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This document discusses the development of biomass as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels and products. It outlines 6 technology platforms being developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to produce fuels, chemicals, and power from biomass. These platforms will provide base chemicals comparable to those derived from petroleum to build a sustainable biomass economy. NREL has world-class facilities and decades of research experience in biological and thermochemical technologies to enable economical production of bioproducts from various feedstocks like corn and switchgrass.
This document discusses the development of biomass as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels and products. It outlines 6 technology platforms being developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to produce fuels, chemicals, and power from biomass. These platforms will provide base chemicals comparable to those derived from petroleum to build a sustainable biomass economy. NREL has world-class facilities and decades of research experience in biological and thermochemical technologies to enable economical production of bioproducts from various feedstocks like corn and switchgrass.
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This document discusses the development of biomass as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels and products. It outlines 6 technology platforms being developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to produce fuels, chemicals, and power from biomass. These platforms will provide base chemicals comparable to those derived from petroleum to build a sustainable biomass economy. NREL has world-class facilities and decades of research experience in biological and thermochemical technologies to enable economical production of bioproducts from various feedstocks like corn and switchgrass.
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Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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Скачайте в формате PDF, TXT или читайте онлайн в Scribd
2002 Research Review NREL/JA-810-31967 • July 2002
The 20th century was the century of the
petrochemical economy. Gasoline and diesel (made from petroleum) power almost all our vehicles. Myriad plastics made from petro- leum or natural gas are used to make our clothes, carpets, food packaging, and increas- ingly, our car parts and building materials. Most of our chemicals and even toiletries and pharma- ceuticals are petrochemically derived. Unfortunately for the United States, most of the world’s petroleum is located elsewhere, so we import more than half of what we use, creating heavy economic and security burdens. And unfortu- nately for the world, whenever gasoline, diesel, and other fossil fuels are burned, they release car- Current ethanol production is bon dioxide that had been locked primarily from the starch in up underground for millions of kernels of field corn. NREL researchers are developing years, increasing greenhouse gas technology to also produce levels. ethanol from the fibrous material (cellulose and hemi- In the 21st century, use of bio- cellulose) in the corn husks mass—plants and plant-based and stalks or in other agricul- materials, produced by photo- tural or forestry residues. synthesis within biological Biomass Conversion Facilities rather than geologic time—will offset this NREL has world-class facilities for On the thermochemical side, the petrochemical testing technologies that would be Thermochemical Users Facility dependence. used for biorefineries. These facili- simulates thermochemical pro- ties are available to NREL researchers cesses such as gasification, com- as well as to NREL’s research part- bustion, and pyrolysis. The facility ners, under a variety of agreements. includes cyclonic and fluidized On the biological side, NREL has a bed reactors for pyrolysis or gasi- one-ton-per-day-feedstock bioeth- fication and can easily accommo- anol pilot plant that can take cell- date research partners’ reactors. ulosic biomass all the way from A variety of secondary reactor and feedstock preparation through condensation equipment is avail- pretreatment, hydrolysis, and able, and conversion products can fermentation to distillation of fuel be analyzed online with molecular ethanol. The plant is certified to beam mass spectrometry, fourier handle metabolically engineered transform infrared spectrometry, fermentation organisms such as infrared spectrometry, or gas NREL’s Zymomonas mobilis, can chromatography. use any of several pretreatment options, and includes complete Artistic rendition of a cellulase enzyme breaking cellulose process monitoring. down to component sugars. NREL’s understanding and contin- uing research of the basic biochemistry underlying biorefinery processes are key to major technology advances. Biomass can’t fully replace the huge volumes NREL researchers, who have made important of petroleum and other fossil fuels that we now contributions to each of these developments, use, but it can provide fuels and chemicals are working to improve and greatly expand comparable to those derived from petroleum. these technologies through six different core American farmers and foresters can fuel as technologies or “platforms” for building the well as feed and house America—in a sustain- biomass economy. Just as oil refineries break able fashion. down petroleum and natural gas into numer- ous materials that then serve as commodity During the past 25 years, NREL researchers or platform chemicals that the petrochemical have developed an impressive slate of core industry can use to make a multitude of final biological, physical, chemical, and engineer- products, these six biomass technology plat- ing skills for biomass technologies. With forms will provide the base chemicals for primary responsibility for carrying out U.S. making biobased fuels and products. Department of Energy Biomass Programs, NREL’s National Bioenergy Center is at the The Sugar-Lignin Platform. One out of eight forefront of efforts to develop the biological gallons of gasoline sold in the United States and thermochemical technologies that will already includes ethanol as an additive. allow economically and environmentally Ethanol is made by fermenting sugar, most responsible production of fuels, chemicals, of which is derived from starch in corn ker- Switchgrass, which can be and power from biomass to meet modern- nels. In contrast, instead of starting with sugar, easily grown throughout much day needs—the biomass economy. NREL’s advanced bioethanol technology starts of the United States, repre- with cellulose and hemicellulose, two of the sents a huge future resource Six Biomass Platforms three main components of most plant materi- of lignocellulosic biomass for use in biorefineries. al—vastly expanding potential feedstocks— In 2000 and 2001, biomass, largely because breaking them down to sugars for fermenta- of biomass power—combustion of materials tion. In addition to ethanol, the sugars, or such as timber industry scrap or municipal intermediate breakdown products, can be fer- solid waste to generate electricity—surpassed mented, polymerized, or otherwise processed hydroelectric power as the largest U.S. source into any number of products. Lignin, the third of renewable energy. And in 2002, U.S. pro- main component of biomass, can fuel the duction of fuel ethanol, made from corn grain process or be used to produce a slate of differ- (starch), will surpass 2 billion gallons per year, ent chemicals, expanding the number of prod- displacing a modest but significant amount of ucts for the sugar-lignin platform biorefinery. imported oil. Also in 2002, a collaborative (See sidebar “Lignocellulosic Bioethanol.”) venture of two major companies began pro- duction of polylactic acid plastic made from The Syngas Platform. If biomass is heated with biomass for clothing and packaging. limited oxygen (about one-third that needed
Biomass Characterization Technology
One reason NREL is so effective in NREL’s R&D 100 Award-winning biomass technology research and Rapid Biomass Analysis system development is because of its capa- quickly and inexpensively charac- bilities to analyze biomass and terizes chemical and mechanical intermediates from its processing. properties of raw or processed bio- Biomass gasification and pyrolysis mass. Using near-infrared spectrom- both require precise characteriza- etry correlated by multivariate anal- tion of the breakdown products ysis, it characterizes in minutes what being generated, so that processes would otherwise require three or can be fine-tuned to produce opti- four days and cost far more. Oppor- mal end products. tunities for use in the lumber and paper industries, let alone biore- NREL uses sophisticated molecular fineries, are almost limitless. NREL beam mass spectrometry and has researchers are currently using this developed a portable system that approach to analyze variations in could have great value for syngas corn stover composition and their and bio-oil platform industries. implications for ethanol production. 2 for ideal combustion), it gasifies to a “syngas” composed mostly of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. That syngas inherently burns cleaner and more efficiently than the raw biomass. NREL scientists are using gasifi- cation technology to improve a large innovative biomass power plant in Vermont (see sidebar “Vermont Gasifier”) and to provide electricity for the first time to isolated Philip- pine villages with small electric generators. The syngas also can be used to produce hydrogen (see “Hydrogen Economy” on pages 10–13) which, in turn, can be used as a fuel or to make plas- tics, fertilizers, and a wide variety of other products. Syngas can also be converted to sulfur-free liquid transporta- tion fuels using a catalytic process (known as A researcher examines a beaker containing cellulase enzymes, a key element in producing ethanol from lignocel- the Fischer-Tropsch Process), or provide base lulosic biomass. chemicals for producing biobased products. The Bio-Oil Platform. If biomass is heated to high temperatures in the total absence of oxy- The Biogas Platform. Another way to convert gen, it pyrolyzes to a liquid that is oxygenated, “waste” biomass into useful fuels and products but otherwise has similar characteristics to is to have natural consortiums of anaerobic petroleum. This pyrolysis- or “bio-” oil can microorganisms decompose the material in be burned to generate electricity or it can be closed systems. Anaerobic microorganisms used to provide base chemicals for biobased break down or “digest” organic material in products. As an example, NREL researchers the absence of oxygen and produce biogas as have extracted phenolics from bio-oil to make a waste product. Biogas produced in closed adhesives and plastic resins. NREL uses several The Vermont gasifier, one tanks, or anaerobic digesters, consists of 50% of the first large-scale thermochemical reactor systems—available to 80% methane, 20% to 50% carbon dioxide, demonstrations of bio- for use by outside researchers—to efficiently and trace levels of other gases such as hydro- mass gasification, sup- pyrolyze and control the bio-oil components. plies clean, renewable gen, carbon monoxide, oxygen, and nitrogen. NREL scientists have also used pyrolysis for fuel from biomass to the NREL has developed an anaerobic digestion “true recycling” of plastics such as nylon McNeil Biomass Power system that handles much higher solids load- Generating Station in carpeting, selectively regenerating the base chemicals from which the plastics were made. ing than typical digesters. This system effec- Burlington, Vermont. tively converts cellulosic waste (such as municipal solid waste) and fatty waste (such Vermont Gasifier as tuna cannery sludge) to a methane-rich biogas suitable for power generation (or as a At the McNeil Biomass Power Generating starting material for biobased products) and Station in Burlington, Vermont, NREL usable compost material. Anaerobic digesters researchers helped design and install an are currently getting considerable attention as R&D 100 Award-winning gasification a way to turn swine and cattle manure into system. The project is one of two major useful fuel and chemicals. DOE projects to develop technology to dramatically improve the efficiency and The Carbon-Rich Chains Platform. Plant and air emissions quality of biomass power animal fats and oils are long hydrocarbon systems. The McNeil Station already is chains, as are their fossil-fuel counterparts. successfully burning up to 200 tons per Some are directly usable as fuels, but they day of gasified wood chips in its normal can also be modified to better meet current steam generator. Once the gas is hooked needs. Fatty acid methyl ester—fat or oil up to a planned gas turbine, efficiency “transesterified” by combination with metha- should be double that of a combustion- nol—substitutes directly for petroleum diesel. boiler generation system. Known as biodiesel, it differs primarily in con- 3 taining oxygen, so it burns cleaner, either by challenge and complexity of producing a slate National Renewable Energy itself or as an additive. Biodiesel use is small of products starting with lignocellulosic mate- Laboratory but growing rapidly. In the United States, it rial instead of oil or starch will require 1617 Cole Boulevard, Golden, is made mostly from soybean oil and used enhanced technology development. NREL Colorado 80401-3393 cooking oil. Soybean meal, the coproduct is providing the foundation for this to occur. 303-275-3000 • www.nrel.gov of oil extraction is now used primarily as animal feed, but also could be a base for Two important concepts are guiding NREL’s Operated for the U.S. making biobased products. Glycerin, the efforts to create novel, successful biorefiner- Department of Energy coproduct of making biodiesel, is already ies—taking maximum advantage of interme- Office of Energy Efficiency and used to make a variety of products, but has diate products and balancing high-value/low- Renewable Energy potential for many more. And the fatty acids volume products with high-volume/low-value by Midwest Research Institute • are used for detergents and other products. fuels. High-value bioproducts may meet spe- Battelle So carbon-rich chains are already well on cial needs and generate market excitement, their way as a platform for the biorefinery. but high-volume fuels are what America needs NREL/BR-510-36369 to reduce its dependence on foreign oil and July 2004 The Plant Products Platform. Modern bio- to improve the environment. technology not only can transform materials Printed with biodegradable ink on paper Biorefineries will not eliminate the need for containing at least 50% wastepaper, extracted from plants, but can transform the petrochemicals. But they will play a key role including 20% post consumer waste. plants to produce more valuable materials. in reducing our level of dependence on Selective breeding and genetic engineering imported petroleum and making the 21st can be used to improve production of chemi- century one of an increasingly sustainable, cal, as well as food, fiber, and structural prod- domestic, and environmentally responsible ucts. Plants can be developed to produce biomass economy. high-value chemicals in greater quantity than they do naturally, or even to produce com- pounds they do not naturally produce. With its genetic engineering, material and economic analysis, and general biotechnology expertise, Lignocellulosic Bioethanol NREL could make major contributions in this NREL and the corn-starch-to-fuel- both five-carbon sugars from hemi- exciting arena. For example, NREL researchers ethanol industry have grown up cellulose and six-carbon sugars exploring variation in composition of stover together during the past 25 years. from cellulose. This entire process for various strains of corn are analyzing the NREL has contributed significantly has been integrated using an impact this makes on producing ethanol to the industry maturing to one NREL-patented R&D 100 Award- from stover. utilizing energy-efficient winning metabolically engineered technologies. bacteria—Zymomonas mobilis. Moving to Biorefineries Using a one-ton-feedstock-per- NREL researchers are focusing on As exciting as these six platforms are, biore- day bioethanol pilot plant, NREL the challenge of producing bio- fineries will not happen overnight. The oil researchers are testing and improv- ethanol from lignocellulosic bio- refineries, and the corn wet-mills and pulp ing these technologies under con- mass instead of corn starch. Toward and paper plants (the biorefineries of today) ditions that simulate industrial this end, NREL researchers already that they would parallel, are highly complex production. have developed effective technol- and very expensive. No new U.S. oil refineries ogy to thermochemically pretreat Bioethanol and the biorefinery have been built in the past 30 years. Corn biomass; to hydrolyze hemicellu- concept are closely linked. The wet-mills produce a variety of food products— lose to break it down into its com- cellulosic ethanol technology as well as ethanol—from starch, but most new ponent sugars and open up the developed by NREL will open ethanol plants are smaller dry mills producing cellulose to treatment; to enzymati- the door to making a wealth of just ethanol and animal feed. To overcome the cally hydrolyze cellulose to break other products. Just as cellulose it down to sugars; and to ferment and hemicellulose are polymers of sugars, new polymers can be NREL uses a one-ton- made from those sugars. Biode- per-day pilot plant to test bioethanol tech- gradable plastics and natural, nologies, including nontoxic herbicides are just NREL’s metabolically some of the possibilities NREL engineered bacteria, researchers are exploring. Zymomonas mobilis, which enables the cofermentation of cellu- lose and hemicellulose. 4