Overview of Applications of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Oil

S. Czerni k*
,
and A. V. Bri dgwater

National Bioenergy Center NREL, 1617 ColeBoulevard, Golden, Colorado 80401, and
Bio-Energy Research Group, Aston University, BirminghamB4 7ET, UK
Received October 1, 2003. Revised Manuscript Received J anuary 19, 2004
Fast pyrol ysi s of bi omass i s one of the most recent renewabl e energy processes to have been
i ntroduced. I t offers the advantages of a l i qui d product, bi o-oi l that can be readi l y stored and
transported. Bi o-oi l i s a renewabl e l i qui d fuel and can al so be used for producti on of chemi cal s.
Fast pyrol ysi s has now achi eved a commerci al success for producti on of chemi cal s and i s bei ng
acti vel y devel oped for produci ng l i qui d fuel s. Bi o-oi l s have been successful l y tested i n engi nes,
turbi nes, and boi l ers, and have been upgraded to hi gh-qual i ty hydrocarbon fuel s, al though at a
presentl y unacceptabl e energeti c and fi nanci al cost. The paper cri ti cal l y revi ews sci enti fi c and
techni cal devel opments i n appl i cati ons of bi o-oi l to date and concl udes wi th some suggesti ons for
research and strategi c devel opments.
Introduction
Si nce the oi l cri si s i n the mi d 1970s, consi derabl e
effort has been di rected toward devel opment of pro-
cesses for produci ng l i qui d fuel s from l i gno-cel l ul osi c
bi omass. Thi s l ed to the devel opment of several fast
pyrol ysi s technol ogi es. Fast pyrol ysi s i s a thermal
decomposi ti on process that occurs at moderate temper-
atures wi th a hi gh heat transfer rate to the bi omass
parti cl es and a short hot vapor resi dence ti me i n the
reacti on zone. Several reactor confi gurati ons have been
shown to ensure thi s condi ti on and to achi eve yi el ds of
l i qui d product as hi gh as 70-80%based on the starti ng
dry bi omass wei ght.
1
They i ncl ude bubbl i ng fl ui d beds,
2,3
ci rcul ati ng and transported beds,
4,5
cycl oni c reactors,
6,7
and abl ati ve reactors.
8
I n the 1990s, several fast py-
rol ysi s technol ogi es have reached near-commerci al sta-
tus. Si x ci rcul ati ng fl ui di zed bed pl ants have been
constructed by Ensyn Technol ogi es wi th the l argest
havi ng a nomi nal capaci ty of 50 t/day operated for Red
Arrow Products Co., I nc., i n Wi sconsi n. DynaMoti ve
(Vancouver, Canada) demonstrated the bubbl i ng fl ui d-
i zed bed process at 10 t/day of bi omass and i s scal i ng
up the pl ant to 100 t/day. BTG (The Netherl ands)
operates a rotary cone reactor system at 5 t/day and i s
proposi ng to scal e the pl ant up to 50 t/d. Fortum has a
12 t/day pi l ot pl ant i n Fi nl and.
9
The yi el ds and proper-
ti es of the generated l i qui d product, bi o-oi l , depend on
the feedstock, the process type and condi ti ons, and the
product col l ecti on effi ci ency. Though pri mari l y bi omass
pyrol ysi s oi l s have been expected to become al ternati ve
l i qui d fuel s, other potenti al appl i cati ons have al so
emerged and wi l l be revi ewed i n thi s paper.
Properties of Biomass Pyrolysis Oils
Bi o-oi l s, al so known under the names of pyrol ysi s oi l s,
pyrol ysi s l i qui ds, and others, are usual l y dark brown,
free-fl owi ng l i qui ds havi ng a di sti ncti ve smoky odor. The
physi cal properti es of bi o-oi l s are descri bed i n several
publ i cati ons.
10-12
These properti es resul t from the
chemi cal composi ti on of the oi l s, whi ch i s si gni fi cantl y
di fferent from that of petrol eum-deri ved oi l s. Bi o-oi l s
are mul ti component mi xtures compri sed of di fferent si ze
mol ecul es deri ved pri mari l y from depol ymeri zati on and
fragmentati on reacti ons of three key bi omass bui l di ng
bl ocks: cel l ul ose, hemi cel l ul ose, and l i gni n. Therefore,
* Correspondi ng author.

Nati onal Bi oenergy Center NREL.

Aston Uni versi ty.

(1) Bri dgwater, A. V.; Peacocke, G. V. C. Fast pyrol ysi s processes
for bi omass. Sustai nabl e and Renewabl e Energy Revi ews 1999, 4 (1)
1-73.
(2) Scott, D. S.; Pi skorz, J.; Radl ei n, D. Li qui d Products from the
Conti nuous Fl ash Pyrol ysi s of Bi omass. I nd. Eng. Chem. Process Des.
Dev. 1985, 24, 581-586.
(3) Robson, A. 25 tpd Border Bi ofuel s/Dynamoti ve Pl ant i n the UK.
PyNeNewsletter 11, May 2001, Aston Uni versi ty, UK, pp 1-2
(4) Graham, R. G.; Freel , B. A.; Bergougnou, M. A. The Producti on
of Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds, Gas, and Char from Wood and Cel l ul ose by Fast
Pyrol ysi s. I n Research in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dg-
water, A. V., Kuester, J. L., Eds.; El sevi er Appl i ed Sci ence: London
1988; pp 629-641.
(5) Wagenaar, B. M.; Vanderbosch, R. H.; Carrasco, J.; Strenzi ok,
R.; van der Aa, B. Scal i ng-up of the Rotati ng Cone Technol ogy for
Bi omass Fast Pyrol ysi s. I n 1st World Conference and Exhibition on
Biomass for Energy and I ndustry, Sevi l l e, Spai n, June 2000.
(6) Di ebol d, J.; Scahi l l , J. Producti on of Pri mary Pyrol ysi s Oi l s i n a
Vortex Reactor. I n PyrolysisOilsfromBiomass: Producing, Analyzing,
and Upgrading; Sol tes, E. J., Mi l ne, T. A., Eds.; ACS Symposi um Seri es
376, ACS, Washi ngton, DC, 1988; pp 31-40.
(7) Czerni k, S.; Scahi l l , J.; Di ebol d, J. The Producti on of Li qui d Fuel
by Fast Pyrol ysi s of Bi omass. J . Sol. Energy. Eng. 1995, 117, 2-6.
(8) Peacocke, G. V. C.; Bri dgwater, A. V. Abl ati ve fast pyrol ysi s of
bi omass for l i qui ds: resul ts and anal yses. I n Bio-oil production and
utilisation; Bri dgwater, A. V., Hogan, E. H., Eds.; CPL Press: New-
bury, UK, 1996; pp 35-48.
(9) Gust, S.; Ni emi nen, J.-P.; Nyronen T. Forestera - l i quefi ed wood
fuel pi l ot pl ant. I n Pyrolysis and Gasification of Biomass and Wastes;
Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; CPL Press: Newbury, UK, 2003; pp 169-174.
(10) El l i ott, D. C. Anal ysi s and Compari son of Bi omass Pyrol ysi s/
Gasi fi cati on Condesates - Fi nal Report. PNL-5943, Contract DE-
AC06-76RLO 1830, 1986.
(11) Peacocke, G. V. C.; Russel , P. A.; Jenki ns, J. D.; Bri dgwater,
A. V. Physi cal Properti es of Fl ash Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds. BiomassBioenergy
1994, 7, 169-178.
(12) Fagernas, L. Chemi cal and Physi cal Characteri sati on of Bi o-
mass-based Pyrol ysi s Oi l s. Li terature Revi ew. Espoo 1995, Techni cal
Research Centre of Fi nl and.
590 Energy & Fuels 2004, 18, 590-598
10.1021/ef034067u CCC: $27.50 2004 Ameri can Chemi cal Soci ety
Publ i shed on Web 02/26/2004
the el emental composi ti on of bi o-oi l resembl es that of
bi omass rather than that of petrol eum oi l s. Basi c data
for bi o-oi l s and conventi onal petrol eum fuel s are com-
pared i n Tabl e 1, and those most i mportant for combus-
ti on are di scussed bel ow. More detai l on fuel -rel ated
characteri sti cs i s provi ded i n ref 13.
Oxygen Content. The oxygen content of bi o-oi l s i s
usual l y 35-40 wt %. Thi s oxygen i s present i n most of
the more than 300 compounds that have been i denti fi ed
i n the oi l s. The di stri buti on of these compounds mostl y
depends on the type of bi omass used and on the process
severi ty (temperature, resi dence ti me, and heati ng rate
profi l es). An i ncrease i n pyrol ysi s severi ty reduces the
organi c l i qui d yi el d due to cracki ng of the vapors and
formati on of gases but l eaves the organi c l i qui d wi th
l ess oxygen. The si ngl e most abundant bi o-oi l compo-
nent i s water. The other major groups of compounds
i denti fi ed are hydroxyal dehydes, hydroxyketones, sug-
ars, carboxyl i c aci ds, and phenol i cs. Most of the phenol i c
compounds are present as ol i gomers havi ng a mol ecul ar
wei ght rangi ng from 900 to 2500.
14
The presence of oxygen i n many oi l components i s the
pri mary reason for di fferences i n the properti es and
behavi or seen between hydrocarbon fuel s and bi omass
pyrol ysi s oi l s. The hi gh oxygen content resul ts i n a l ow
energy densi ty (heati ng val ue) that i s l ess than 50% of
that for conventi onal fuel oi l s and i mmi sci bi l i ty wi th
hydrocarbon fuel s. An even more i mportant consequence
of the organi c oxygen i s the i nstabi l i ty of bi o-oi l , whi ch
wi l l be di scussed l ater.
Water Content. Water i n bi o-oi l s
15
resul ts from the
ori gi nal moi sture i n the feedstock and as a product of
the dehydrati on reacti ons occurri ng duri ng pyrol ysi s.
Therefore, the water content vari es over a wi de range
(15-30%) dependi ng on the feedstock and process
condi ti ons. At thi s concentrati on, water i s usual l y
mi sci bl e wi th the ol i gomeri c l i gni n-deri ved components
because of the sol ubi l i zi ng effect of other pol ar hydro-
phi l i c compounds (l ow-mol ecul ar-wei ght aci ds, al cohol s,
hydroxyal dehydes, and ketones) mostl y ori gi nati ng from
the decomposi ti on of carbohydrates. The presence of
water has both negati ve and posi ti ve effects on the oi l
properti es. I t l owers i ts heati ng val ue, especi al l y the
LHV and fl ame temperature. I t al so contri butes to the
i ncrease i n i gni ti on del ay and i n some cases to the
decrease of combusti on rate compared to di esel fuel s.
15
On the other hand, i t i mproves bi o-oi l fl ow character-
i sti cs (reduces the oi l vi scosi ty), whi ch i s benefi ci al for
combusti on (pumpi ng and atomi zati on). I t al so l eads to
a more uni form temperature profi l e i n the cyl i nder of a
di esel engi ne and to l ower NO
x
emi ssi ons.
Volatility Distribution. Due to thei r chemi cal com-
posi ti on, bi o-oi l s show a very wi de range of boi l i ng
temperature. I n addi ti on to water and vol ati l e organi c
components, bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l s contai n substanti al
amounts of nonvol ati l e materi al s such as sugars and
ol i gomeri c phenol i cs. I n addi ti on, the sl ow heati ng of
the oi l s duri ng di sti l l ati on resul ts i n pol ymeri zati on of
some reacti ve components. Consequentl y, the oi l s start
boi l i ng bel ow 100 C but the di sti l l ati on stops at 250-
280 C, l eavi ng 35-50% of the starti ng materi al as
resi due. Thus, bi o-oi l s cannot be used for appl i cati ons
requi ri ng compl ete evaporati on before combusti on.
Viscosity and Aging. The vi scosi ty of bi o-oi l s can
vary over a wi de range (35-1000 cP at 40 C) dependi ng
on the feedstock and process condi ti ons, and especi al l y
on the effi ci ency of col l ecti on of l ow boi l i ng components.
I t decreases at hi gher temperatures much faster than
for petrol eum-deri ved oi l s, so that even very vi scous bi o-
oi l s can be easi l y pumped after a moderate preheati ng.
A si gni fi cant reducti on i n vi scosi ty can al so be achi eved
by addi ti on of pol ar sol vents such as methanol or
acetone. An undesi red effect, especi al l y observed when
the oi l s are stored or handl ed at hi gher temperature, i s
the vi scosi ty i ncrease wi th ti me.
16
Thi s i s bel i eved to
resul t from chemi cal reacti ons between vari ous com-
pounds present i n the oi l , l eadi ng to the formati on of
l arger mol ecul es. There i s al so evi dence of reacti on wi th
oxygen from ai r.
Corrosiveness. Bi o-oi l s contai n substanti al amounts
of organi c aci ds, mostl y aceti c and formi c aci ds, whi ch
resul ts i n a pH of 2-3. For thi s reason, the oi l s are
corrosi ve to common constructi on materi al s such as
carbon steel and al umi num
17
and can affect some
seal i ng materi al s. The corrosi veness i s especi al l y severe
at el evated temperature and wi th the i ncrease i n water
content. The oi l s are essenti al l y noncorrosi ve to stai n-
l ess steel s. Pol yol efi ns are usual l y an acceptabl e mate-
ri al of constructi on where other ci rcumstances permi t.
Combustion Behavior. These properti es have an
i mportant i mpact on the behavi or of bi o-oi l s duri ng
combusti on and consequentl y on the appl i cati ons for
energy producti on i n standard equi pment. Bi o-oi l s are
combusti bl e but not fl ammabl e; because of the hi gh
content of nonvol ati l e components, bi o-oi l requi res
si gni fi cant energy for i gni ti on, but once i gni ted, i t burns
wi th a stabl e sel f-sustai ni ng fl ame. An extensi ve study
on the fundamental s of bi o-oi l combusti on was done at
Sandi a Nati onal Laboratory usi ng bi o-oi l s produced at
the NREL vortex reactor pl ant.
18,19
Combusti on tests
performed on si ngl e dropl ets demonstrated a very
(13) Oasmaa, A.; Czerni k, S. Fuel Oi l Qual i ty of Bi omass Pyrol ysi s
Oi l ssState of the art for the end-users. Energy Fuels 1999, 13, 914-
921.
(14) Mei er, D.; Oasmaa, A.; Peacocke, G. V. C. Properti es of Fast
Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds: Status of Test Methods. Characteri zati on of Fast
Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds. I n Developments in Thermochemical Biomass
Conversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Boocock, D. G. B., Eds.; Bl acki e
Academi c & Professi onal : London, 1997; pp 391-408.
(15) El l i ott, D. Water, Al kal i and Char i n Fl ash Pyrol ysi s Oi l s.
Biomass Bioenergy 1994, 7, 179-185.
(16) Czerni k, S.; Johnson, D.; Bl ack, S. Stabi l i ty of Wood Fast
Pyrol ysi s Oi l . Biomass Bioenergy 1994, 7, 187-192.
(17) Sol tes, E. J.; Li n, J.-C. K. Hydroprocessi ng of Bi omass Tars for
Li qui d Engi ne Fuel s. I n Progress in Biomass Conversion; Ti l l man, D.
A., Jahn, E. C., Eds.; Academi c Press: New York, 1984; pp 1-69.
Table 1. Typical Properties of Wood Pyrolysis Bio-oil
and of Heavy Fuel Oil
physi cal property bi o-oi l heavy fuel oi l
moi sture content, wt % 15-30 0.1
pH 2.5 -
speci fi c gravi ty 1.2 0.94
el emental composi ti on, wt %
C 54-58 85
H 5.5-7.0 11
O 35-40 1.0
N 0-0.2 0.3
ash 0-0.2 0.1
HHV, MJ/kg 16-19 40
vi scosi ty (at 50 C), cP 40-100 180
sol i ds, wt % 0.2-1 1
di sti l l ati on resi due, wt % up to 50 1
Applications of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Oil Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 591
uni que, mul ti step process compri sed of the fol l owi ng
phases: i gni ti on, qui escent burni ng (bl ue), dropl et
mi cro-expl osi on, di srupti ve sooty burni ng of dropl et
fragments (bri ght yel l ow), and formati on and burnout
of cenosphere parti cl es. I n contrast, petrol eum di sti l l ate
fuel oi l demonstrated i n the same condi ti ons onl y
qui escent, sooty burni ng from i gni ti on through burnout.
Despi te l arge di fferences i n fuel properti es and combus-
ti on mechani sms, the burni ng ti mes of bi o-oi l s were
comparabl e to those of No. 2 fuel oi l under the same
condi ti ons. Whi l e the dropl ets of l ess severel y cracked
pyrol ysi s oi l s were found to exhi bi t an earl i er but l ess
effecti ve mi cro-expl osi on and si gni fi cantl y l onger burn-
out ti mes than No. 2 fuel oi l (180 ms vs 110 ms), the
bi o-oi l s that underwent more severe cracki ng duri ng the
pyrol ysi s process exhi bi ted more vi ol ent mi cro-expl o-
si ons, whi ch resul ted i n more rapi d burnout than l i ght
fuel oi l . Al so the adi abati c fl ame temperature for bi o-
oi l i s rel ati vel y hi gh, 1700-2000 K compared to 2200-
2300 K for standard fuel s. Thi s di fference i s much l ess
than coul d be expected on the basi s of heati ng val ues
because of si gni fi cantl y l ower stoi chi ometri c ai r-to-fuel
rati os for bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l s (about 7 compared to
14 for standard fuel s).
Macro-scal e combusti on tests performed i n fl ame
tunnel s at MI T
20
and CANMET
21
on fast pyrol ysi s bi o-
oi l as wel l as those done at the I nternati onal Fl ame
Research Foundati on,
22
ENEL,
23
and COGI S
24
usi ng
sl ow pyrol ysi s l i qui d di d not i ndi cate fundamental
di fferences i n combusti on behavi or of wood pyrol ysi s oi l
and No. 2 fuel oi l and confi rmed that bi o-oi l coul d be
burned wi th steady, sel f-sustai ni ng fl ames si mi l ar to
those from petrol eum-based fuel oi l s. Emi ssi ons from
bi o-oi l combusti on, i n general , showed hi gher parti cul ate
and CO l evel s than for petrol eum fuel s wi th NO
x
concentrati on l ess than for No. 6 but hi gher than for
No. 2 fuel oi l .
Fuel Applications of Bio-oils
Over the l ast two decades there has been a growi ng
i nterest i n usi ng bi omass-deri ved fuel s. I ni ti al l y thi s
i nterest was dri ven by concerns for potenti al shortages
of crude oi l , but i n recent years the ecol ogi cal advan-
tages of bi omass fuel s have become an even more
i mportant factor. Bi omass fuel s can be consi dered
essenti al l y CO
2
neutral and have a very l ow sul fur
content compared to many fossi l fuel s. I n addi ti on, bei ng
a l i qui d, bi o-oi l can be easi l y transported and stored.
However, the properti es of bi o-oi l al so resul t i n several
si gni fi cant probl ems duri ng i ts use as fuel i n standard
equi pment such as boi l ers, engi nes, and gas turbi nes
constructed for combusti on petrol eum-deri ved fuel s.
Poor vol ati l i ty, hi gh vi scosi ty, coki ng, and corrosi veness
are probabl y the most chal l engi ng and have so far
l i mi ted the range of bi o-oi l appl i cati ons. I n addi ti on, bi o-
oi l i s not yet a commerci al product and i t l acks the
qual i ty standards necessary for commerci al appl i cati on.
The vari abi l i ty of i ts composi ti on due to di fferent
feedstocks, reactor confi gurati ons, and recovery systems
that resul ts i n di fferences i n physi cal and chemi cal
properti es as wel l as combusti on behavi or makes l arge-
scal e appl i cati ons even more di ffi cul t. However, com-
pared to tradi ti onal bi omass fuel s such as bl ack l i quor
or hog fuel , bi o-oi l presents a much better opportuni ty
for hi gh-effi ci ency energy producti on, and si gni fi cant
effort has been spent on research and devel opment
di rected to the appl i cati on of bi o-oi l for the generati on
of heat and power and for use as a transport fuel . I n
thi s paper, we revi ew the state of the art i n the area of
combusti on of bi o-oi l i n boi l ers, di esel engi nes, gas
turbi nes, Sti rl i ng engi nes, and upgradi ng to potenti al
transport fuel .
Combustion in Burner/Furnace and Burner/
Boiler Systems
Furnaces and boi l ers are common devi ces used for
heat and power generati on. They are usual l y l ess
effi ci ent than engi nes and turbi nes but they can operate
wi th a great vari ety of fuel s rangi ng from natural gas
and petrol eum di sti l l ates to sawdust and coal /water
sl urri es. Bi o-oi l seems thus to be a sui tabl e boi l er fuel
as l ong as i t has consi stent characteri sti cs, provi des an
acceptabl e emi ssi ons l evel , and i s economi cal l y feasi bl e.
Therefore, several compani es have been i nterested i n
usi ng bi o-oi l , especi al l y for di stri ct heati ng to repl ace
heavy fuel oi l .
The onl y commerci al system that regul arl y uses bi o-
oi l to generate heat i s at the Red Arrow Products
pyrol ysi s pl ant i n Wi sconsi n
25
and has been operated
for over 10 years. The 5 MWth swi rl burner uses
di fferent mi xtures of byproducts, water-i nsol ubl e frac-
ti on of bi o-oi l (pyrol yti c l i gni n), and char and gas from
the pl ant dedi cated to produce food-fl avori ng compo-
nents. The bi o-oi l fracti on i s del i vered to the combustor
through a stai nl ess steel nozzl e and atomi zed wi th ai r,
whi l e char and gas are fed usi ng separate l i nes. A 600
m
2
exhaust gas/ai r heat exchanger l ocated at the
combustor exi t provi des al l space heati ng needs for the
pl ant. Emi ssi on tests performed i n 1994 showed CO at
17%, NO
x
at 1.2%, and formal dehyde at 0.2% of the
permi tted l evel s.
Most research on bi o-oi l combusti on i n boi l ers has
been carri ed out i n Fi nl and. Extensi ve tests have been
(18) Wornat, M.; Bradl ey, G.; Yang, N. Si ngl e Dropl et Combusti on
of Bi omass Pyrol ysi s Oi l s. Energy Fuels 1994, 8, 1131-1142.
(19) Shaddi x, R.; Huey, S. Combusti on characteri sti cs of fast py-
rol ysi s oi l s deri ved from hybri d popl ar. I n Developments in Thermo-
chemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Boocock, D. G. B.,
Eds.; Bl acki e Academi c & Professi onal : London, 1997; pp 465-480.
(20) Shi hadeh, A.; Lewi s, P.; Manurung, R.; Beer, J. Combusti on
Characteri zati on of Wood-Deri ved Fl ash Pyrol ysi s Oi l s i n I ndustri al -
Scal e Turbul ent Di ffusi on Fl ames. I n Proceedings of Biomass Pyrolysis
Oil Propertiesand Combustion Meeting, September 26-28, 1994, Estes
Park, CO., NREL-CP-430-7215, pp 281-295.
(21) Huffman, D.; Vogi atzi s, A.; Cl ark, D. Combusti on of Bi o-oi l . I n
Bio-oil Production and Utilization; Bri dgwater, A. V., Hogan, E., Eds.;
CPL Press: Newbury, UK, 1996; pp 227-235.
(22) van de Kamp, W. L.; Smart, J. P. Atomi zati on and combusti on
of sl ow pyrol ysi s bi omass oi l . I n Advances in Thermochemical Biomass
Conversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; Bl acki e Academi c & Professi onal ,
London 1993; pp 1265-1274.
(23) Rossi , C.; Frandi , R.; Bonfi tto, E.; Jacoboni , S.; Pi stone, L.;
Matti el l o, M. Combusti on tests of bi o-oi l s deri ved from bi omass sl ow
pyrol ysi s. I n Advances in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dg-
water, A. V., Ed.; Bl acki e Academi c & Professi onal : London 1993; pp
1205-1213.
(24) Sal vi , G.; Sal vi , G., Jr. Pyrol yti c Products Uti l i zati on Assess-
ment Study. Report from Commi ssi on of European Communi ti es,
Contract No. EN3B-0191-1(CH).
(25) Freel , B. A.; Graham, R. G.; Huffman, D. R. Commerci al aspects
of Rapi d Thermal Processi ng (RTM). I n Bio-oil Production and
Utilization; Bri dgwater, A. V., Hogan, E., Eds.; CPL Press: Newbury,
UK, 1996; pp 86-95.
592 Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 Czernik and Bridgwater
performed at Neste Oy
26
i n a 2.5 MW Danstoker boi l er
suppl i ed wi th a dual fuel burner. The boi l er operated
sati sfactori l y i n a dual fuel mode at di fferent fuel oi l to
bi o-oi l rati os. The operati on on pyrol ysi s oi l wi thout the
auxi l i ary fuel requi red onl y rel ati vel y mi nor modi fi ca-
ti ons to i mprove combusti on stabi l i ty. Wi th such modi -
fi cati ons, emi ssi ons of CO and NO
x
were at acceptabl e
l evel s (30 and 140 ppm, respecti vel y) but parti cul ates
were sti l l hi gh (2.5-5 i n the Bacharach scal e). VTT
Energy i n col l aborati on wi th Oi l on Oy
27
performed a
seri es of tests on a wi de range of bi o-oi l s i n an 8 MWth
nomi nal capaci ty furnace operated at 4 MWth output.
The mai n fi ndi ngs of these tests, whi ch were consi stent
wi th those of Neste Oy, can be summari zed as fol l ows:
Some modi fi cati ons of the burner and boi l er secti ons
were requi red to i mprove combusti on.
The fl ame from bi o-oi l combusti on was l onger than
that from burni ng standard fuel oi l .
A support fuel was necessary duri ng start up and,
i n cases of l ower qual i ty bi o-oi l s, even duri ng operati on.
There were cl ear di fferences i n combusti on behavi or
and emi ssi ons for di fferent bi o-oi l s tested; those wi th
hi gh vi scosi ty and water and sol i ds content showed
si gni fi cantl y worse performances.
Emi ssi ons, i n general , were l ower than from burni ng
heavy fuel oi l except for parti cul ates. They strongl y
depended on the proper handl i ng of bi o-oi l (opti mum
was preheati ng to 50 C and compressed ai r atomi za-
ti on) and i ts qual i ty; for exampl e, hi gher water content
l ed to l ower NO
x
but hi gher parti cul ates i n fl ue gases.
An attracti ve opti on can be co-fi ri ng of bi o-oi l wi th
fossi l fuel s. Large-scal e tests have been carri ed out at
the Mani towac power stati on,
28
where pyrol ysi s l i qui ds
from the Red Arrow operati on were co-fi red wi th coal
for the commerci al producti on of el ectri ci ty. Duri ng a
one-month peri od, bi o-oi l was co-fi red for about 370 h,
provi di ng 5%of the thermal i nput to the 20 MWe boi l er.
The combusti on of bi o-oi l was cl ean and effi ci ent wi th
no adverse changes on the boi l er operati on or on the
emi ssi on l evel s.
I n concl usi on, a constant and better qual i ty bi o-oi l
avai l abl e at an attracti ve pri ce i s necessary for com-
merci al , l arge-scal e appl i cati ons. Probl ems of handl i ng
(storage, pumpi ng, fi l trati on, atomi zati on) and opti mi -
zati on of the burner/boi l er desi gn to i mprove perfor-
mances and reduce emi ssi ons seem to be possi bl e to
sol ve by rel ati vel y mi nor modi fi cati ons to the exi sti ng
equi pment.
Combustion in Diesel Engines. Whi l e boi l ers are
mostl y used to produce heat, Di esel engi nes offer a hi gh
effi ci ency (up to 45%) i n power generati on and can al so
be adapted to the combi ned heat and power process
(CHP). Medi um- and sl ow-speed engi nes are known for
fuel fl exi bi l i ty and can operate on l ow-grade fuel s. The
mai n concerns for operati ng di esel engi nes on bi o-oi l s
are some speci fi c properti es of these l i qui ds such as
di ffi cul t i gni ti on (resul ti ng from l ow heati ng val ue and
hi gh water content), corrosi veness (aci ds), and coki ng
(thermal l y unstabl e compounds). However, potenti al
advantages of usi ng bi o-oi l s for power generati on have
l ed to i mportant research acti vi ti es i n several countri es.
I n 1993 at VTT Energy, Sol antausta et al .
29
usi ng a
500 cm
3
(maxi mum power 4.8 kW) hi gh-speed, si ngl e-
cyl i nder, di rect i njecti on Petter di esel engi ne wi th a
compressi on rati o of 15.3:1, coul d not achi eve auto-
i gni ti on of bi o-oi l wi thout addi ti ves. A mi ni mum of 5
vol %of a ni trated al cohol was requi red for stabl e engi ne
operati on (typi cal l y, 0.1-1 vol % of thi s component i s
added to standard fuel s). Even wi th 9%of thi s addi ti ve,
the i gni ti on del ay for bi o-oi l was 9 crank angl e degrees
(CAD), compared to 6 CAD for No. 2 fuel oi l . I n addi ti on,
coke formed duri ng bi o-oi l combusti on, resul ti ng i n rapi d
cl oggi ng of i njecti on nozzl es. CO, NO
x
, and hydrocarbon
emi ssi ons (after catal yti c converter) from pyrol ysi s oi l
were comparabl e to those from di esel fuel s. Further
tests at VTT Energy
30
(84 kWe engi ne) and Wartsi l a
31
(1.5 MWe engi ne) showed that bi o-oi l coul d be effi ci entl y
used i n pi l ot-i gni ted medi um-speed di esel engi nes. The
most i mportant i denti fi ed probl ems were di ffi cul ty i n
adjusti ng the i njecti on system (excessi ve vari abi l i ty i n
composi ti on of bi o-oi l ), wear and corrosi on of certai n
i njecti on and pump el ements (aci ds, parti cul ates), and
hi gh CO emi ssi ons. However, i t seems possi bl e to
overcome these probl ems wi th i mprovements to the
pyrol ysi s process and use of better materi al s for i njec-
ti on nozzl es and a catal yti c converter for exhaust gases.
Suppes
32
at Uni versi ty of Kansas found that i gni ti on
del ay of a hot-fi l tered bi o-oi l (no parti cul ates) measured
i n a combusti on bomb was si mi l ar to that of 27 Cetane
reference fuel . Hi s tests on a bl end of 72% pyrol ysi s oi l ,
24% methanol , and 4% cetane enhancer (tetraethyl -
enegl ycol di ni trate) performed i n a si ngl e-cyl i nder, ai r-
cool ed Li ster Petter di esel engi ne showed the same
performance as for di esel oi l .
33
The study concl uded that
the appl i cati on of pure pyrol ysi s oi l s shoul d be l i mi ted
to l ow-speed di esel engi nes wi th rel ati vel y hi gh com-
pressi on rati os, but bl ends of bi omass oi l and methanol
coul d be used i n hi gh-speed engi nes, especi al l y wi th
cetane-i mprovi ng addi ti ves.
Shi hadeh
34
at MI Ttested the combusti on behavi or of
bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l s usi ng a 0.45 L Ri cardo si ngl e-
cyl i nder di rect i njecti on di esel engi ne operati ng at a
compressi on rati o of 19.8 and 2400 rpm. The tests
showed that combusti on of bi o-oi l s was predomi nantl y
ki neti cal l y control l ed, as opposed to the mi xi ng-con-
(26) Gust, S. Combusti on experi ences of fl ash pyrol ysi s fuel i n
i ntermedi ate si ze boi l ers. I n Developmentsin Thermochemical Biomass
Conversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Boocock, D. G. B., Eds.; Bl acki e
Academi c & Professi onal : London, 1997; pp 481-488.
(27) Oasmaa, A.; Kyto, M.; Si pi l a, K. Pyrol ysi s oi l combusti on tests
i n an i ndustri al boi l er. I n Progress in Thermochemical Biomass
Conversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford, 2001;
pp 1468-1481.
(28) Sturzl , R. The commerci al co-fi ri ng of RTP bi o-oi l at the
Mani towoc Publ i c Uti l i ti es power generati on stati on, avai l abl e at http://
www.ensyn.com.
(29) Sol antausta, Y.; Nyl und, N.-O.; Westerhol m, M.; Kol jonen, T.;
Oasmaa, A. Wood pyrol ysi s oi l as fuel i n a di esel power pl ant.
Bioresour. Technol. 1993, 46, 177-188.
(30) Sol antausta, Y.; Nyl und, N.-O.; Gust, S. Use of Pyrol ysi s Oi l
i n a Test Di esel Engi ne to Study the Feasi bi l i ty of a Di esel Power Pl ant
Concept. Biomass Bioenergy 1994, 7, 297-306.
(31) Gros, S. Pyrol ysi s l i qui d as di esel fuel . Wartsi l a Di esel I nter-
nati onal . I n Semi nar on power producti on from bi omass I I , 27.-
28.3.1995, Espoo, Fi nl and.
(32) Suppes, G. J.; Natarajan, V. P.; Chen, Z. Autoi gni ti on of Sel ect
Oxygenate Fuel s i n a Si mul ated Di esel Engi ne Envi ronment, Paper
(74 e) presented at AI ChE Nati onal Meeti ng, New Orl eans, LA,
February 26, 1996.
(33) Suppes, G. J., I gni ti on Del ay Ti me Anal ysi s of Two Fuel s, Fi nal
Report for NREL Contract, October 23, 1996.
(34) Shi hadeh, A. L. Rural el ectri fi cati on from l ocal resources:
Bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l combusti on i n a di rect i njecti on di esel engi ne.
D.S. Thesi s, Massachusetts I nsti tute of Technol ogy, September 1998.
Applications of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Oil Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 593
trol l ed combusti on of di esel fuel . However, despi te those
di fferences, the thermal effi ci ency of bi o-oi l s was ap-
proxi matel y equal to that for di esel fuel , whi ch has been
confi rmed by Ormrod.
35
Bi o-oi l s requi red ai r preheati ng
(55 C) to i gni te, but the engi ne operated smoothl y even
though the i gni ti on del ay (6-14 CAD) was l onger than
for di esel fuel . Hot-fi l tered bi o-oi l s showed i mproved
combustion characteristics (shorter ignition delay, shorter
burn durati on, l ess coki ng) mostl y due to l ower mol ec-
ul ar wei ghts resul ti ng from vapor cracki ng duri ng
fi l trati on and l ower water content.
Ormrod Di esel s
36
i n the UK have accumul ated more
than 400 h of operati on on a modi fi ed dual -fuel sl ow-
speed di esel engi ne. Three cyl i nders of the si x-cyl i nder
250 kWe engi ne have been modi fi ed to run on bi o-oi l
usi ng up to 5% di esel as a pi l ot fuel to i ni ti ate combus-
ti on. Emi ssi ons other than CO were bel ow those ob-
tai ned whi l e runni ng on di esel fuel . The engi ne has been
successful l y operated enti rel y on bi o-oi l by shutti ng off
the di esel suppl y to the un-modi fi ed cyl i nders.
35
The
mi ni mum di esel contri buti on as a pi l ot fuel to provi de
sati sfactory operati on was 5%i n energy terms. Al though
bl ack deposi ts formed on the pumps and i njectors, these
di d not appear to affect performance i n any way.
Bagl i oni et al .
37
at Pasqual i Macchi ne Agri col e (I tal y)
conducted a seri es of tests on emul si ons of bi o-oi l i n
di esel fuel usi ng a 6.25 kW si ngl e-cyl i nder engi ne
(Lombardi ni 6LD400). They were abl e to operate the
engi ne usi ng emul si ons wi th up to 50% of bi o-oi l . The
mai n probl ems were deposi ts and erosi on of the i njec-
tors. Recentl y Chi aramonti et al .
38
used bi o-oi l -di esel
emul si ons i n four di fferent engi nes and observed si g-
ni fi cant damage of the i njectors and the fuel pumps,
greater than that reported for pure bi o-oi l .
Combustion in Turbines. Gas turbi nes are used i n
a wi de range of appl i cati ons, most i mportant of whi ch
are dri vi ng el ectri c power generators and provi di ng
power to ai rcraft. Accordi ngl y, the two mai n categori es
of turbi nes i n use are i ndustri al and ai rcraft types.
However, both types of turbi nes are used i n power
pl ants. Though at present most gas turbi nes operate on
petrol eum di sti l l ates or gas fuel s, i f properl y desi gned,
they can essenti al l y burn any fuel . Certai nl y, gas
turbi nes can be modi fi ed or redesi gned to accommodate
some of the unusual properti es of bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l s.
Moses
39
poi nted out that modi fi cati ons have to be done
consi deri ng the effects of physi cal and chemi cal proper-
ti es of bi o-oi l s on atomi zati on, combusti on effi ci ency,
soot formati on, and gaseous and parti cul ate emi ssi ons.
Al so very i mportant i ssues to address are compati bi l i ty
of bi o-oi l s wi th the materi al s used i n fuel systems (aci d
corrosi on) and i n bl ades (erosi on, al kal i hot corrosi on).
The fi rst gas turbi ne tests on bi omass sl ow pyrol ysi s
l i qui ds were carri ed out at Tel edyne CAE (USA) by
Kasper et al .
40
i n the earl y1980s usi ng a J69-T-29 gas
turbi ne combustor ri g. The system consi sted of an
annul ar combustor and a centri fugal fuel i njector rotat-
i ng at shaft speed. The centri fugal i njector was desi gned
to provi de good atomi zati on of vi scous fuel s. The py-
rol ysi s l i qui ds used i n the tests were produced from
forest and agri cul tural resi dues and resembl ed typi cal
fast pyrol ysi s bi o-oi l s though they had hi gher carbon
content and hi gher vi scosi ty. The measured combusti on
effi ci ency i n the ri g usi ng pyrol yti c oi l as fuel was 95%
but i t was expected i t coul d exceed 99% i n the engi ne
at opti mum condi ti ons. Emi ssi ons of CO were hi gher,
but CH and NO
x
were wi thi n the l i mi ts observed for
petrol eum fuel s. Al so a sl ag bui l dup i n the exhaust
secti on resul ti ng from ash i n bi o-oi l was i denti fi ed as a
potenti al probl em.
Si nce 1995 Orenda Aerospace Corporati on (Canada)
has been acti vel y worki ng on the appl i cati on of bi o-oi l
i n gas turbi nes combusti on. They sel ected a 2.5 MWe
cl ass GT2500 engi ne that was desi gned and bui l t by
Mashproekt i n Ukrai ne as the most sui tabl e for l ow-
grade fuel s i ncl udi ng bi o-oi l . The mai n advantage of thi s
engi ne i s i ts si l o type combusti on chamber l ocated
above the turbi ne that can be easi l y modi fi ed and
opti mi zed for any fuel . Al so, advanced coati ng of the
whol e hot secti on provi des protecti on agai nst contami -
nants (al kal i ). Andrews et al .
41
tested the engi ne
throughout the whol e operati onal range, from i dl e to ful l
power, and found that NO
x
and SO
2
emi ssi ons from
combusti on bi o-oi l were l ess, whi l e parti cul ates were
hi gher than those from di esel fuel .
Strenzi ok et al .
42
at the Uni versi ty of Rostock (Ger-
many) conducted bi o-oi l combusti on tests i n a smal l
commerci al gas turbi ne T216 wi th a rated el ectri c power
output of 75 kWe. The combusti on chamber of the
turbi ne was modi fi ed and suppl i ed wi th two separate
fuel systems that i ncl uded an i gni ti on nozzl e for di esel
fuel and a mai n nozzl e for bi o-oi l . The engi ne operated
i n a dual fuel mode at 73% of the ful l power that woul d
be generated i n a standard fuel mode, wi th about 40%
of total power produced from bi o-oi l and 60%from di esel .
Compared to the operati on on di esel fuel , CO and HC
emi ssi ons were si gni fi cantl y hi gher and NO
x
l ess for
dual fuel operati on. The use of bi o-oi l i n the turbi ne
resul ted i n deposi ts i n the combusti on chamber and on
the bl ades, and fi ndi ng a sol uti on to prevent foul i ng of
the turbi ne i s a pri ori ty requi rement.
Combustion in Stirling Engines. Recentl y, i n
addi ti on to boi l ers, di esel engi nes, and turbi nes, Sti rl i ng
(35) Leech, J. Runni ng a dual fuel engi ne on pyrol ysi s oi l . I n Biomass
Gasification and Pyrolysis, State of the Art and Future Prospects;
Kal tschmi tt, M., Bri dgwater, A. V., Eds.; CPL Press: Newbury, 1997;
pp 495-497.
(36) Ormrod, D.; Webster, A. Progress i n uti l i zati on of bi o-oi l i n
di esel engi nes. PyNeNewsletter 2000, 10, 15.
(37) Bagl i oni , P.; Chi aramonti , D.; Boni ni , M.; Sol dai ni , I .; Tondi ,
G. Bi o-Crude-Oi l /Di esel oi l emul si fi cati on: mai n achi evements of the
emul si fi cati on process and prel i mi nary resul ts of tests on Di esel engi ne.
I n Progress in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dgwater, A.
V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford, 2001; pp 1525-1539.
(38) Chi aramonti , D.; Boni ni , M.; Frati ni , E.; Tondi , G.; Gartner,
K.; Bri dgwater, A. V.; Gri mm, H. P.; Sol dai ni , I .; Webster, A.; Bagl i oni ,
P. Devel opment of emul si ons from bi omass pyrol ysi s l i qui d and di esel
and thei r use i n engi nes - Part 1: emul si on producti on. Biomass
Bioenergy 2003, 25, 85-99. Part 2: Tests i n di esel engi nes. Biomass
Bioenergy 2003, 25, 101-111.
(39) Moses, C. Fuel -Speci fi cati on Consi derati ons for Bi omass Li q-
ui ds. I n Proceedings of Biomass Pyrolysis Oil Properties and Combus-
tion Meeting, September 26-28, 1994, Estes Park, CO., NREL-CP-
430-7215, pp 362-382.
(40) Kasper, J. M.; Jasas, G. B.; Trauth, R. L. Use of Pyrol ysi s-
Deri ved Fuel i n a Gas Turbi ne Engi ne. ASME Paper No. 83-GT-96,
1983.
(41) Andrews, R. G.; Ful eki , D.; Zukowski , S.; Patnai k, P. C., Resul ts
of I ndustri al Gas Turbi ne Tests Usi ng a Bi omass-Deri ved Fuel . I n
Makinga Business fromBiomass in Energy, Environment, Chemicals,
Fibers, and Materials; Overend, R. P., Chornet, E., Eds.; El sevi er
Sci ence I nc.: New York, 1997; pp 425-435.
(42) Strenzi ok, R.; Hansen, U.; Kunster, H. Combusti on of Bi o-oi l
i n a Gas Turbi ne. I n Progress in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion;
Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford, 2001; pp 1452-
1458.
594 Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 Czernik and Bridgwater
engi nes, whi ch are sui tabl e for smal l -scal e combi ned
heat and power (CHP) producti on, have been consi dered
for the appl i cati on of bi o-oi l as an al ternati ve fuel . Bandi
and Baumgart
43
at ZSW (Germany) used bi o-oi l i n a 25
kW Sti rl i ng CHP uni t suppl i ed wi th a modi fi ed FLOX
(fl amel ess oxi dati on) burner that i ncl uded an ai r pres-
sure atomi zer. The tests proved that bi o-oi l coul d be
effi ci entl y burned i n such a burner wi thout noti ceabl e
resi dues and wi th emi ssi ons bel ow German standards.
El ectri cal and thermal effi ci enci es of the CHP uni t were
not very sati sfactory (50-60%overal l ), possi bl y because
of the burni ng chamber geometry and not preheati ng
ai r for atomi zati on.
Upgrading of Bio-oil to Transport Fuels. The
properti es that negati vel y affect bi o-oi l fuel qual i ty are
foremost l ow heati ng val ue, i ncompati bi l i ty wi th con-
venti onal fuel s, sol i ds content, hi gh vi scosi ty, i ncompl ete
vol ati l i ty, and chemi cal i nstabi l i ty. Some of those defi -
ci enci es can be i mproved usi ng rel ati vel y si mpl e physi -
cal methods whi l e others requi re more compl ex chemi cal
processi ng. Maggi and El l i ott
44
extensi vel y revi ewed the
upgradi ng methods of bi o-oi l s. I n thi s paper, we wi l l
di scuss onl y those that can l ead to the use of bi o-oi l as
transport fuel .
The si mpl est use of bi o-oi l as a transport fuel seems
to be i n combi nati on wi th di esel fuel . Al though bi omass
pyrol ysi s oi l s are not mi sci bl e wi th hydrocarbons, wi th
the ai d of surfactants they can be emul si fi ed wi th di esel
fuel . Processes for produci ng stabl e mi croemul si ons wi th
5-30% of bi o-oi l i n di esel have been devel oped at
CANMET
45
(Canada) and at the Uni versi ty of Fl o-
rence
37,38
where emul si ons from 10 to 90% bi o-oi l i n
di esel were produced. The resul tant emul si ons showed
promi si ng i gni ti on characteri sti cs. A drawback of thi s
approach i s the cost of surfactants and the hi gh energy
requi red for emul si fi cati on. I n addi ti on si gni fi cantl y
hi gher l evel s of corrosi on/erosi on were observed i n
engi ne appl i cati ons than wi th bi o-oi l or di esel al one.
Upgradi ng bi o-oi l to a conventi onal transport fuel
requi res ful l deoxygenati on, whi ch can be accompl i shed
by two mai n routes: hydrotreati ng and catal yti c vapor
cracki ng. Hydrotreati ng of bi o-oi l carri ed out at hi gh
temperature, hi gh hydrogen pressure, and i n the pres-
ence of catal ysts resul ts i n el i mi nati on of oxygen as
water and i n hydrogenati on-hydrocracki ng of l arge
mol ecul es. The catal ysts (typi cal l y sul fi ded CoMo or
Ni Mo supported on al umi na) and the process condi ti ons
are si mi l ar to those used i n the refi ni ng of petrol eum
cuts.
46
Chemi cal methods for upgradi ng bi o-oi l by hy-
drotreati ng and zeol i te cracki ng have been revi ewed by
Bri dgwater.
47,48
A projected typi cal yi el d of naphtha
equi val ent from bi omass i s about 25 wt % or 55% i n
energy terms excl udi ng provi si on of hydrogen.
48
Catal yti c vapor cracki ng makes deoxygenati on pos-
si bl e through si mul taneous dehydrati on-decarboxyl ati on
over aci di c zeol i te catal ysts. At 450 C and atmospheri c
pressure, oxygen i s rejected as H
2
O, CO
2
, and CO
produci ng mostl y aromati cs.
49
The l ow H/C rati o i n the
bi o-oi l s i mposes a rel ati vel y l ow l i mi t on the hydrocar-
bon yi el d and, i n addi ti on, the techni cal feasi bi l i ty i s
not yet compl etel y proven. Catal yst deacti vati on sti l l
rai ses many concerns for both routes, al though the
coki ng probl em wi th zeol i tes can i n pri nci pl e be over-
come by a conventi onal FCC arrangement wi th conti nu-
ous catal yst regenerati on by oxi dati on of the coke. Some
concern has been expressed over the poor control of
mol ecul ar si ze and shape wi th orthodox zeol i tes and the
propensi ty for formati on of more noxi ous hydrocar-
bons.
50
The processi ng costs are hi gh and the products
are not competi ti ve wi th fossi l fuel s.
51
A projected
typi cal yi el d of aromati cs sui tabl e for gasol i ne bl endi ng
from bi omass i s about 20 wt %or 45%i n energy terms.
48
Al though upgradi ng to a l i qui d transport fuel does not
currentl y l ook promi si ng, bi o-oi l can become a source
of the emergi ng transport fuel for the future - hydro-
gen. Producti on of hydrogen from bi omass by pyrol ysi s
and reformi ng has been extensi vel y studi ed at the
Nati onal Renewabl e Energy Laboratory (USA).
52,53
The
water-sol ubl e (carbohydrate-deri ved) fracti on of bi o-oi l
was effi ci entl y converted to hydrogen and CO
2
(>80%
of theoreti cal conversi on) i n a fl ui di zed bed process usi ng
commerci al , ni ckel -based catal ysts i n the condi ti ons
si mi l ar to those for reformi ng natural gas. I n such a
concept, onl y 6 kg of hydrogen were produced from 100
kg bi omass compared wi th 11-12 kg that coul d be
obtai ned by di rect gasi fi cati on of bi omass. However, the
process makes economi cal sense provi di ng that the
l i gni n-deri ved fracti on of bi o-oi l coul d be sol d at hal f the
pri ce of phenol for the use as a phenol repl acement i n
phenol -formal dehyde resi ns.
54
An al ternati ve approach has recentl y been proposed
whereby bi o-oi l or a bi o-oi l /char sl urry i s used as an
energy carri er to more economi cal l y transport bi omass
to a central processi ng si te where the l i qui d or sl urry
i s gasi fi ed i n an oxygen-bl own pressuri zed gasi fi er to
syngas for producti on of l i qui d fuel s.
55
Thi s offers the
possi bi l i ty of achi evi ng hi gh throughputs to take ad-
vantage of the economy of scal e that i s often absent i n
stand-al one bi o-energy pl ants.
Summari zi ng, the appl i cati on of bi o-oi l s for heat and
power generati on i s possi bl e and usual l y onl y requi res
(43) Bandi , A.; Baumgart, F. Sti rl i ng Engi ne wi th Fl ox Burner
Fuel l ed wi th Fast Pyrol ysi s Li qui d. I n Progress in Thermochemical
BiomassConversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford,
2001; pp 1459-1467.
(44) Maggi , R.; El l i ott, D. Upgradi ng overvi ew. I n Developments in
Thermochemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dgwater, A., Boocock, D.,
Eds.; Bl acki e Academi c and Professi onal : London, 1997; pp 575-588.
(45) I kura, M.; Sl amak, M.; Sawatzky, H. Pyrol ysi s Li qui d-i n-Di esel
Oi l Mi croemul si ons. U.S. Patent 5,820,640, 1998.
(46) El l i ott, D. C.; Baker, E. Hydrotreati ng Bi omass Li qui ds to
Produce Hydrocarbon Fuel s. I n Energy from Biomass and Wastes X;
Kl ass, D., Ed.; I GT: Chi cago, 1987; pp 765-784.
(47) Bri dgwater, A. V. Producti on of hi gh-grade fuel s and chemi cal s
from catal yti c pyrol ysi s of bi omass. Catal. Today 1966, 29, 285-295.
(48) Bri dgwater, A. V. Catal ysi s i n thermal bi omass conversi on.
Appl. Catal. A 1994, 116, 5-47.
(49) Chang, C.; Si l vestri , A. J . Catal. 1977, 47, 249.
(50) Wi l l i ams, P. T.; Horne, P. A. Characteri sati on of oi l s from the
fl ui di sed bed pyrol ysi s of bi omass wi th zeol i te catal yst upgradi ng.
Biomass Bioenergy 1994, 7, 223-226.
(51) Bri dgwater, A. V.; Cottam, M-L. Costs and Opportuni ti es for
Bi omass Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds Producti on and Upgradi ng. Proceedings of
the6th conferenceon Biomass for Energy, I ndustry and theEnviron-
ment, Athens, Apri l 1991.
(52) Wang, D.; Czerni k, S.; Montane, D.; Mann, M.; Chornet, E.
Bi omass to Hydrogen vi a Fast Pyrol ysi s and Catal yti c Steam Reform-
i ng of the Pyrol ysi s Oi l or i ts Fracti ons. I nd. Eng. Chem. Res. 1997,
36, 1507-1518.
(53) Czerni k, S.; French, R.; Fei k, C.; Chornet, E. Hydrogen by
Catal yti c Steam Reformi ng of Li qui d Byproducts from Bi omass Ther-
moconversi on Processes. I nd. Eng. Chem. Res. 2002, 41, 4209-4215.
(54) Mann, M. K.; Spath, P. L.; Kadam, K. Techni cal and Economi c
Anal ysi s of Renewabl es-Based Hydrogen Producti on. I n Proceedings
of the11th World Hydrogen Energy Conference, Stuttgart, Germany;
June 23-28, 1996.
(55) Henri ch, E.; Di njus, E. Tar-free, Hi gh-Pressure Synthesi s Gas
from Bi omass. I n Pyrolysis and Gasification of Biomass and Wastes;
Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; CPL Press: Newbury, UK, 2003; pp 511-526.
Applications of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Oil Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 595
mi nor modi fi cati ons of the exi sti ng equi pment as dem-
onstrated by the tests i n boi l ers, di esel engi nes, and
turbi nes. More research i s needed i n the area of
handl i ng bi o-oi l s, especi al l y on stabi l i zati on. Upgradi ng
bi o-oi l to a qual i ty transport l i qui d fuel sti l l poses
several techni cal chal l enges and i s not currentl y eco-
nomi cal l y attracti ve. An attracti ve future transportati on
fuel can be hydrogen produced by steam reformi ng of
the whol e oi l or i ts carbohydrate-deri ved fracti on.
Applications of Bio-oil for Producing Chemicals
For many centuri es wood pyrol ysi s l i qui ds were a
major source of chemi cal s such as methanol , aceti c aci d,
turpenti ne, tars, etc. At present, most of these com-
pounds can be produced at a l ower cost from other
feedstocks deri ved from natural gas, crude oi l or coal .
Though over 300 compounds have been i denti fi ed i n
wood fast pyrol ysi s oi l , thei r amounts are smal l and
i sol ati on of speci fi c si ngl e compounds i s sel dom practi cal
or economi c as i t usual l y requi res compl ex separati on
techni ques. Therefore, the devel opment of technol ogi es
for produci ng products from the whol e bi o-oi l or from
i ts major, rel ati vel y easy separabl e fracti ons i s the most
advanced. I n thi s paper we wi l l di scuss onl y the exi sti ng
and potenti al short-term appl i cati ons of bi o-oi l for
produci ng chemi cal s. A more detai l ed revi ew on thi s
subject, i ncl udi ng consi derati on of hi gher-val ue prod-
ucts, was publ i shed by Radl ei n.
56
ChemicalsProducedfromtheWholeBio-oil. The
whol e bi o-oi l can be converted i nto useful chemi cal s by
taki ng advantage of i ts most abundant functi onal
groups: carbonyl , carboxyl , and phenol i c and react them
i n such a way that the nonreacti ng part of bi o-oi l woul d
not have to be separated from the fi nal product. For
exampl e, carboxyl i c aci ds and phenol s can easi l y react
wi th l i me to form cal ci um sal ts and phenates. Based
on thi s property, Dynamoti ve Corporati on devel oped a
product, Bi oLi me,
57
whi ch proved successful i n captur-
i ng SO
x
emi ssi ons from coal combustors. Bi oLi me that
typi cal l y contai ns 50% water and 7-14% cal ci um by
wei ght i s i njected as a l i qui d suspensi on i nto a hi gh-
temperature fl ue gas stream. Compared to l i me, those
organi c cal ci um compounds are about four ti mes more
effi ci ent i n capturi ng aci d gases. Wi th anappropri ate
cal ci um-to-sul fur rati o, Bi oLi me can remove 90-98%
SO
x
from fl ue gases. Another advantage of Bi oLi me i s
that oxi dati on of i ts organi c, bi o-oi l deri ved part provi des
addi ti onal energy i n the combustor. Furthermore, some
components of Bi oLi me proved to be effi ci ent i n destroy-
i ng ni trogen oxi des.
58
Al though the technol ogy for
produci ng Bi oLi me i s wel l devel oped, the avai l abi l i ty
of l ow-cost l i me makes marketi ng di ffi cul t.
Another promi si ng appl i cati on of the whol e bi o-oi l
expl oi ts i ts hi gh content of carbonyl groups. By reacti ng
bi o-oi l wi th ammoni a, urea, or other -NH
2
contai ni ng
materi al s, vari ous i mi de and ami de bonds are formed
between carbonyl carbons and ni trogen. I n thi s fashi on
about 10% ni trogen can be i ncorporated i n an organi c
matri x that proved to have properti es of an effi ci ent
bi odegradabl e sl ow-rel ease ni trogen ferti l i zer.
59,60
Com-
pared to mi neral ferti l i zers, such a product has l ower
l eachabi l i ty, whi ch resul ts i n l ess pol l uti on of ground-
waters. I n addi ti on, i t i s a good soi l condi ti oni ng
materi al contai ni ng humi c type matter (l i gni n). Ap-
pl i cati on of such a ferti l i zer returns carbon to the soi l
and can be al so consi dered a method of carbon seques-
trati on. Typi cal control l ed-rel ease ni trogen ferti l i zers
sel l for $250-$1250/ton, so bi o-oi l based ferti l i zer shoul d
be cost competi ti ve on the market and i s targeted for
commerci al i zati on by Dynamoti ve.
61
I n addi ti on to the above appl i cati ons, the whol e bi o-
oi l has been recentl y proposed for use as an al ternati ve
wood preservati ve that coul d repl ace creosote.
62
Some
terpenoi d and phenol i c compounds present i n bi o-oi l are
known to act as i nsecti ci des and fungi ci des. I t was
proven that i mpregnati ng wi th bi o-oi l protects wood
from fungi ;
63
however the effi ci ency of bi o-oi l acti on was
not l ong-l asti ng. When the retenti on of bi o-oi l i n wood
i s i mproved, ei ther the whol e l i qui d or a fracti on coul d
be used as an envi ronmental l y fri endl y wood preserva-
ti ve.
Chemicals fromFractionation of Bio-oil. Bi o-oi l
can be easi l y separated i nto two fracti ons based on
water sol ubi l i ty. By si mpl e water addi ti on to bi o-oi l , a
vi scous mostl y ol i gomeri c l i gni n-deri ved fracti on settl es
at the bottom whi l e water sol ubl e, mostl y carbohydrate-
deri ved compounds form a top l ayer. Al though other
sol vent fracti onati on methods have al so been devel oped,
especi al l y to i mprove the puri ty of the l i gni n-deri ved
materi al ,
64
water addi ti on seems to be the favored
opti on.
The water-sol ubl e part of fast pyrol ysi s bi o-oi l has
found an appl i cati on that has been commerci al for over
10 years. The aqueous extract of bi o-oi l i ncl udes both
l ow-mol ecul ar-wei ght al dehydes that are effecti ve meat
browni ng agents (especi al l y gl ycol al dehyde) as wel l as
phenol i c compounds that provi de smoky fl avors. Based
on thi s, a range of food fl avori ng composi ti ons have been
patented and commerci al i zed by Red Arrow Products
Company,
65,66
that successful l y competes wi th si mi l ar
products known as l i qui d smoke produced by a vari ety
of sl ow pyrol ysi s processes i n several countri es.
A potenti al appl i cati on of the water-sol ubl e fracti on
(56) Radl ei n, D. The Producti on of Chemi cal s from Fast Pyrol ysi s
Bi o-oi l s. I n Fast Pyrolysis of Biomass: A Handbook; Bri dgwater et al .,
Eds.; CPL Press: Newbury, UK, 1999; pp 164-188.
(57) Oehr, K. Aci d emi ssi on reducti on. U.S. Patent 5,458,803, 1995.
(58) Zhou, J.; Oehr, K.; Si mons, G.; Barrass, G. Si mul taneous NOx
and SOx control usi ng Bi oLi me. I n Biomass Gasification and Pyrolysis,
Stateof theArt and FutureProspects; Kal tschmi tt, M., Bri dgwater, A.
V., Eds.; CPL Press: Newbury, UK, 1997; pp 490-494.
(59) Radl ei n, D.; Pi skorz, J.; Majerski , P. Method of produci ng sl ow-
rel ease ni trogenous organi c ferti l i zer from bi omass. U.S. Patent
5,676,727, 1997.
(60) Bri dgwater, A. V. Sl ow rel ease ferti l i zers by pyrol yti c recycl i ng
of agri cul tural wastes. PyNeNewsletter 2000, 10, 9.
(61) Robson, A. DynaMoti ve 2000 Progress Report. PyNeNewsletter
2000, 10, 6.
(62) Freel , B.; Graham, R. G. Bi o-oi l Preservati ves. U.S. Patent
6,485,841, 2002.
(63) Mei er, D.; Andersons, B.; I rbe, I .; Chi rkova, J.; Fai x, O.
Prel i mi nary study on fungi ci de and sorpti on effects of fast pyrol ysi s
l i qui ds used as wood preservati ve. I n Progress in Thermochemical
BiomassConversion; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford,
2001; pp 1550-1563.
(64) Chum, H. L.; Bl ack, S. K. Process for fracti onati on fast-pyrol ysi s
oi l s and products deri ved therefrom. U.S. Patent 4,942,269, 1990.
(65) Underwood, G. Commerci al i zati on of fast pyrol ysi s products.
I n Biomass Thermal Processing; Hogan, E., Grassi , G., Bri dgwater,
A. V., Eds.; CPL Press: Newbury, U.K., 1992; pp 226-228.
(66) Underwood, G. L.; Graham, R. G. Methods of Usi ng Fast
Pyrol ysi s Li qui ds as Li qui d Smoke. U.S. Patent 4,876,108, 1989.
Underwood, G. L. Hi gh Browni ng Li qui d Smoke Composi ti on and
Method of Maki ng a Hi gh Browni ng Li qui d Smoke Composi ti on. U.S.
Patent 5,039,537, 1991.
596 Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 Czernik and Bridgwater
of bi o-oi l i s the producti on of cal ci um sal ts of carboxyl i c
aci ds that can be used as envi ronmental l y fri endl y road
de-i cers.
67
Vol ati l e organi c aci ds, mostl y formi c, aceti c,
and propi oni c that are abundant i n the aqueous extract
of bi o-oi l can be di sti l l ed off as a sub-fracti on. Al though
such a di sti l l ate al so i ncl udes other vol ati l e components
(such as al dehydes and esters), they ei ther can react
wi th l i me or are evaporated duri ng the recovery of sol i d
cal ci um sal ts. The scal e-up of the producti on of bi omass-
deri ved de-i cers i s techni cal l y feasi bl e but not currentl y
economi c. Cal ci um chl ori de i s much l ess expensi ve and
thus used as the most common de-i cer, though i t i s
known to have del eteri ous effects on pl ants.
The water-i nsol ubl e fracti on that usual l y consti tutes
25-30% of the whol e bi o-oi l i s often cal l ed pyrol yti c
l i gni n because i t i s essenti al l y composed of ol i gomeri c
fragments ori gi nati ng from degradati on of nati ve l i g-
ni n.
68,69
So far, hi gh-val ue appl i cati ons of thi s fracti on
have not been commerci al i zed; however, usi ng pyrol yti c
l i gni n as phenol repl acement i n phenol -formal dehyde
resi ns seems to approach that stage. The most i mpor-
tant contri buti ons i n research and devel opment on
pyrol i ti c l i gni n-based resi n formul ati on have been made
at NREL
70,71
and Bi ocarbons
72
i n the Uni ted States,
Ensyn
73
and Pyrovac
74
i n Canada, and ARI
75
i n Greece.
Al though l i gni n i s l ess reacti ve than phenol , 30-50%
of phenol can be repl aced by pyrol yti c l i gni n i n novol ak
and resol e formul ati ons produci ng hi gh-qual i ty resi ns.
Those resi ns were successful l y used as adhesi ves i n
pl ywood and parti cl eboard manufacturi ng, showi ng hi gh
mechani cal strength. Lower toxi ci ty and l ower cost
compared to phenol make pyrol yti c l i gni n an attracti ve
component of adhesi ves. Consequentl y, resi n and board
manufacturers such as Loui si ana Paci fi c, Weyerhauser,
A. C. M. Wood Chemi cal s, and others have been heavi l y
i nvol ved i n commerci al i zati on of bi o-oi l deri ved adhe-
si ves.
Specific Chemicals from Bio-oil. As menti oned
above, the producti on of speci fi c chemi cal s from bi o-oi l
i s possi bl e but because of the compl exi ty of separati on
techni ques has not been devel oped i n l arger scal e,
except from sl ow pyrol ysi s l i qui ds where producti on of
a few speci fi c chemi cal s i s vi abl e by compani es such as
Chemvi ron i n Germany, and unti l 2002, Usi ne Lam-
bi otte i n France. The most promi si ng seems to be
gl ycol al dehyde (al so known as hydroxyacetal dehyde)
that i s, besi des water, the most abundant si ngl e com-
ponent of fast pyrol ysi s bi o-oi l . Gl ycol al dehyde i s al so
the most acti ve meat-browni ng agent i n l i qui d smoke
and, therefore, i t rai sed i nterest i n the food fl avori ng
i ndustry. Red Arrow Products
76
and RTI
77
patented
methods for i sol ati on of gl ycol al dehyde based on crystal -
l i zati on. The producti on of gl ycol al dehyde i s more at-
tracti ve i f cel l ul ose i s used i nstead of wood as feedstock
for fast pyrol ysi s. I n such a case, the l i gni n-free pyrol ysi s
l i qui d contai ns a hi gher concentrati on of the desi red
product and i sol ati on i s easi er, more effi ci ent, and has
been shown to be more economi c, even al l owi ng for the
hi gher cost of cel l ul ose compared to bi omass.
78
Levogl ucosan (1,6-anhydro--D-gl ucopyranose) and
l evogl ucosenone (6,8-di oxabi cycl o[3.2.1.]oct-2-en-4-one)
are not typi cal components of bi o-oi l produced for fuel
appl i cati on but can be generated wi th hi gh yi el ds by a
si mi l ar pyrol ysi s processes from demi neral i zed cel l ul ose
or bi omass. For exampl e, Dobel e
79
reported that 46%
yi el d of l evogl ucosan and 24% of l evogl ucosenone were
obtai ned by fast pyrol ysi s (pyroprobe) of aci d-pretreated
cel l ul ose. A substanti al revi ew on the producti on and
potenti al appl i cati ons of l evogl ucosan was publ i shed by
Radl ei n.
80
Several processes have been patented for
pyrol yti c generati on, recovery, and puri fi cati on of l evo-
gl ucosan from cel l ul ose and l i gnocel l ul osi c materi al s, for
exampl e, the Uni versi ty of Waterl oo fl ui di zed bed
process.
81
The opti mum process temperature for the
producti on of l evogl ucosan i s i n the range of 400-500
C, and di fferent types of reactors can be used to provi de
about 50% yi el d based on cel l ul ose i n the feedstock. I n
the former Sovi et Uni on, a 20 kg/h fl ui di zed bed and a
30 kg/h cycl oni c reactor were used to produce l evogl u-
cosan from aci d-hydrol yzed bi omass (l i gnocel l ul ose).
82
The approxi mate yi el d of l evogl ucosan from fast pyrol y-
si s of l i gnocel l ul ose was 20%i n the condensate and 10%
as a puri fi ed (96%) product. I t seems that the mai n
di ffi cul ty i n the producti on of l evogl ucosan i s not py-
rol ysi s but rather i ts effi ci ent i sol ati on from the pyrol yti c
l i qui ds. Though l evogl ucosan has potenti al for the
manufacturi ng of pharmaceuti cal s, surfactants, bi ode-
gradabl e pol ymers, and others, the hi gh producti on
pri ce, mostl y due to the l ack of l ow-cost recovery and
puri fi cati on procedures, makes unl i kel y i ts extensi ve
use soon. Levogl ucosenone was produced by fl ui di zed
bed pyrol ysi s of phosphori c aci d-i mpregnated cel l ul ose
wi th the yi el d of 24%.
56
I t can be rel ati vel y easi l y
(67) Oehr, K. H.; Scott, D. S.; Czerni k, S. Method of produci ng
cal ci um sal ts from bi omass. U.S. Patent 5,264,623, 1993.
(68) Radl ei n, D.; Pi skorz, J.; Scott, D. Li gni n deri ved oi l s from the
fast Pyrol ysi s of Popl ar Wood. J . Anal. Appl. Pyrol. 1987, 12, 51.
(69) Mei er, D.; Schol ze, B. Fast Pyrol ysi s Li qui d Characteri sti cs. I n
Biomass Gasification and Pyrolysis, State of the Art and Future
Prospects. Kal tschmi tt, M., Bri dgwater, A. V., Eds.; CPL Press:
Newbury, U.K., 1997; pp 431-441.
(70) Chum, H. L.; Krei bi ch, R. E. Process for prepari ng phenol i c
formal dehyde resi n products deri ved from fracti onated fast pyrol ysi s
oi l s. U.S. Patent 5,091,499, 1993.
(71) Kel l y, S.; Wang, X.; Myers, M.; Johnson, D.; Scahi l l , J. Use of
bi omass pyrol ysi s oi l s for preparati on of modi fi ed phenol formal dehyde
resi ns. I n Developments in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion;
Bri dgwater, A. V., Boocock, D. G. B., Eds.; Bl acki e Academi c &
Professi onal : London, 1997; pp 557-572.
(72) Hi mmel bl au, A. Method and apparatus for produci ng water-
sol ubl e resi n and resi n product made by the method. U.S. Patent
5,034,498, 1991.
(73) Gi roux, R.; Freel , B.; Graham, R. Natural Resi n Formul ati on.
U.S. Patent 6,326,461, 2001.
(74) Roy, C.; Pakdel , H. Process for the Producti on of Phenol i c-ri ch
Pyrol ysi s Oi l s for Use i n Maki ng Phenol -Formal dehyde Resol e Resi ns.
U.S. Patent 6,143,856, 2000.
(75) Tsi antzi , S.; Athanassi adou, E. Wood adhesi ves made wi th
pyrol ysi s oi l . PyNeNewsletter 2000, 10, 10-11.
(76) Stradal , J. A.; Underwood, G. Process for produci ng hydroxy-
acetal dehyde. U.S. Patent 5,393,542, 1995.
(77) Majerski , P.; Pi skorz, J.; Radl ei n, D. Producti on of gl ycol al de-
hyde by hydrous thermol ysi s of sugars, PCT/CA01/01562, 2001.
(78) Hague, R. A. The pretreatment and pyrol ysi s of bi omass for
the producti on of l i qui ds for fuel s and speci al i ty chemi cal s. Ph.D.
Thesi s, Aston Uni versi ty, 1998.
(79) Dobel e, G.; Rossi nskaja, G.; Tel ysheva, G.; Mei er, D.; Radtke,
S.; Fai x, O. Levogl ucosenone - a product of catal yti c fast pyrol ysi s of
cel l ul ose. I n Progress in Thermochemical Biomass Conversion; Bri dg-
water, A. V., Ed.; Bl ackwel l Sci ence: Oxford, 2001; pp 1500-1508.
(80) Radl ei n, D. Study of l evogl ucosan producti on - a revi ew. I n
Fast Pyrolysis of Biomass: A Handbook, Vol. 2; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.;
CPL Press: Newbury, U.K., 2002; pp 205-241.
(81) Scott, D. S.; Pi skorz, J.; Radl ei n, D.; Majerski , P. Process for
the producti on of anhydrosugars from l i gni n and cel l ul ose contai ni ng
bi omass by pyrol ysi s. U.S. Patent 5,395,455, 1995.
(82) Dobel e, G. Producti on, properti es and use of wood pyrol ysi s oi l
- a bri ef revi ew of the work carri ed out at research and producti on
centers of the former USSR from 1960 to 1990. I n Fast Pyrolysis of
Biomass: A Handbook, Vol. 2; Bri dgwater, A. V., Ed.; CPL Press:
Newbury, U.K., 2002; pp 147-204.
Applications of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Oil Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 597
recovered from pyrol yti c l i qui d by di sti l l ati on. As wi th
l evogl ucosan, i t has potenti al i n the synthesi s of anti -
bi oti cs and fl avor compounds, but has not found yet a
l arge-scal e appl i cati on.
I n summary, some chemi cal s produced from the whol e
bi o-oi l or by i ts fracti onati on are al ready commerci al
products, for exampl e l i qui d smoke, or have a chance
for short-term commerci al i zati on, especi al l y i f a bi o-
refi nery concept based on a fast pyrol ysi s process i s
i mpl emented.
83
Commerci al i zati on of speci al ty chemi -
cal s from bi o-oi l requi res more work on devel opi ng
rel i abl e l ow-cost separati on procedures as wel l as work-
i ng more cl osel y wi th potenti al market outl ets.
Conclusions
The l i qui d bi o-oi l product from fast pyrol ysi s has the
consi derabl e advantage of bei ng a storabl e and trans-
portabl e fuel as wel l as a potenti al source of a number
of val uabl e chemi cal s that offer the attracti on of much
hi gher added val ue than fuel s. Bi o-oi l has been success-
ful l y used as boi l er fuel and al so showed promi se i n
di esel engi ne and gas turbi ne appl i cati ons. Upgradi ng
bi o-oi l to a qual i ty of transport l i qui d fuel sti l l poses
several techni cal chal l enges and i s not currentl y eco-
nomi cal l y attracti ve. Some chemi cal s, especi al l y those
produced from the whol e bi o-oi l (such as ferti l i zers) or
i ts major fracti ons (such as l i qui d smoke or for wood
resi ns), offer more i nteresti ng commerci al opportuni ti es.
There are sti l l many chal l enges to overcome before
bi o-oi l fi nds l arge-scal e appl i cati on as fuel , i ncl udi ng:
Cost of bi o-oi l , whi ch i s 10%to 100%more than that
of fossi l fuel .
Avai l abi l i ty of materi al remai ns a probl em, and
there are l i mi ted suppl i es for testi ng.
Lack of standards for use and di stri buti on of bi o-
oi ,l and i nconsi stent qual i ty i nhi bi ts wi der usage.
Consi derabl e work i s requi red to characteri ze and
standardi ze these l i qui ds and devel op a wi der range of
energy appl i cati ons.
I ncompati bi l i ty of bi o-oi l wi th conventi onal fuel s
and, therefore, the need for dedi cated fuel handl i ng
systems.
Users are unfami l i ar wi th bi o-oi l .
Envi ronmental heal th and safety i ssues need to be
compl etel y resol ved.
Pyrol ysi s as a technol ogy does not enjoy a good
i mage.
More research i s needed i n the fi el d of fast pyrol ysi s
and bi o-oi l testi ng to devel op l arge-scal e appl i cati ons.
The most i mportant i ssues that need to be addressed
seem to be:
Scal e-up
Cost reducti on
Better oi l qual i ty
Norms and standards for producers and users
Envi ronmental heal th and safety i ssues i n handl i ng,
transport, and usage
Encouragement for devel opers to i mpl ement pro-
cesses and for users to i mpl ement appl i cati ons.
I nformati on di ssemi nati on.
EF034067U
(83) Scott, D. S.; Lamarre, P.; Tsang, W.; Pi skorz, J.; Radl ei n, D.
Feasi bi l i ty study for a bi omass refi nery concept. I n Makinga Business
fromBiomass in Energy, Environment, Chemicals, Fibers, and Materi-
als; Overend, R. P., Chornet, E., Eds.; El sevi er Sci ence I nc.: New York,
1997; pp 933-944.
598 Energy & Fuels, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2004 Czernik and Bridgwater