Lipids upgrading and final product characterization

BioSFerA is approaching its last year of project and, with it, the downstream phase that will finally lead to the production of jet and bunker fuels resulting from our innovative biofuels production concept.

The TAG lipids, directly coming out from the fermentation process in the BBEPP’s laboratory, will be sent to the research team of CERTH based in Thessaloniki for the hydrotreatment upgrading. On the first phase, a dedicated TRL 3 hydrotreatment plant of CERTH, will be utilized to optimize the technology. On the second phase, the optimized technology will be scaled up in a TRL 5 hydrotreatment plant of CERTH for the production procedure. Finally, on the third phase, the products from TRL 5 HDT plant, will be fractionated under vacuum in a batch large fractionation unit of CERTH in order to separate the Jet and Bunker fuel fractions.

The downstream step’s trials are going to start within these months to last until the end of the project. CERTH will take care to show its process with video and step-by-step updates. The following pictures give a preview of the CERTH’s laboratory in Thessaloniki and the equipment used in BioSFerA:

TRL3 hydrotreatment plant in CERTH’s premises, Thessaloniki   

TRL5 hydrotreatment plant in CERTH’s premises, Thessaloniki

Large fractionation unit for the separation of the jet and bunker fractions from the total liquid product (Hydrotreatment unit at TRL5, CERTH’s premises in Thessaloniki)