Forest Residues\nto Fuels: Unleashing the Potential\nof Hydrothermal Liquefaction Biocrude

The utilization of hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) biocrude\nfor\nbiofuel production represents a significant advancement in the pursuit\nof renewable energy and sustainable development. A potentially efficient\nmethod for converting a variety of organic waste materials, such as\nforest residue, into biocrude, which can be subsequently refined into\nbiofuels, is provided by the HTL process. This study delineated the\npotential pathways for the production of aviation fuel, diesel, and\nmarine fuel by upgrading lignocellulosic-derived HTL biocrude that\nwas produced through Hydrofaction, a proprietary HTL technology developed\nby Steeper Energy. In this article, stand-alone upgrading and co-processing\npathways were identified and optimized to guarantee the maximum utilization\nof renewable molecules as finished fuels. With the selection of an\nupgrading process scheme and an entrance point at a petroleum refinery,\nthe HTL biocrude’s distinctive properties were considered.\nThe results of the identified potential pathways for HTL biocrude\nmarket integration suggest that pretreatment is necessary for HTL\nbiocrude to be used as a component in marine fuel blending. The pretreatment\nprocedure was based on conventional hydrotreatment. These methods\nenhance the thermal stability and characteristics of biocrude, leading\nto a 50% increase in its compatibility with marine fuel. In addition,\ntargeted upgrading scenarios designed to maximized diesel and jet\nfuel production have shown the potential to produce up to 57 barrels\nof diesel per 100 barrels of HTL biocrude processed in one scenario\nand up to 21 barrels of a jet fuel-like product per 100 barrels of\nHTL biocrude processed in another scenario. The co-processing experiments\nthat involved petroleum feedstocks and mild hydrotreated HTL oil\nyielded encouraging results. The results indicate that it is imperative\nto modify the reaction conditions to preserve the quality of the product\nand the activity of the catalyst in comparison to the petroleum feedstock\nbaseline.