I-Corps: Modular Biodiesel Production with Glycerol Recycle

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project can transform the waste vegetable oil industry and influence the markets of other biofuels. The innovative method comes from using a modular design with novel supercritical processing technology that utilizes value added by-product recycle. This technology improves profitability by bringing processing facilities closer to the consumer and creating local jobs in rural communities, thus improving rural economic activity. The commercial potential of this technology can transform how waste vegetable oil is used, rendered, and processed in the United States and around the world. These marketplaces are of significant interest to the federal and state governments because of energy security, rural economic growth and sustainable energy production. Commercial impacts of this technology influence other biofuels markets.This I-Corps project will explore the market potential of a Transportable Micro Bio Refinery (TmBR) that converts waste vegetable oil (WVO) into biodiesel to using a novel 2-stage Separative-reactor. Generating biodiesel from WVO is commonly done using a Base-Catalyzed Low-Pressure process referred to as the Fatty-Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) process. Bio-diesel produced in centralized bio-refineries are not competitive with petro-diesel with low priced crude. Capital costs, feedstock supply costs, and environmental costs to dispose of process waste make centralized refineries uneconomically. By comparison, the TmBR process uses an advanced super-critical separative reactor without a catalyst to reduce process waste and operating costs. In addition, the TmBR process includes a bio-digestor to convert waste glycerol to methanol which is recycled to reduce the need to purify and dispose of waste glycerol. The TmBR process requires a smaller operating footprint, involves lower capital costs and reduced operating costs and has less environmental impact that makes this technology more economically competitive compared to standard FAME based biodiesel plants.