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Fig. 1. The new the biomass gasification facility in Güssing, Austria. Picture courtesy of Oxford Catalyst Group


 The start of a biomass-to- liquids demonstration project in Austria and the award of funding to a commercial bioethanol project in England highlight how close such processes are to competing with traditional fossil fuel sources. Sean Ottewell reports.


 Der Beginn eines Präsentationsprogramms für BtL-Kraftstoffe in Österreich und der Förderungspreis für ein kommerzielles Bioethanol-Projekt in England veranschaulichen die steigende Konkurrenzfähigkeit dieser Verfahren mit traditionellen fossilen Brenstoffquellen. Sean Ottewell berichtet.


 Le début d’un projet de démonstration biomasse-liquide en Autriche et l’attribution du financement d’un projet commercial de bioéthanol en Angleterre mettent en lumière combien ces procédés sont proches d’une concurrence avec les sources traditionnelles de carburants fossiles. Article de Sean Ottewell.


Biofuel processing takes a step closer to reality


company SGC Energia (SGCE), at the biomass gasification facility in Güssing, Austria, is now up and running (Fig. 1). The plant is designed for the small scale distributed production of biofuels via the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reaction. The demonstration plant, which is being


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managed by SGCE, has been fully operational for over a month. Initial results indicate that the equipment – including the Güssing gasifier, a gas conditioning unit supplied by SGCE and an FT microchannel reactor skid developed by the US-based member of the Oxford Catalysts Group, Velocys, – is all operating smoothly. The FT microchannel reactor, comprised of


over 900 full-length microchannels, is working effectively. It is proving to be very efficient at controlling temperatures in highly exothermic (heat-generating) FT reaction and at maintaining isothermal conditions throughout the reactor. The demonstration plant is already producing over 0.75kg of high quality synthetic FT liquids per litre of catalyst per hour – 4 to 8 times greater productivity than conventional systems. The unit is also demonstrating robust responsiveness to shutdowns and start ups.


biomass-to-liquids (BTL) demonstration plant, jointly operated by the Oxford Catalysts Group and the Portuguese incorporated holding


These results confirm the significant process intensification potential of the FT technology. Performance will improve further after the steam superheating section of the plant is debottlenecked at the next scheduled shutdown in the next couple of months. Going forward, the demonstration plant will be operated over a range of conditions to establish and confirm performance. It also will be tested in an extended three-month steady state run. Roy Lipski, ceo of Oxford Catalysts Group, said: “Successful testing of our FT demonstration is an important step closer to validation of our technology in the field, paving the way for commercial roll out with our partner SGCE.” “As the managing company in charge of the


Güssing demonstration, SGCE is very pleased with the initial performance. We remain on track to place a commercial order upon completion of the technical milestones, initiating worldwide commercialisation of the Group’s FT technology,” added Vianney Vales, ceo SGCE. In terms of technology, the production of


biofuels from non-food biomass and other wastes relies on the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process, which was first developed in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s to produce liquid fuel from coal. In the FT process synthesis gas (syngas) composed of a mixture of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2


) is converted into various forms of liquid hydrocarbons using a catalyst at elevated


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