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Climate neutral gaseous and liquid energy carriers
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GAVE is a government programme that supports the development and introduction of climate-neutral fuels in the Dutch transport sector. The programme's most important task is to support the implementation of the European Renewable Energy Directive into Dutch national legislation with respect to biofuels. This EU Directive states that, by the year 2020, 10% of the energy used in the transport sector must be derived from renewable energy.
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AgentschapNL GAVE
| GAVE news |
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Micro biodiesel
Date published: Jan 25, 2012 |
The scientific journal Angewandte Chemie recently published an article by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) about a new production technique for making biodiesel from micro-algae. The researchers have developed a new catalytic process. In the past, manufacturers used sulphur-containing catalysts that were particularly polluting. According to the article scientists have developed a new nickel-based catalyst consisting of zeolites, called HBeta. An important advantage is that the required conditions are much milder than in sulphur-containing processes, namely 260°C, and 4 MPa of hydrogen pressure.
The final product consists of saturated hydrocarbons that can easily be used for high-quality applications in vehicles. The raw material, micro-algae oil, contains neutral lipids, such as mono-, di-and triglycerides, and approximately 88% unsaturated C18 fatty acids. The conversion reaction developed lasts about eight hours and generates 78% liquid alkanes, with octadecanoic acid (C18) as the main ingredient. The team reports that the gaseous emissions consist mainly of propane and methane.
The scientists have determined that there is a cascade reaction. The double bonds of the unsaturated triglyceride fatty acid chains are first saturated with hydrocarbons. The resulting intermediate product is then split into glycerol components in the form of propane gas. During the last cascade reaction, the groups are gradually reduced to fatty alkyl groups, the intended high-quality vehicle fuel.
Source: Spectroscopynow.com |
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