Bifunctional nanocatalyst for one step drop-in diesel production using biomass derived syngas

C56-10c-273795The proposed SBIR phase I project aims to develop an energy-efficient and sustainable bifunctional nanoarray-based catalyst system that coherently integrates syngas-to-wax hydrocarbons and wax hydrocarbons-to-diesel fuel conversions in a tandem one-step catalytic process for biomass-derived syngas conversion into drop-in transportation hydrocarbons with low aromatic, oxygen, sulfur and nitrogen containing contents and process operating flexibility, continuity, and low cost at the same time. It is anticipated that the process can result in more than 70% of the CO2 reduction compared to conventional transportation fuel production process while producing drop-in diesel with 50 or higher cetane-number. These bifunctional catalysts will be manufactured using solution phase deposition strategy. The bifunctional catalysts integrate nanoarray based metal and wash coated zeolite components on the ceramic based monolithic substrates, resulting in well-controlled multi-modal porosity and uniformly tailored temperature profile, and increased transportation fuel production with high diesel selectivity. During Phase I, the proposing small business will focus on: i) synthesizing bifunctional nanocatalysts; ii) evaluating and enabling bifunctional nanoarray catalysts for syngas- to-fuel conversion at low temperature and pressure; characterizing liquid fuel composition and cetane number; iii) studying temperature, pressure and flowrate effects on the diesel production using bifunctional nanocatalysts; iv) performing techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life cycle analysis (LCA) based on the experimental parameters used and results achieved. All synthesis and testing work will be carried out at the proposing small business, but characterization will leverage capabilities of the partner research institution to evaluate the structure, porosity, surface area, and chemical properties of the bifunctional catalysts before and after testing. Besides, the liquid fuel composition and cetane number will also be characterized using resources from the partner research institution. The proposed bifunctional monolithic catalyst is capable of integrating multi-processes, resulting simplified, compact, and modular reactor and process design, not only for renewable drop-in diesel production, but also for other complicated reaction processes. If developed successfully, this project shall result in a low-cost and energy efficient reactor and process design that can be used for various chemical and energy applications, providing increased energy diversity, energy security and remediation for CO2 emissions with decreased crude oil dependence.