Active Clean Energy Chemistry

Sustainable fuels and platform chemicals from renewable sources

Funder EPSRC (part of UKRI)
Recipient organisation University of Nottingham
Funding Not disclosed
Period Feb 2025 — Jan 2029

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

Farmers’ leftover straw, husks, and other agricultural waste could soon be turned into clean-burning fuels and industrial chemicals instead of being left to rot or burn. The problem is straightforward: bio-oil made from plant waste currently contains too much oxygen and water to replace petrol or diesel. It delivers only 16-19 megajoules per kilogram of energy, less than half that of conventional fossil fuels. This research aims to fix that by developing a catalytic upgrading process that strips out the oxygen while boosting the fuel’s energy content. Working with the company PyroGenesys, the team will use a technique called catalytic hydrotreatment, which previous studies suggest gives the best carbon yield and energy density while producing only water as a by-product. They will also test whether cheap catalysts sourced from landfill or industrial waste can replace expensive noble metals like platinum or palladium. To heat the reaction, they plan to use microwaves, exploiting the fact that polar molecules in bio-oil absorb microwave energy strongly, potentially making the process far more efficient. If successful, this could turn agricultural waste into a viable source of sustainable transport fuel and platform chemicals, reducing reliance on fossil feedstocks without competing with food production.

View original technical description
Explore novel technological routes to upgrade bio-oils produced from globally available agri-waste feedstocks using the patented PYROCHEMY process developed by PyroGenesys. Biomass stands out as a promising renewable energy source, capable of being converted into liquid bio-oil through the commercially established process of fast pyrolysis. However, bio-oil has a significantly lower heating value (16-19 MJ/kg) compared to conventional fossil fuels (42-47 MJ/kg) and exhibits several unfavourable properties resulting from its elevated oxygen and water content. In collaboration with PyroGenesys, a producer of biochar, bio-oil, and biogas through its patented biomass pyrolysis process, this research aims to develop a novel technological route for bio-oil upgrading. Catalytic hydrotreatment will be explored as the main upgrading technique, having demonstrated the best carbon yield, HHV, and removal of oxygenated species in previous studies, whilst only producing H2O as a by-product. In addition, sustainable catalysts sourced from landfills or industrial waste could be investigated as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to expensive noble-metal catalysts. Finally, microwave technology will be employed as the heating mechanism, leveraging the strong microwave receptibility of the polar molecules in the bio-oil and the di-electric properties of catalysts to potentially significantly enhance catalytic reaction efficiency.

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Researchers

Carmen Van Poelgeest (Student)

Related Research

Grants with similar aims, by meaning.

Development of fast pyrolysis based advanced biofuel technologies for biofuels
Co-processing waste plastics and biomass using pyrolysis-plasma/catalysis to produce upgraded bio-oils
Synthesis of carbon based catalysts for the sustainable upgrade of agro-waste pyrolysis products into biofuels for rural areas
Upgrading of bio-oil using novel catalysts
Application of microwaves on the production of liquid biofuels

Original classification

Studentship

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