How to convert carbon monoxide into synthetic petroleum by a process of catalytic hydrogenation called COpetrolisation ?
The process called COpetrolisation uses two catalysts instead of one, converting CO into C7H16. Addition of a NaCl catalyst to a FeO catalyst improves the efficiency of Fischer's process because the salt catalyst retains humidity. Furthermore, chlorine opens chemical chains and sodium prevents crystals of oxygen from covering the FeO catalyst. If we are equipped to produce CO from biogas or smoke and if we want to recycle this unwanted gas, we can COpetrolise this CO and yield a useful liquid. In fact, recycling CO into synthetic crude petroleum, heptane, contributes to clean air and to produce a valuable source of energy. Because CO is a renewable resource, COpetrolisation favors a lasting economic development.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a process for producing hydrocarbons from carbon monoxide, in particular, to a process for producing synthetic crude petroleum from carbon monoxide by catalytic hydrogenation.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Converting carbon monoxide into synthetic petroleum by catalytic hydrogenation is a process invented by M. Fischer and. M. Tropsch during the twenties and thirties. As M. Bergius at the same time, they used an iron catalyst to produce hydrocarbons. In 1925, Fischer-Tropsch produced a real industrial synthesis of hydrocarbons and oils under normal pressure with a cobalt catalyst and thorine. These processes were improved in 1930 and during world war 2 using nickel and nickel-cobalt catalysts. The Fischer-Tropsch process was also applied in England by the Synthetic Oil Cy Ltd using cobalt and thorium catalysts. Other companies Improved the Fischer-Tropsch process using costly alloy catalysts without succeeding to eliminate problems of instability due to the presence of oxygen, humidity or water vapor in the reactor. See canadian patents no. 360,194, no. 411,979, no. 556,715 and no 559,476.
SUMMARY
There are many processes converting carbon monoxide into liquid synthetic petroleum. Everybody knows that catalytic hydrogenation is feasible but its efficiency is problematic mostly because of the instability due to the unavoidable presence of oxygen and water vapor in the reactor. We also know that catalysts act as accelerators or as decelerators in chemical reactions without being part of the finished products. In converting carbon monoxide into liquid synthetic petroleum by catalytic hydrogenation, the use of an iron catalyst or other similar catalysts necessitates many manipulations which may affect expected output. COpetrolisation brings in a second catalyst, salt, which retains humidity. Furthermore, chlorine opens chemical chains and sodium prevents crystals of oxygen from covering the iron catalyst. Doing so, the salt catalyst improves the action of the iron catalyst. Catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide becomes more regular and easier to standardize. COpetrolisation of carbon monoxide regularly produces 55% water and 45% heptane.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Many sources of carbon monoxide has been experienced: for example, blogas, smoke, etc. are fundamental sources of CO and raw materials for future processing by COpetrolisation. Everybody also knows that we can have carbon monoxide from carbon dioxide by the chemical formula:
CO2+C=2CO where carbon, C, is red hot coal. Another possibility could be burning organic matters in the presence of a small quantity of oxygen in order to produce the greatest quantity of carbon monoxide.
Catalysts used in COpetrolisation are an iron catalyst, Feo, and a salt catalyst, NaCl. These two catalysts must be powdery or crushed to a size a diameter less than 1 mm. For the required quantity of these catalysts, we must know the capacity of the reactor. In general, we use about 2 parts of salt for 1 part of iron in other words about 6%-10% wt. of salt and about 3%-5% wt. of iron. Because catalysts are not part of the finished products, it is not necessary to have definite quantities of each catalyst but it is important to have more salt than iron, 2 times more is a good approximation. These proportions come from the specific action of each catalyst: the iron catalyst makes possible the synthesis of carbon and hydrogen when the salt catalyst retains humidity. Furthermore, chloride opens chemical chains and sodium prevents crystals of oxygen from covering the iron catalyst. These catalysts must be mixed before putting them in a reactor.
We put the iron-salt catalyst into a reactor covering the largest area inside this reactor. Into the reactor, we blow 2 gases, carbon monoxide and hydrogen, according to proportions already defined in the Fischer's formula: 7 CO+15 H2=C7H16+7 H2O in other words about 87% carbon monoxide+13% hydrogen for an appropriate result of about 44% heptane and about 56% water. We heat up to a constant inside temperature of about 160° C.-200° C. without exceeding 200° C. in order to avoid formation of methane or other alcanes. While heating at constant temperature, we maintain inside gases at constant pressure of about 2200 p.s.i.-3000 p.s.i. as long as COpetrolisation is progressing, in other words during less than about 30 minutes. The whole process of COpetrolisation works more effectively if the reactor is shaked because action of catalysts are improved. When chemical reactions of COpetrolisation are finished, we extract the heptane-water mixture and we filter it to separate heptane from water.
more info at
fischer-tropsch.org http://www.fischer-tropsch.org/
Fake petroleum on tap at industrial microbe conference
Start-up LS9 has stated in the past that they plan to produce a synthetic version of petroleum with the help of microorganisms. This week, it will provide some information on how the process works.
Stephen del Cardayre, who heads up LS9's research, will deliver a paper this week on the process at the annual meeting of the Society of Industrial Microbiology taking place this week at Denver.
Industrial microbiology, one of our favorite topics here, essentially revolves around exploiting the properties of naturally occurring or genetically enhanced organisms. Microorganisms, after all, are little chemical factories. Feed sugar to certain types of yeast and alcohol comes out--and, unlike human employees, you don't have to pay yeast. In the past few years, scientists have begun to explore ways to use them to produce semiconductor insulators or convert wood to fuel. Others are also looking at synthetic biology, which involves replicating microbe activity without the microbe.
The research is relatively new, but a few companies such as Cambrios Technologies (biologically inspired semiconductor materials) and Mascoma (microbes for ethanol) have indicated they could be ready for commercialization soon.
LS9 is part of a microbe mafia being assembled by Khosla Ventures, which has invested in several of these companies. (LS9 has received $5 million in venture funding.) A significant number of these companies are coming out of the University of California, Stanford and Caltech. LS9 in part grew out of research conducted by Chris Somerville, a Stanford professor and plant expert who will also participate in biofuels research at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, which is expected to calve off start-ups.
Presentations at the conference will also come from Amyris Technologies, which wants to make a biologically-inspired jet fuel (Amyris grew out of Berkeley) and UC Santa Cruz, which will present a paper on deriving substances from marine fungi.
Petroleum, on which modern day society was built and is now dependent, is a diminishing resource with increasing environmental, political, and economic disadvantages.
The ideal alternative would be chemically identical to petroleum, allowing broad and rapid adoption, derived from renewable resources, scalable to support current and future demands, domestically derived, and cost competitive without subsidies.
LS9 has developed Renewable Petroleum™ technologies to meet this need.
Pushing the frontiers of synthetic biology and industrial biotechnology, LS9 has created industrial microbes that efficiently convert renewable feedstocks to a portfolio of "drop in compatible" hydrocarbon-based fuels and chemicals. LS9's unique technology provides a means to genetically control the structure and function of its fuels, enabling a product portfolio that meets the diverse demands of the petroleum economy.
LS9 has developed a new means of efficiently converting fatty acid intermediates into petroleum replacement products via fermentation of renewable sugars. LS9 has also discovered and engineered a new class of enzymes and their associated genes to efficiently convert fatty acids into hydrocarbons. LS9 believes this pathway is the most cost, resource, and energy-efficient way to produce hydrocarbon biofuels and petroleum-replacement products. This translates into efficient land and feedstock use and directly addresses tensions between food versus fuel production.
LS9, Inc.
1300 Industrial Road, #16
San Carlos, CA 94070
Please note, we'll be moving soon to...
100 Kimball Way
South San Francisco, CA 94080
Fax: 650-596-6195
Email: info@ls9.com
