ClearFuels Technology Inc. and
Rentech’s project to construct a biomass gasifier at Rentech’s Energy Technology Center in Denver reportedly
received a conditional $22.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The gasifier will be integrated with Rentech’s Product Demonstration Unit to produce renewable synthetic fuels from biomass.
ClearFuels officials said that the grant award will be used to manufacture and install at RETC a 20 ton-per-day ClearFuels biomass gasifier designed to produce synthesis gas from various wood waste and sugar cane bagasse feedstocks.
Company officials said that the gasifier will be integrated with Rentech’s existing PDU at the site, which uses the Rentech Process and UOP’s upgrading technologies to produce renewable drop-in synthetic jet and diesel fuels at demonstration scale. Rentech, Inc. provides clean energy solutions.
According to the company officials, this joint demonstration of an integrated bio-refinery is anticipated to be completed in late 2011 and will lead to the final design basis for commercial facilities that are expected to use the combined technologies.
Rentech has a 25 percent strategic ownership interest in ClearFuels, which has begun development of multiple commercial-scale biomass-to-energy projects in the southeastern United States, Hawaii and internationally.
These projects are expected to use an integrated ClearFuels-Rentech design and be co-located at biomass processing facilities.
“We are very pleased with our collaborative discussions with DOE,” Eric Darmstaedter, CEO of ClearFuels, said in a statement. “We expect to complete submission of required supplemental information and start receiving funds in the next few months to facilitate the demonstration of our integrated technologies.”
D. Hunt Ramsbottom, president and CEO of Rentech, said that the company is pleased that the DOE has acted quickly in granting this award.
ClearFuels and its partners are developing advanced sustainable biorefineries that convert multiple mixed cellulosic biomass feedstocks into sustainable, high-value energy products including renewable Fischer-Tropsch diesel and jet fuel, ethanol, hydrogen and power at industry-leading yields.
Ramsbottom said that the award recognizes the potential value of integrating Rentech’s and ClearFuel’s technologies for the production of renewable synthetic fuels.
“We believe that the deployment of our joint technologies at commercial-scale renewable energy projects will play an important role in helping our country meet its goals for sources of low-carbon renewable fuels and green jobs,” he said.
Anil Sharma is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Anil’s articles, please visit his columnist page.Edited by
Amy Tierney
