Process-product studies on pyrolysis oil upgrading by hydrotreatment with Ru/C catalysts1-5

摘要

Biomass is considered an attractive alternative source for fossil derived energy carriers, liquid transportation fuels and bulk-chemicals. Liquid energy carriers can be obtained by biomass liquefaction followed by further upgrading. A promising liquefaction approach is fast pyrolysis. The product, pyrolysis oil, is a viscous liquid, with a high oxygen content (up to 40 wt%). The latter renders the oil polar and acidic due to the presence of organic acids. Various upgrading technologies have been proposed to improve the product properties to extend the application range. An attractive approach to extend the application range of pyrolysis oil is by its co-feeding into existing refineries, either in hydrotreating or FCC units. However, pyrolysis oil as such is not directly suitable for this purpose, because the oil is not miscible with hydrocarbon feedstocks and, moreover, shows a high tendency for coking, leading to blockage of feeding lines and reactors.