The DOE has provided this grant under the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Biomass Program as part of its strategy to accelerate the development of sustainable biofuels.
Under this project, Grace will develop technologies for thermochemical conversion of biomass to advanced biofuels that are compatible with the existing fueling infrastructure, in collaboration with DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).
The project, which will also involve VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, will develop technologies for upgrading bio-oils into gasoline, diesel and jet fuels using a specialized catalytic reactor designed to resist corrosion and extend catalyst lifetime.
VTT will provide pyrolysis oils, while Oak Ridge National Laboratory will study corrosion to facilitate the process of using the thermochemical process, pyrolysis, which breaks down biomass using heat to produce bio-oils that can be further processed in petroleum refineries into transportation fuels.
Grace Renewable Technologies business director Susan Ehrlich said that the company is excited to be selected for this funding and look forward to collaborating with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
“Our understanding of catalysts, combined with their pyrolysis and process development expertise, will position us to accelerate the commercialization of this new technology and production process,” Ehrlich said.
