In Sweden, Cortus Energy AB has announced that it has been notified by the Swedish Patent Office that a patent will be granted for the production of pure biobased, fossil-free, renewable crude oil ("Process and apparatus for hydrotreatment of pyrolysis oil"). This is the sixth step in Cortus's patented WoodRoll process for producing high-quality energy products (syngas) from bio-based residues such as bark, shavings, and sludge.
As such, the new patent will be named “WoodRoll 6.0” and, according to Cortus Energy, the unique feature of WoodRoll 6.0 is that it is possible to produce pure hydrocarbon products in the form of pure bio-crude oil, using self-produced hydrogen gas (H2) in a catalytic process of pyrolysis oil.
Biomass consists of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. In this context, the amount of oxygen is the constituent that limits the energy value of the products that can be produced directly from biomass. Gasification through the WoodRoll process is, the company says, the process that has come the longest in minimizing the oxygen content of the final product in the form of syngas (synthesis gas or producer gas).
With WoodRoll 6.0, Cortus has patented a method for eliminating oxygen from the biomass and producing pure hydrocarbons. This is achieved by changing the process and allowing the pyrolysis gas to form the basis for a final product. The gasification of char is done, as previously, for the production of syngas.
The synthesis gas is then divided into a hydrogen gas stream and an energy gas stream. The hydrogen gas is used for the hydrogenation of pyrolysis oil in a catalytic process. The energy gas is used for the heating needs of the process. Hydrogenation means that the oxygen is eliminated from the pyrolysis oil converting the pyrolysis oil into pure hydrocarbons.
Instead, oxygen and hydrogen become water vapour that is separated. The end product becomes a bio-based crude oil which can be used advantageously in existing refineries. The refineries with this biocrude oil do not become dependent on themselves to hydrogenate bio-based liquid they can buy on the market today, nor increase their internal hydrogen consumption. The latter is important because the availability of hydrogen in refineries is often a limiting factor for them in optimizing the value of the product mix.
Cortus thus has a unique position in the market with WoodRoll®6.0, which is the only process supplier for gas, liquid and pure bio-oil from biomass.
The global demand for clean fossil-free fuels is very high, our new unique process for the production of clean biocrude oil will contribute to a faster and more efficient conversion to renewable energy supply that reduces greenhouse effect, customers see great potential”, said Rolf Ljung, Founder and Deputy CEO of Cortus Energy.
