PRODUCTION OF SYNTHETIC BASE OILS FROM BIOMASS RESOURCES—PRELIMINARY LCA AND PERFORMANCE

摘要

Reducing dependence on imported resources including crude oil and other energy imports is important to maintaining a healthy balance of payments and dependence on foreign countries for critical products needed to operate the economy. One domestic resource that can be developed is biomass. Using biomass gasification and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, that resource can be converted into a number of products similar to those produced from crude oil resources. Most organizations have focused on production of fuels from biomass, and the US Government has supported this effort with substantial grants and subsidies such as the Renewable Fuels Standard and the California Low Carbon Fuels Standard. Biomass gasification/F-T technology has an advantage over other biomass conversion technologies in that it produces drop-in fuels that are compatible with the current transportation infrastructure—blending with existing fuels, transportation in existing pipelines, use in existing equipment such as turbine and diesel engines.