CLIAMS:1. A process for the preparation of upgraded fuel from biomass slurry comprising algae and water, said process comprising the following steps:
a) heating said biomass slurry to a first pre-determined temperature, at a first pre-determined pressure and for a first pre-determined time period in the presence of hydrogen and a multi-metallic catalyst comprising at least one support, at least one promoter component, and an active component comprising at least two active metal salts to obtain an intermediate product comprising crude biofuel;
b) collecting, cooling and filtering said intermediate product to obtain a filtered intermediate product; and
c) hydrogenating said filtered intermediate product in the presence of said multi-metallic catalyst at a second pre-determined temperature, at a second pre-determined pressure and for a second pre-determined time period to obtain said upgraded fuel.
2. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the amount of algae in said biomass slurry ranges from 10% to 20%.
3. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said algae is at least one selected from the group consisting of Spirulina, Neochloris and Nannochloropsis.
4. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein
• the first pre-determined temperature in the process step (a) ranges from 200ºC to 350ºC;
• the first pre-determined pressure in the process step (a) ranges from 1 MPa to 5 MPa;
• the second pre-determined pressure in the process step (c) ranges from 2 MPa to 7 MPa;
• the second pre-determined temperature in the process step (c) ranges from 351ºC to 500ºC; and
• the first pre-determined time period in the process step (a) and the second pre-determined time period in the process step (c) ranges from 15 minutes to 120 minutes.
5. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the yield of said crude biofuel ranges from 60% to 80%.
6. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the yield of said upgraded fuel ranges from 81% to 90%. ,TagSPECI:FIELD
The present disclosure relates to a process for the preparation of upgraded fuel from biomass slurry.
DEFINITION
Upgraded fuel is a usable fuel without any impurities.
BACKGROUND
In the present scenario, the demand for fuels such as petrol, diesel, kerosene and the like is increasing rapidly. Fuel is generally obtained by refining crude oil. Due to the increasing demand for fuel, the reserves of crude oil are depleting. Therefore, there is a need to focus on alternative sources, like biomass, for obtaining fuel. Biomass, particularly algae, has a potential to become a viable feedstock due to its high oil content and environmentally-friendly nature. The fuel obtained by processing the biomass is termed as “biofuel”. It is found that biofuels can be used as a source of energy for vehicles, and for generating electricity, etc. The conventional processes such as fermentation, extraction, gasification, pyrolysis and the like, are widely used for converting the oil contained in the biomass, particularly in algae, to biofuel.
However, the following drawbacks are associated with conventional processes:
• longer extraction time;
• low conversion efficiency;
• limited product range;
• low yield;
• generation of waste products; and
• energy and cost intensive.
Hence, in order to overcome the drawbacks associated with conventional processes, there is a need of a process for the preparation of fuel from biomass.
OBJECTS
Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfies, are as follows:
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a process for the preparation of fuel from biomass;
Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a process for the preparation of fuel from algae;
Still another object of the present disclosure is to provide a process which is simple and cost-effective;
Yet another object of the present disclosure is to ameliorate one or more problems associated with the conventional processes or to at least provide a useful alternative; and
Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the following description, which is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
SUMMARY
The present disclosure provides a process for the preparation of upgraded fuel from biomass slurry. The biomass slurry is subjected to a heating step in the presence of an active gas such as hydrogen and a multi-metallic catalyst comprising at least one support, at least one promoter component and an active component comprising at least two active metal salts to obtain an intermediate product containing crude biofuel. The intermediate product is further hydrogenated in the presence of the multi-metallic catalyst to obtain the upgraded fuel.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying embodiments, which do not limit the scope and ambit of the disclosure. The description provided is purely by way of example and illustration.
The embodiments herein, the various features, and advantageous details thereof are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.
The description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.
The conventional processes used for converting the oil contained in the biomass, particularly in algae, to biofuel have several drawbacks such as longer extraction time, low conversion efficiency, limited product range, low yield, generation of waste products, energy and cost intensive, and the like. Therefore, in order to preclude the drawbacks associated with conventional processes, the present disclosure envisages a process for the preparation of upgraded fuel from biomass slurry.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, the biomass is algae.
The carbon content in the biomass slurry comprising the algae and water is in the range of 40 to 60%. The carbon content in the biofuel and the yield of the biofuel is increased by the process of the present disclosure described herein-below.
The biomass slurry comprising algae and water is subjected to heating in the presence of an active gas such as hydrogen and a multi-metallic catalyst to break down the bio-macromolecules in the biomass slurry and obtain an intermediate product comprising crude biofuel.
The intermediate product is then collected, cooled and filtered to obtain a filtered intermediate product.
The crude biofuel comprises long aliphatic hydrocarbons with impurities in the form of heteroatoms.
The heteroatoms in the crude biofuel include oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur.
Due to the presence of heteroatoms, the carbon content in the crude biofuel ranges from 74 to 78% and the yield of the crude biofuel ranges from 60 to 80%.
In order to increase the carbon content, there is a need to remove the heteroatoms present in the crude biofuel. Therefore, the filtered intermediate product comprising crude biofuel is subjected to hydrogenation in the presence of the multi-metallic catalyst to obtain the upgraded fuel.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the upgraded fuel obtained from the process described herein-above is substantially devoid of heteroatoms.
The carbon content in the upgraded fuel ranges from 82 to 84% and the yield of the upgraded fuel ranges from 81 to 90%.
Due to the removal of heteroatoms, the carbon content in the upgraded fuel and the yield of the upgraded fuel, are increased as compared to the carbon content in the crude biofuel and the yield of the crude biofuel.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the upgraded fuel obtained by the process of the present disclosure is equivalent to the petroleum crude oil, which needs to be processed in refineries to get products such as petrol, diesel, kerosene, and the like.
The process of the present disclosure is carried out in the presence of the multi-metallic catalyst that comprises at least one support, at least one promoter component, and an active component comprising at least two active metal salts.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, the support is at least one selected from the group consisting of alumina, silica, zirconia, alumina-silica, zeolite and molecular sieves.
The promoter component is at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Group IIA metals, Group IIIA metals, Group VA metals, Group VB metals and Group VIIB metals.
The active metal salt comprises a cation and an anion.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the cation is at least one selected from the group consisting of Group VIB metals, Group VIIB metals, Group VIII metals and noble metals.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the anion is at least one selected from the group consisting of chloride, bromide, fluoride, iodide, sulfate, phosphate, phosphonate, nitrate, nitrite, carbonate, acetate, bicarbonate, hydroxide and oxide.
In accordance with the present disclosure, a solubilizing agent may be used in the process of making the catalyst composition. Examples of the solubilizing agents include at least one agent selected from the group consisting of hexamethyleneimine, ammonia solution, piperidine, pyrrolidine, morpholine, piperazine hydrate, 2-methylcyclohexyl amine and cyclohexylamine.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, the amount of algae in the biomass slurry ranges from 10% to 30% of the biomass slurry.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, the algae is at least one selected from the group consisting of Spirulina, Neochloris and Nannochloropsis.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the heating of the biomass slurry comprising algae and water is carried out at a temperature ranging from 200ºC to 350ºC and for a time period ranging from 15 minutes to 120 minutes.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, the pressure of hydrogen while heating the biomass slurry ranges from 1 MPa to 5 MPa.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, the pressure of hydrogen while heating the biomass slurry ranges from 1 MPa to 3.5 MPa.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the filtered intermediate product is hydrogenated at a temperature ranging from 351ºC to 500ºC and for a time period ranging from 15 minutes to 120 minutes.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, the pressure of hydrogen in hydrogenating the intermediate product ranges from 2 MPa to 7 MPa.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, the pressure of hydrogen in hydrogenating the intermediate product ranges from 2 MPa to 5 MPa.
The process step of heating the biomass slurry, water (solvent) is present in the biomass slurry. Hence, the process step of heating the biomass slurry is termed as “hydrothermal liquefaction”. Further, the process step of hydrogenation of the intermediate product is carried out in the absence of solvent (water).
The process described herein-above is effective for obtaining the fuel from the biomass slurry. Further, the process of the present disclosure overcomes the drawbacks associated with conventional processes.
The present disclosure is further illustrated herein below with the help of the following experiments. The experiments used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of the ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of embodiments herein.
Experimental details:
Example 1: Production of hydrocarbon fuel:
120 grams of biomass slurry comprising algae and water were taken for the experiment. 120 grams of biomass slurry contained 20 grams of pure biomass. Algae used in biomass slurry was Neochloris. The carbon content of the biomass slurry comprising algae and water was 56%. The biomass slurry was heated in a first batch reactor in the presence of hydrogen and a multi-metallic catalyst comprisingan alumina supportt, 0.1 wt%phosphoruss, 2 wt% cobalt and 8 wt% molybdenum at 350ºC for 60 minutes to obtain an intermediate product comprising crude biofuel. During the heating of the biomass slurry in the first batch reactor, a hydrogen pressure of 3.5 MPa was maintained in the first batch reactor. The intermediate product was collected, cooled and filtered to obtain a filtered intermediate. The crude biofuel obtained as the intermediate was found to contain hexadecanamide with nitrogen as heteroatom. Due to the presence of heteroatoms, the carbon content in the crude biofuel and the yield of the crude biofuel was found to be 75% and 70%, respectively.
In order to increase the carbon content and the yield, the filtered intermediate was further hydrogenated in a second batch reactor in the presence of the multi-metallic catalyst at 450ºC for 60 minutes to obtain upgraded fuel, which is devoid of heteroatom/s (nitrogen). During the hydrogenation of the intermediate product in the second batch reactor, a hydrogen pressure of 5 MPa was maintained in the second batch reactor. Due to the removal of nitrogen (heteroatom), the carbon content in the upgraded fuel and the yield of the upgraded fuel was found to be 82% and 90%, respectively.
TECHNICAL ADVANCEMENT
The present disclosure provides the process for the preparation of upgraded fuel from the biomass slurry. The process of the present disclosure, carried out in the presence of hydrogen and the multi-metallic catalyst, has several technical advancements, including but not limited to the realization of:
• the yield of the crude biofuel varies from 60–80%;
• the yield of the upgraded fuel varies from 81 to 90%;
• the heteroatoms such as oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur are removed from the upgraded fuel; and
• the process is simple, cost-effective and environment friendly.
The exemplary embodiments herein quantifies the benefits arising out of this disclosure and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments reveals the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles and the like that has been included in this specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the disclosure. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form a part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the disclosure as it existed anywhere before the priority date of this application.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the particular features of this disclosure, it will be appreciated that various modifications can be made, and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the disclosure. These and other modifications in the nature of the disclosure or the preferred embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the disclosure and not as a limitation.