(440a) Pilot-Scale Catalytic Biomass Pyrolysis Studies

Catalytic fast pyrolysis is the direct liquefaction process used by RTI to produce a hydrocarbon-rich biocrude that can subsequently be upgraded by hydrotreating to make refinable intermediates and â??drop-inâ? advanced biofuels. As part of the technology development, the process has been scaled up from bench-scale to 1 ton per day (1TPD) pilot-scale. Evaluation of the process at the pilot-scale is one of the critical steps being taken by RTI to address a number of technical challenges facing catalytic pyrolysis and to collect required processing and engineering data to support the demonstration and commercialization of the technology.

Up to date, several experimental campaigns have been conducted to optimize the catalytic biomass pyrolysis process to achieve high degree of deoxygenation while maximizing the bio-crude production and improving the biocrude thermal stability. A commercially available spray dried, non-zeolite, alumina-based catalyst has been exclusively studied so far. The quality and biocrude yield has been evaluated at different temperatures and other process conditions. Typically, partially deoxygenated biocrude with oxygen contents between 20 and 25 wt% is produced. Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis have shown high amount of oxygenated aromatics in the partially deoxygenated biocrude. Current results from RTIâ??s 1 ton per day pilot-scale catalytic pyrolysis unit show a biocrude yield up to 19.2 wt% is achievable. This presentation will be used to discuss in detail the results that have been obtained from several studies and highlight the progress that has been made.