviation fuel production

Abstract

The European Union guides its member states to a gradual uptake of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from 2% vol. in 2025 to 63% vol. by 2050 with the ReFuelEU proposal as part of the Fit-for-55 package. A promising production pathway for SAF presents itself in the Power Biomass to Liquid (PBtL) process, which converts non-crop-based biomass residue and renewable power via the Fischer–Tropsch route. In this study, a techno-economic and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission analysis of a small-scale (50 MWth) PBtL process concept, developed in the EU project FLEXCHX, is presented. The analysis is conducted with a thermodynamic process model implemented in Aspen Plus®, which relies on experimental project data. For the PBtL base case production costs of 1.09 €2020/l are estimated, whereby electricity and investment into the alkaline electrolyzer constitute the largest cost drivers. At low electricity prices (< 39.2 €/MWh), the PBtL process is more cost effective than the reference process Biomass to Liquid (BtL). To identify improvements to the base case design, different design options are considered under varying economic boundary conditions: Solid oxide electrolysis is more economic than alkaline electrolysis at higher electricity prices due to its higher system efficiency. Maximizing the product yield by increased CO2 recycling is only economically reasonable below an electricity price threshold, which is found at 20 €/MWh for the base case. Further, PBtL is heavily dependent upon the availability of low GHG electricity in order to produce SAF with a low carbon footprint. Assuming full utilization of the EU’s non-crop-based biomass residues, the EU jet fuel demand for 2030 could be met with the PBtL process.

Sustainable aviation fuel from forestry residue and hydrogen – a techno-economic and environmental analysis for an immediate deployment of the PBtL process in Europe

“…Nevertheless, the availability of enough electrolyzer units might prove to be a bottleneck for the process roll-out. 78 Further, the simplified approach for the integration scenarios, as described in Section 2.7.3, should only be understood as an approximation of the actual costs for the integration of fluctuating renewable energy sources. A more accurate process design would include a cost-optimised design of the power production system (mix of wind and PV), the electrolyzer and the hydrogen storage system depending on local boundary conditions.…”

Identifying the Ideal Process Configuration for a Green Methanol Production Plant Dependent on Economic Boundary Conditions

“…The economic evaluation of the concept follows the approach of Peters, Timmerhaus, and West [26], which has been utilized in several previous techno-economic studies [15,27,28]. To apply this methodology, a database of reference equipment costs is needed to account for changes in the process configuration and its impact on capital and operational expenses.…”

“…Furthermore, the increase of renewable energy in the electricity mix is required to achieve a positive environmental impact with the PBtL cases. Recent studies of Habermeyer et al [27] and Weyand et al [14] showed that utilizing the electricity from the German grid to generate the hydrogen, yields in an even higher greenhouse gas emission than using the fossil alternatives. Hence, PBtL concepts imply a potential alternative for an increased production of alternative fuels by an increased carbon efficiency but strongly depend on the availability of renewable and inexpensive electricity.…”

Carbon-neutral aviation in Nigeria: Assessing the feasibility and impacts of sustainable aviation fuel adoption

“…Biomass-to-Liquid (BTL): BTL SAF is derived from biomass feedstocks like wood, crop residues, or algae. These feedstocks are converted into liquid hydrocarbons through processes like pyrolysis or gasification (Habermeyer, et al,2023).…”

“…2. Lower Particulate and NOx Emissions: SAF also reduces emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides (NOx) by 70% (Habermeyer, et al,2023) which have detrimental effects on air quality and human health. Lowering these emissions near airports and along flight routes improves local air quality and public health.…”