BIOFUELS

By Group 7 – MAY 07, 2018

Mamba, Rhea
Manaligod, Laica
Maquera Kricel-Mae
Maruquin, Elha
CONTENTS
What are Biofuels?
Biofuels vs Fossil Fuels
History of Biofuels
Classification of Biofuels
Biofuel’s Main Production Processes
1st Generation Biofuels
2nd Generation Biofuels
3rd Generation Biofuels
4th Generation Biofuels
 WHAT ARE BIOFUELS?

Biofuels are fuels derived

from biomass.
Biomass (biological matter) is an organic
matter taken from or produced by plants
and animals. It comprises mainly wood,
agricultural crops and products, aquatic
plants, forestry products, wastes and
residues, and animal wastes.
BIOFUELS
All types of solid, gaseous and liquid fuels that can be derived from biomass.

1 2 3

SOLID FUELS LIQUID FUELS GASEOUS FUELS

 Wood  Methanol  Methane gas
 Charcoal  Ethanol  Producer gas
 Bagasse  Plant oils
 Methyl esters
 Biofuels vs Fossil Fuels

B F
 Biofuels Fossil Fuels
Renewable and Sustainable Nonrenewable energy sources

Cheap High market price

Fossil fuels such as gasoline are Have high efficiency

added to biofuels to add to their
efficiency
Are carbon neutral, i.e. they absorb Release greenhouse gases, such as the
whatever amount of carbon dioxide carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide,
they produce, and thus do not add to in the atmosphere.
the atmospheric concentration of
carbon dioxide

Note: The advantages, disadvantages and benefits of biofuels, however, depend on the categorization of the specific biofuel, type of
feedstock used and technology applied to produce it.
Biofuels

Figure 1: Substitutability of various biofuels for common petroleum-

derived fuels.
Biofuels

Figure 2: Greenhouse gas emission of various fuels

Biofuels

Figure 3: Energy usage in the road transport sector 2015, preliminary statistics.
Classifications of Biofuels

Figure 4: General Classification of Biofuels

Classification of Biofuel
01 03

02

LIQUID SOLID
FUELS FUELS
GASEOUS
FUELS
 LIQUID BIOFUELS

BIODIESEL

Biodiesel is used as a
petroleum diesel
replacement

01
02

BIOETHANOL

Bioethanol is used as a
gasoline replacement
Liquid Biofuels

Figure 5: Sources of main liquid biofuels for automobiles

Liquid Biofuels

Figure 6: Distribution of ethanol and biodiesel production by country/region in 2011

LIQUID FUELS

BIO-ALCOHOLS
The alcohols such as bioethanol, propanol
and butanol are produced by microbial
fermentation of sugars or starches, derived
from feedstocks of wheat, corn, sugar beet,
sugarcane, molasses, potato, etc. In the first
step complex sugars are hydrolysed and
glucose released undergo second
fermentation step carried out by yeasts such
as Saccharomyces cerevisiae producing
ethanol and carbon dioxide. Further diluted
ethanol undergo distillation to obtain highly
concentrated ethanol in the final step
 BIO-ALCOHOLS
1 2
BIOETHANOL
Ethanol is the most widely used
biofuel with 13 billion gallons
produced and consumed in 2010
all primarily from corn.
3
PROPANOL
Propanol contains 3 C-C bond that
require higher energy to break. As
a consequence, the temperature
and reaction time of the process
will increase.
BUTANOL
Butanol (C4H9OH) formed by ABE
fermentation (acetone, butanol,
and ethanol) is a better biofuel as
it will produce more energy and
allegedly can be burned
"straight" in existing gasoline
engines without modification to
the engine or car and is less
corrosive and less water soluble
 LIQUID FUELS

BIODIESEL
Biodiesel is produced mainly by
transesterification of fatty acids of lipids
(vegetable oils or aimal fat) with alchol to form a
mix of fatty acid alkyl esters (FAAE).
The characteristics of the biodiesel concerned
from ethanol or methanol are very similar, but
methanol is the preferred alcohol despite its
toxicity and fossil fuel origin because of its low
cost and wide availability.

Biodiesel can be used in any diesel engine either

in pure form or mixed with mineral diesel (eg.B20
means blending of 20 percent biodiesel to
diesel).
Fuel Type Feedstock Conversion Description Benefits Issues/Challenges Status
Technology
Green Vegetable oil Hydroprocessing Biomass oils conversion to Low sulfur diesel. Feedstock availability. Early stage of
Diesel Animal fat diesel and other hydrocarbons Capital and operating commercialization in
Grease via hydrotreating methods as in costs could be Brazil by Petrobras;
petroleum refinery substantially lower NESTE in Finland is
than those for constructing a plant
transesterification.
Fischer Lignocellulosic Gasification and Gasification to produce syngas, FT diesel can Gasification requires Demonstrational
Tropsh biomass FT synthesis which is then cleaned and substitute directly dried biomass. High facilities underway in
(FT) purified. The clean syngas then conventional diesel level of syngas clean- Germany, Austria,
Diesel undergoes a catalytic process to with lower up required. Catalysts Finland.
synthesize hydrocarbons and emissions. Feedstock sensitive to poisoning
their oxygen derivatives by the flexibility. and sintering.
controlled reaction of hydrogen Requires improved
and carbon monoxide. The yields.
product is separated and
upgraded.
Bio-DME Lignocellulosic Gasification and Bio-DME is produced from Bio-DME can be used Bio-DME can't be Pilot plants under
(Dimethyl biomass DME-synthesis syngas by means of oxygenate as a fuel in diesel blended with fossil development in
Ether) synthesis. engines; the process diesel and it has a low Sweden; R&D in
is highly efficient and energy content (half China
permits a large scale that of diesel). Can
production. It affect certain plastics
doesn't corrode and rubbers.
metals.
Straight Vegetable oil Mechanical Filtering out particles and Viable fuel for Not suitable for use Commercial (The
vegetable Animal fat pressing or removing water tropical regions in regular diesel Philippines, Papua
oil (SVO) Grease solvent where saturated oils engines (except New Guinea, EU)
extraction are available. coconut oil and other
Coconut oil can be saturated oils).
blended directly
with diesel and used
in unmodified
engines in tropical
regions
Biodiesel Algae Transesterificatio Lipids are derived from High yield per acre; High cost R&D programs in the
Green n or catalytic microalgae and biodiesel is could be used for US, Japan, New
Diesel hydroprocessing produced using conventional CO2 capture and Zealand, South
transesterification technology. reuse. Africa, and Western
Alternatively, the oils can be Europe
used to produce “green” diesel
via catalytic hydroprocessing .
 GASEOUS FUELS
BIOGAS
Biogas consists of methane and carbon dioxide
produced by process of anaerobic digestion of
organic material by anaerobic microorganisms. This
is used as an energy source and the solid by-
product, digestate, is used as an organic fertilizer.
The biogas can be produced from any waste with
organic fraction in comparison to ethanol ad
biodiesel production from crops. The net energy
yield per hectare per year is also comparatively
higher. The biogas could be even produced from the
by-products and waste released from the current Methane Gas
bioethanol and biodiesel industries
 GASEOUS FUELS
SYNGAS
Syngas is a mixture of carbon monoxide,
hydrogen and other hydrocarbons
produced by partial combustion of
biomass, that is, the burning with a
volume of oxygen that is not sufficient to
transform the biomass waste completely
to carbon dioxide and water.

Syngas may be burned directly in internal

combustion engines, turbines or high-
temperature fuel cells. Syngas can be
utilized to produce methanol, DME, and
hydrogen, or converted via the Fischer-
Tropsch process to produce a diesel
substitute or a mixture of alcohols that
can be blended into gasoline.
 GASEOUS FUELS
BIOHYDROGEN
H2 can be used either as the fuel for
direct combustion in an internal
combustion engine or as the fuel for a
fuel cell.

Carbohydrate rich, nitrogen deficient

solid wastes such as cellulose and starch
containing agricultural and food industry
wastes and some food industry
wastewaters such as cheese whey, olive
mill and bakers yeast industry
wastewaters can be used for hydrogen
production by using suitable bio-process
technologies.
SOLID FUELS

DENSIFIED FUELS BIOCHAR

When the raw material Biochar is one of the

is already in a suitable product of pyrolysis and
form (i.e. firewood), it is often used to pre-dry
can burn instantly in a biomass feedstock or sold
stove or furnace to as charcoal briquettes. Its
produce heat or steam. high stability against
The other kinds of decay and ability to
densification are bigger retain more plant
in size compared to nutrients as compared to
wood pellet and are other forms of organic
compatible with a wide matter made the biochar
variety of input as a good soil
feedstocks. amendment.
SOLID FUELS

Figure 7: Graphical representation of biochar production process.

.
 BIOFUEL’S MAIN PRODUCTION PROCESSES

Chemical Conversion Biochemical

Process
Thermochemical
Conversion
Conversion
Process 3
Process

1 2
 TRANSESTERIFICATION  GASIFICATION  ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
 PYROLYSIS  FERMENTATION
 LIQUEFACTION
 CHEMICAL CONVERSION PROCESS
TRANSESTERIFICATION
Transesterification is a well-known chemical reaction
between an ester and an alcohol to produce a new
ester and a new alcohol. Thus, during the reaction,
there is an exchange of the organic groups R’ of an
ester with the group R’’ of an alcohol. These reactions
are often catalyzed by an acid or base catalyst.

In the alkali process, sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or

potassium hydroxide (KOH) is used as a catalyst along
with methanol or ethanol. Initially, during the process,
alcoxy is formed by reaction of the catalyst with alcohol
and the alcoxy is then reacted with any vegetable oil to
form biodiesel and glycerol. The alcoxy reaction is as
follows:
R-CH2OH + NaOH → H2O + R-CH2ONa
THERMOCHEMICAL CONVERSION PROCESS

In thermo-chemical conversion, heat and chemicals are used to

break biomass into syngas (a mixture of carbon monoxide and
hydrogen) and reassemble it into products such as ethanol.

Table 1: Operational Conditions of Thermochemical Process

GASIFICATION

Gasification converts fossil or non-fossil fuels into useful gases

and chemicals. Biomass gasification is the conversion of a
carbon-rich lignocellulosic material under oxygen-reduced
conditions and high temperatures. The output gas that results
is referred to as producer gas, consisting of carbon monoxide
(CO), hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), nitrogen (N2), carbon
dioxide (CO2), and small amounts of higher hydrocarbons and
inorganic contaminants.
4 Main Steps of Gasification
Heating and Drying 01

Pyrolysis 02

Solid-Gas Reactions 03

Gas Phase Reaction 04

4 Main Steps of Gasification

Heating and Drying

Heating and drying are endothermic processes that require the aid of a
gasification agent. Although it is possible to gasify wet feedstocks such
as manure and greenwood, some amount of drying of the biomass
before gasification is highly desirable.

Pyrolysis
Pyrolysis produces the intermediate gases (mainly CO, CO2, H2, and
light hydrocarbons) and condensable vapor (including water,
methanol, acetic acid, acetone, and heavy hydrocarbons).
4 Main Steps of Gasification

Solid-Gas Reactions
These reactions (exothermic and endothermic) convert solid carbon into gaseous CO, H2, and CH4.

Gas Phase Reaction

Includes water-gas shift reaction and methanation
PYROLYSIS

Pyrolysis is the thermal decomposition of organic compounds

in the absence of an oxidizing agent, involving a series of
reactions to produce smaller and simpler molecules of liquid
(bio-oil), solid (char) and gas, thus inhibiting complete
combustion. Liquid phase products result from temperatures
,which are too small to crack all the long chain carbon
molecules, resulting in oils, methanol, acetone, and tars, etc.
Once all the volatile component has been driven off, the
residual biomass is in the form of char which is virtually pure
carbon.
PYROLYSIS

Table 2: Typical Operation Conditions of Pyrolysis Process

LIQUEFACTION

 Direct liquefaction consists of the direct conversion of biomass into a liquid fuel,
omitting the gaseous phase.

Hydrothermal liquefaction involves the reaction of biomass in water at elevated

temperatures (300oC – 400oC) and pressure (5-20 MPa), usually without the
presence of a catalyst.

The other liquefaction process dissolves biomass in organic solvents (solvolysis)

with or without a catalyst at moderate temperatures (100oC – 250oC) and
atmospheric pressure.

During chemical liquefaction, biomass components mixed with solvents and a

small amount of a catalyst are broken into smaller molecular fragments that can
re-polymerize into oily compounds with various ranges of molecular weights.
BIOCHEMICAL CONVERSION PROCESS

Anaerobic digestion involves the breakdown of

1 biodegradable materials by microorganisms in
Anaerobic Digestion the absence of oxygen.

Microbial fermentation is an efficient and

extensively used method for biofuels
2 production. It includes bioethanol, biobutanol,
Fermentation biohydrogen, etc.
 ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
METHANOGENESIS
The methane-forming bacteria convert
acetates to methane, carbon dioxide,
and alkaline water. Additionally, H2 and
CO2 formed in the previous steps are ACETOGENESIS
converted to CH4. About 30% of the
total methane is produced by this route Acetogenesis where acid bacteria form
acetate, CO2 and H2.

ACIDOGENESIS
Acid-forming bacteria promote the
decomposition of the previous products
into organic acids, carbon dioxide, hydrogen
sulfide (H2S), and ammonia (NH3).
HYDROLYSIS
Hydrolysis by anaerobic microorganisms
use enzymes to break down high
molecular organic substances such as
proteins, carbohydrates, and fats into low
molecular compounds like amino acids,
sugars, and fatty acids, respectively, with
production of hydrogen and carbon
dioxide.
.
FERMENTATION

Ethanol, butanol, and methanol are produced

principally from energy crops such as sugarcane, maize,
beets, yam, or sweet sorghum. A variety of
microorganisms ferment sugars into ethanol i.e.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia stipitis, Candida
shehatae and Pachysolan tannophilus, etc. The ethanol
recovery is done by distillation and concentrated in a
rectifying column to a 95%. Anhydrous ethanol (99.0
%), can be mixed with gasoline and used as fuel.