Oz Researchers Develop Process to Turn Green Waste Into Fuel
Alan Harman Ward's AutoWorld, Mar 1, 2008 12:00 PM

Australian Researchers Have Developed a Chemical process to produce bio-crude oil from bulky green wastes such as forest thinnings, crop residues, waste paper and garden discards.

The bio-crude oil can be used to manufacture high-value chemicals and biofuels, including both gasoline and diesel replacement fuels.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization's (CSIRO) forest biosciences division and Monash University say they have addressed the problem of transporting large volumes of waste material over long distances with a regional solution.

“By making changes to the chemical process, we've been able to create a concentrated bio-crude which is much more stable than that achieved elsewhere in the world,” CSIRO's Steven Loffler says.

“This makes it practical and economical to produce bio-crude in local areas for transport to a central refinery, overcoming the high costs and greenhouse-gas emissions otherwise involved in transporting bulky green wastes over long distances.”

The process uses low-value wastes, significant amounts of which now are dumped in landfills or burned.

“We've been able to create a concentrated bio-crude which is much more stable than achieved elsewhere in the world,” Loffler says. “By using waste, our Furafuel technology overcomes the food vs. fuel debate which surrounds biofuels generated from grains, corn and sugar.”

The project forms part of CSIRO's commitment to delivering cleaner energy and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions by improving technologies for converting waste biomass to transport fuels, Loffler says.

The plant wastes being targeted for conversion into biofuels contain chemicals known as lignocellulose, which increasingly is favored around the world as a raw material for next-generation of bioethanol.

Lignocellulose is both renewable and potentially greenhouse-gas neutral. It is predominantly found in trees and is made up of cellulose; lignin, a natural plastic; and hemicellulose.

CSIRO and Monash University plan to apply for a patent on the chemical processes underpinning the conversion of green wastes to bio-crude oil once final laboratory trials are completed.