To-Syn-Fuel project and the sustainable process for waste biomass conversion

The H2020 To-Syn-Fuel project aims to demonstrate a sustainable process able to transform waste biomass such as dried sewage sludge into renewable liquid fuels and hydrogen. The Thermo-Catalytic Reforming TCR® is implemented in a new process integrated with hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) and pressure swing adsorption (PSA) technologies to convert a wide range of residual biomass into three main products: H2-rich synthesis gas, biochar and a liquid bio-oil that can be upgraded to green fuels capable of being used directly in automotive internal combustion engines without modification, as they fulfil EN fuel standards. In this project, the operational capacity of TCR® is designed for up to 500 kg per hour of sewage sludge at a water content of 5-15 %,which yields up to 50 litres/hour of biofuel. The main purpose of this unit, a pilot plant built in MarktHohenburg, district of AmbergSulzbach (Germany), is the long-term operation of a pre-commercial demonstrator. By demonstrating all the essential process steps in an industrial operational environment, the project will advance the technology’s technical readiness to level 7 while achieving the main aim of the project. This is the final step of development before the technology reaches full commercial scale. The first testing campaigns with TCR® have shown very satisfying performance, with the biocrude oil quality being in line with expectations. Also, the business plan and the socio-environmental sustainability analysis for the process provide very positive outcomes.