Liquid bio-fuels
View Patent ↗Liquid bio-fuels and processes for their production are provided. The liquid bio-fuels can have improved stability, less corrosiveness, and/or an improved heating value.
1. A liquid bio-fuel comprising: 50 to 95 weight percent oxygenated hydrocarbons; 5 to 50 weight percent nonoxygenated hydrocarbons; not more than 15 weight percent water; and not more than 2,500 ppmw solids, wherein said liquid bio-fuel has an ignition temperature in the range of 175 to 300° C. and a higher heating value at least 9,000 btu/lb.
2. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a stability parameter of not more than 20 cP/h, wherein cP/h is viscosity in units of centipoise per hour.
3. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having an oxygen content of not more than 20 weight percent.
4. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a total acid number of not more 90 mg KOH/g.
5. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a hard solids content of not more than 1,000 ppmw.
6. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a viscosity at 40° C. of not more than 125 cps.
7. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having an aromatic content of at least 40 weight percent based on the total weight of said nonoxygenated hydrocarbons and a phenolic content of not more than 80 weight percent based on the total weight of said oxygenated hydrocarbons.
8. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a 10% boiling point in the range of 160 to 420° C., a 50% boiling point in the range of 340 to 520° C., and a 90% boiling point in the range of 620 to 940° C.
9. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 having a specific gravity in the range of 0.75 to 1.1, a flashpoint in the range of 40 to 120° C., a calcium content of not more than 5,000 ppmw, a potassium content of not more than 5,000 ppmw, and a sodium content of not more than 1,000.
10. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 comprising 75 to 90 weight percent of said oxygenated hydrocarbons; 10 to 25 weight percent of said nonoxygenated hydrocarbons; in the range of 2 to 10 weight percent of said water; and not more than 500 ppmw of said solids, wherein said ignition temperature is in the range of 210 to 265° C. and said higher heating value is in the range of 10,500 to 13,500 btu/lb.
11. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 1 , wherein said liquid bio-fuel has been produced via pyrolysis of biomass.
12. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 11 , wherein said pyrolysis is fast pyrolysis and said biomass comprises lignocellulosic biomass.
13. A liquid bio-fuel composition comprising: oxygenated hydrocarbons in an amount such that said bio-fuel has an oxygen content of less than 30 weight percent; and nonoxygenated hydrocarbons having an aromatic content greater than 40 weight percent, wherein the high heating value of said bio-fuel is greater than 10,000 btu/lb., wherein said bio-fuel has a stability parameter of less than 30 cP/h, wherein cP/h is viscosity in units of centipoise per hour.
14. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 13 having said stability parameter of less than 20 cP/h, wherein cP/h is viscosity in units of centipoise per hour.
15. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 13 having an oxygen content in the range of 7 to 15 weight percent.
16. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 13 , wherein said nonoxygenated hydrocarbons have an aromatic content of not more than 60 weight percent, wherein said oxygenated hydrocarbons have a phenolic content of not more than 80 weight percent based on the total weight of said oxygenated hydrocarbons.
17. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 13 , wherein said liquid bio-fuel is produced via fast pyrolysis of biomass particles.
18. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 17 , wherein said biomass particles comprise lignocellulose.
19. The liquid bio-fuel of claim 13 having a 10% boiling point in the range of 160 to 420° C., a 50% boiling point in the range of 340 to 520° C., and a hard solids content of not more than 1,000 ppmw, and a total acid number of not more 90 mg KOH/g.
20. A method of operating a fuel-powered device, said method comprising:
(a) combusting a petroleum-derived fuel in a fuel-powered device to thereby produce thermal and/or mechanical energy; and
(b) combusting a biomass-derived fuel in said fuel-powered device to thereby produce thermal and/or mechanical energy,
wherein said fuel-powered device is not mechanically modified to account for the fuel change between steps (a) and (b),
wherein said biomass-derived fuel is produced via pyrolysis of biomass, wherein said bios mass-derived fuel comprises a liquid bio-fuel comprising 50 to 95 weight percent oxygenated hydrocarbons, 5 to 50 weight percent nonoxygenated hydrocarbons, not more than 15 weight percent water, and not more than 2,500 ppmw solids, wherein said liquid bio-fuel has an ignition temperature in the range of 175 to 300° C. and higher heating value at least 9,000 btu/lb.
21. The method of claim 20 , wherein said fuel-powered device is a boiler, a turbine, an internal combustion engine, or a thermal oxidizer.
22. The method of claim 20 , wherein said petroleum derived fuel is heating oil.
23. The method of claim 20 , wherein said biomass-derived fuel is bio-oil.
24. The method of claim 20 , wherein said fuel-powered device is a turbine used for power generation.
25. The method of claim 20 , wherein the heating values, specific gravities, ignition temperatures, and/or flash points of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 20 percent of one another.
26. The method of claim 20 , wherein the heating values of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 15 percent of one another, wherein the heating values of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are both in the range of 9,000 to 15,500 btu/lb.
27. The method of claim 20 , wherein the specific gravities of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 15 percent of one another, wherein the specific gravities of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are both in the range of 0.75 to 1.1 g/ml.
28. The method of claim 20 , wherein the ignition temperatures of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 15 percent of one another.
29. The method of claim 20 , wherein the flash points of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 15 percent of one another, wherein the flash points of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are both in the range of 40 to 120° C.
30. The method of claim 20 , wherein the heating values, specific gravities, ignition temperatures, and flash points of said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel are within 10 percent of one another.
31. The method of claim 20 , wherein the total solids content of both said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel is not more than 2,500 ppmw and the hard solids content of both said biomass-derived fuel and said petroleum-derived fuel is not more than 1,000 ppmw.
32. The method of claim 20 , wherein said biomass-derived fuel has a 10% boiling point in the range of 160 to 320° C. and a 50% boiling point in the range of 340 to 520° C.
33. The method of claim 20 , wherein said biomass comprises lignocellulosic biomass.