Virent Makes Gasoline from Cellulosic Biomas

BioChemicals/Renewable Chemicals, BioRefineries/Renewable Fuel Production, Business News/Analysis, Energy, Federal Agency/Executive Branch, Field/Orchard/Plantation Crops/Residues, Forestry/Wood/Residues/Waste, grants, Iowa, Pretreatment, Process, R & D Focus, University/College Programs, Washington, Wisconsin

June 3, 2011

Print This Article Share it With Friends

(Virent) Biofuels Pioneer Converts Corn Stover and Loblolly Pine Into BioFormate™ Gasoline with Molecular Composition Similar to Gasoline Derived from Fossil Fuels
Virent announced it has successfully produced biogasoline from corn stover and pine harvest forest residuals, as a recipient of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) February 2010 grant to the National Advanced Biofuels Consortium (NABC). Virent’s significant milestone supports the NABC’s goal to develop technologies to convert cellulosic biomass feedstocks into hydrocarbon fuels that are sustainable, cost-effective and compatible with existing infrastructure.
Virent’s Catalysis of Lignocellulosic Sugars (CLS) is one of six different process strategies represented in the DOE’s grant program with the NABC. The CLS strategy work to date was completed in collaboration with Catchlight Energy (pine material supplier), Iowa State University (corn stover supplier), with Washington State University performing oxidation and enzymatic hydrolysis treatments necessary to digest cellulose for these two samples. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) supplied two additional hydrolysate samples which underwent a dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis process for its breakdown of the cellulose. Virent then processed the four hydrolysate samples using its patented BioForming™ process.
Virent fed each of the four hydrolysate samples into its Aqueous Phase Reforming (APR) catalyst reactor system, removing most of the oxygen from the biomass sugar mixtures, producing monoxygenates such as alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, plus the reforming products of hydrogen and carbon dioxide. Unlike other pathways, Virent’s APR process is well suited to handle mixed sugars from cellulosic streams with minimal processing. The liquids were then fed into Virent’s Catalytic Oxygenates to Aromatics (COTA) process to produce a high octane biogasoline, which the company has trademarked BioFormate™.
“Producing gasoline from cellulosics is an important milestone for our company, and for the biofuels industry overall,” said Dr. Randy Cortright, Virent’s founder and chief technology officer. “We anticipate further development in our production of drop-in fuels and chemicals from biomass, giving our nation long-awaited access to a wider range of feedstock choices.” READ MORE and MORE (Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel)

Comments are closed.

Advanced BioFuels USA