Biomass conversion via ablative fast pyrolysis and hydroprocessing towards refinery integration: Industrially relevant scale validation

Reducing the use of fossil fuels is an ongoing and important effort considering the environmental impact and depletion of fossil-based resources. The combination of ablative fast pyrolysis and hydroprocessing is explored as a pathway allowing bio-based intermediates (BioMates) integration in underlying petroleum refineries. The proposed technology is validated in industrially relevant scale, identifying pros and cons towards its commer-cialization. Straw from wheat, rye and barley was fed to ablative fast pyrolysis rendering Fast Pyrolysis Bio-Oil (FPBO) as the main product. The FPBO was stabilized via slurry hydroprocessing, rendering a stabilized FPBO (sFPBO) with 49 % reduced oxygen content, 71 % reduced carbonyl content and 49 % reduced Conradson carbon residue. Fixed bed catalytic hydroprocessing of sFPBO resulted in the production of BioMates, a high bio-content product to be co-fed in established refinery units. Compared to the starting biomass, BioMates has 83.6 wt% C content increase, 92.5 wt% O content decrease, 93.0 wt% water content decrease, while the overall technology has 20 wt% conversion yield (32 wt% carbon yield) from biomass to BioMates.

Automated summary

This study explores the integration of bio-based intermediates into petroleum refineries, using a combination of ablative fast pyrolysis and hydroprocessing. The process successfully converts straw into stabilized bio-oil and high bio-content products, which can replace traditional petroleum products.