Needs for Real Time Process Monitoring for the Algal Biofuels Industry
José OlivaresBiofuels Program Lead
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Executive Director, NAABBDonald Danforth Plant Science Center
Presentation to the Center for Process Analytical Chemistry,May 3, 2010 Meeting
Slide 1
LA-UR 10-02848
Annual GHG Emissions – US Only(Tg CO2 equivalent, 2006)
Coal fueled electricity
Naturalgas fueled electricity
All other fossil fuels electricity
Gasoline automobiles
Gasoline light duty trucks
All other gasoline
Diesel medium and heavy trucks
Diesel rail
All otherdiesel
Jet fuel aircraft
Industrial NG combustion
Industrial petroleum
combustion
Industrial coal
combustion
ResidentialNG
combustion
CommercialNG combustion
Residentialpetroleum
combustion
Commercialpetroleumcombustion
Fossil fuel combustion in US Territories
CO2 from all sources except fossil fuel combustion
CH4 N2O
HFCs, PFCs, and SF6
U.S. 2008 Transportation Fuel StatsGasoline (cars & trucks)
Diesel (on-road, rail)
Aviation (jet fuel)
25 bgy
140 bgy
43 bgy
US Focus
Cellulosic EthanolRD&D
AdvancedBiofuels
R&D
Technoeconomic AnalysisResource
Analysis/Allocation
Sustainability Analysis & LCA
BiopowerBiomass
Intermediates
Algal Biofuels
R&D
EISA Mandated Biofuel Production Targets
Slide 4
EISA defines Cellulosic Biofuel as “renewable fuel derived from any cellulose, hemicellulose, or lignin that is derived from renewable biomass and that has lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions…that are at least 60 percent less than baseline lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.” The EPA interprets this to include cellulosic-based diesel fuel.
EISA defines Advanced Biofuel as “renewable fuel, other than ethanol derived from corn starch, that has lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions…that are at least 50 percent lessthan baseline lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.” This includes biomass-based diesel, cellulosic biofuels, and other advanced fuels such as sugarcane-based ethanol
Biomass Market Trends
5
A shift is occurring from an ethanol centric biofuels strategy to a more holistic use of biomass within the entire energy sector. • US market largely rejected E85; E10 can be achieved with corn-based ethanol; likely to see
approval of E15 maybe E20. • Renewed interest in Biopower.• Regional nature of biomass requires regional solutions and the economics demand optimizing
the choice between fuels/chemicals/power within the energy sector.
As energy companies have entered the biomass arena the use of infrastructure becomes increasingly important for production and distribution of higher energy density fuels and chemicals.• Liquid fuels for heavy trucking, rail and aviation remain even with plug-in hybrids.• Infrastructure is not set up for boutique fuels—need fungible diesel, jet and gasoline.
Algae is moving through a period of intense excitement • Science base is needed to temper the excitement while offering approaches to the challenges
offering unique approaches for aquatic and marine systems.
Serious questions on sustainability and CO2 mitigation have arisen. • DOE labs are in unique position to address questions and offer science-based solutions.
Aim: Use Current infrastructure to Produce and Transport Biofuels
6
Biomass Finished Fuels and Blendstocks
Existing Refinery Infrastructure
Atm
osph
eric
and
Vacu
um D
istil
latio
n GasL NaphthaH NaphthaLGOVGOAtm. Res.Vac. Res.
GasolineJet FuelDiesel Fuel
CrudeOil
Drop-In Fuels
InsertionPoint #1
InsertionPoint #3
InsertionPoint #2
Tank farmTermina
l
Reform
FCC
Alky/Poly
HT/HC
Coker
Refinery-Ready Intermediates
Refining: • 750 refineries• 85M BBL of crude refined daily
• 50M BBL transport fuels
Research Strategies
– National Renewable Energy Lab & Pacific Northwest National Lab–Albemarle Corp., Amyris Biotechnologies, Argonne National Laboratory, BP Products NA, CatchlightEnergy, Colorado School of Mines, Iowa State University, Los Alamos National Lab, Pall Corp., RTI International, Tesoro Companies, University of California, Davis, UOP, Virent Energy Systems, Washington State University
Biomass Attributes that Impact Cost and Performance
Slide 8
• BTU Content• Lignin Content• S, Cl, N Content• Ash Content/Composition
• Moisture Content• Particle Size/Shape• Material Density• Thermal Conductivity
• Heat Capacity• Porosity• Permeability• Fines
Richard Hess, INL, Biomass 2010
Feedstock Fuel Properties
Slide 9
Camsizer™Digital Image Processing SystemParticle Size Distribution and Particle Shape
Impact of Moisture in Feedstock Supply and Gasification Systems
Foss NIR Spectrometer- carbohydrate screening- feedstock classification using PCA• Selective tissue staining- cellulose and lignin content
Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS)– Performs real-time, elemental analyses with no sample preparation• Allows analyses of inorganic components
Richard hess, INL, Biomass 2010
Algae has potential advantages over corn, cellulosic materials, and other crops as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels
Gallons of Oil per Acre per Year
Corn 18
Soybeans 48
Safflower 83
Sunflower 102
Rapeseed 127
Oil Palm 635
Micro Algae 1000 - 7000
• High biomass productivity potential• Oil feedstock for higher energy-content fuels• Can avoid competition with agricultural
lands and water for food & feed production• Can use non-fresh water, resulting in reduced
pressure on limited fresh water resources• Captures CO2 and recycles carbon for fuels and co-products
Land Needed for Biofuel to Replace 50% of Current Petroleum Diesel using oil from:
CornSoybeanAlgae
The Promise of Algae-Based Biofuels
Figure courtesy of Sandia National Laboratory
Development and Commercialization Value Chain
Slide 11
Not Just A Kids Dream !!!
Slide 13
Alexandra Viszolay, 12 Leonardo Viszolay, 9Santa Fe, NM
Phenotypic and Genotypic Analysis
Slide 14
Proteomic and Metabolic Analysis
Slide 15
Cultivation – Productivity, Environment, Nutrients, Water
Slide 16
Real-time In-situ Monitoring (JA Thomasson, TAMU) Alupoaei, Biosensors & Bioelectronics,2003
A side by side comparison of classification performance with IsoData Algorithm on TreesPanel A: the original image;
Panel B: Classification Panel is overlaid on the original imageGreen: Healthy trees; Blue: Stressed or Dead trees (some are bushes, or small trees)
A B
New global monitoring system is being developed at LANL
Harvesting and Extraction
Slide 18
NAABB will develop cost-effective and energy efficient harvesting and lipid extraction technologies
Harvesting technologies Acoustic focusing (LANL)Hybrid capacitive deionization/electro deionization (CDI/EDI) (TAMU)Membranes and flocculants (PNNL)
Extraction Technologies Acoustic technologies (LANL)Mesoporous nanomaterials (MNM) (Catilin)Amphiphilic solvents (TAMU)
• Sedimentation, filtration, dried air flocculation
• Centrifugation alone 15% solids• Centrifugation and drying >90%• Belt filter press - 30%• Attached growth systems - surfaces• Bioharvesting
Conversion to Fuels
Slide 19
Fuel properties characterizationCSU Engine Lab, UOP,
Pyrox-type dual fluid-bed gasification plant with 4 dry-tons per day capacity
Biomass Attributes that Impact Cost and Performance
Slide 20
• BTU Content• Lignin Content• S, Cl, N Content• Ash Content/Composition
• Moisture Content• Particle Size/Shape• Material Density• Thermal Conductivity
• Heat Capacity• Porosity• Permeability• Fines
Richard Hess, INL, Biomass 2010
Animal and Mari-culture Industry
Slide 21
Amino acid contentDigestibility coefficientBiological valueNet protein utilizationProtein efficiency ratio
peptides, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins,pigments, minerals and other valuable trace elements
Summary
Slide 22
Persistent monitoring of all process
Process monitoring at all levels
Feedback control systems
High efficiency
High productivity
Low Energy
Low Environmental Impact