EFRI-HyBi: Algal oils to "drop-in" replacements for petroleum transportation fuels

H. Henry Lamb, Joann Burkholder, William L. Roberts, Heike W. Sederoff, Larry F. Strikeleather

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

The goal for this program is to develop and demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of producing high quality transportation fuels from a non-food feedstock, namely microalgae (Dunaliella spp.). A multi-step, catalytic process is being optimized to produce high quality hydrocarbon biofuels from lipid-rich biomass that are nearly identical to their petroleum-derived counterpart. Next generation biofuels, to be successful in the marketplace and accepted by the public, will necessarily mimic the chemical composition of the petroleum-derived fuels using non-food feedstocks. Key advantages of the proposed biofuels process are its feedstock flexibility, output flexibility/control and very limited hydrogen requirement (this is not a hydrogenation process). Technical challenges include genetic modification of Dunaliella spp. to overproduce fatty acids, lipid extraction using low energy separation processes to remove unwanted compounds from lipids/FFAs, efficient hydrogenation into FFAs, optimization of the catalytic decarboxylation process, hydroisomerization and hydroaromitization as necessary, and quantification of the fuel properties.
Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationACS National Meeting Book of Abstracts
StatePublished - Dec 1 2010
Externally publishedYes

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