Renewable Diesel from Palm Oil Using Bio-Syngas from Palm Empty Fruit Bunches as a Hydrogen Source

Biofuels have emerged as alternatives to fossil fuels for reducing CO2 emissions. Bio-syngas obtained from palm empty fruit bunches was used in the hydrotreating of palm oil, yielding an oil conversion and a renewable diesel purity very similar to the values obtained when using pure H-2, under similar reaction conditions. The presence of CO in bio-syngas decreases the stability of the catalyst by coke deposition. However, this drawback can be circumvented by regenerating the catalyst or by converting CO into CO2 and H-2 through the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction. The use of bio-syngas and its WGS product eliminates the need of an expensive H-2 purification process, and the lower H-2 purity in syngas is compensated by a moderate increase in the reaction time.

Automated summary

Biofuels have emerged as alternative options for reducing CO2 emissions. The use of bio-syngas obtained from palm empty fruit bunches in the hydrotreating of palm oil has shown similar results in oil conversion and renewable diesel purity compared to using pure H-2. The presence of CO in bio-syngas can be overcome by regenerating the catalyst or converting CO into CO2 and H-2 through the water-gas shift reaction. This eliminates the need for an expensive H-2 purification process.