Back to results
US 2017/0190983 A1Published application
Process of converting natural plant oils to biofuels
AssigneeMontana State University
InventorsNestor SORIANO, Randy MAGLINAO, Akash NARANI, Md Joynal ABEDIN
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The conversion of renewable feedstock, particularly camelina oil, into jet fuel and other high-value chemicals. The conversion comprises the processes of alkene metathesis, dehydrogenation, hydrogenation, and vacuum distillation.
Claims19
A method of preparing a transportation fuel comprising:
- (a) Providing a renewable feedstock comprising an unsaturated fatty acid glyceryl ester;
- (b) contacting a mixture of the feedstock and C2-C5 olefins with a metathesis catalyst whereby the unsaturated fatty acid glyceryl ester and C2-C5 olefin undergo a cross-metathesis reaction, thereby forming a metathesis product comprising medium-chain fatty glyceryl esters, acyclic olefins, cyclic olefins, and optionally unreacted C2-C5 olefins;
- (c) dehydrogenating the metathesis product in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst and substantially less than a stoichiometric amount of hydrogen gas relative to the amount of unsaturated bonds in the metathesis product, thereby forming a dehydrogenated metathesis product comprising medium-chain fatty glyceryl esters, acyclic olefins, cyclic olefins, optionally unreacted C2-C5 olefins, and aromatics;
- (d) hydrogenating the dehydrogenated metathesis product in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst and hydrogen, thereby forming a hydrogenated mixture comprising medium-chain saturated fatty glyceryl esters, acyclic and cyclic saturated hydrocarbons, and aromatics,
- wherein the hydrogenated mixture, or a blend comprising at least 50% of the hydrogenated mixture and a fuel blendstock, meets or exceeds the specifications of jet fuel.
2 more elements
A method for preparing a transportation fuel comprising:
- (a) providing a renewable feedstock comprising an unsaturated fatty acid glyceryl ester;
- (b) contacting a mixture of the feedstock and C2-C5 olefins with a metathesis catalyst whereby the unsaturated fatty acid glyceryl ester and C2-C5 olefin undergo a cross-metathesis reaction, thereby forming a metathesis product comprising medium-chain fatty glyceryl esters, C9-C13 olefins, olefins with <C9 atoms, and optionally unreacted C2-C5 olefins;
- (c) separating a fraction containing C9-C13 olefins and a fraction containing olefins with <C9 atoms;
- (d) contacting the fraction containing olefins with <C9 atoms with a cyclization catalyst in the presence of hydrogen, thereby forming a mixture comprising bicyclic and polycyclic hydrocarbons;
- wherein the mixture comprising bicyclic and polycyclic hydrocarbons meets or exceeds the specifications of aviation fuel.
2 more elements
A metathesis catalyst comprising a Ru—(N-heterocyclic carbene) complex immobilized on silica.
A metathesis catalyst comprising one or more Ru catalytic moieties linked to a polymerized N-heterocyclic carbene ligand.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.