In an aspect, a method is disclosed that includes contacting a composition with an aqueous solution to yield a mixture, where the composition includes one or more of animal fats, animal oils, plant fats, plant oils, vegetable fats, vegetable oils, greases, and used cooking oil, about 5 wt. % or more of free fatty acids, about 10 wppm or more of total metals, about 8 wppm or more phosphorus, about 20 wppm or more of nitrogen, and the aqueous solution includes ((NH.sub.4).sub.2H.sub.2EDTA, (NH.sub.4).sub.4EDTA, a monoammonium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a diammonium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a triammonium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a tetraammonium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, (NH.sub.4).sub.5DTPA, a combination of citric acid and Na.sub.4EDTA, a combination of citric acid and Na.sub.2H.sub.2EDTA, a combination of citric acid and a monosodium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a combination of citric acid and a disodium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a combination of citric acid and a trisodium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a combination of citric acid and a tetrasodium salt of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, a combination of citric acid and Na.sub.5DTPA, or a combination of any two or more thereof, where the method further includes centrifuging the mixture to yield a first treated composition, wherein the first treated composition has less total metals and less phosphorus than the composition.

Disclosed herein are a microalgae harvesting apparatus and method. The microalgae harvesting apparatus includes: a gantry crane including traveling towers configured to move along traveling tracks extending along lengthwise directions on both sides of an arrangement of microalgae incubators, a jib installed in the widthwise direction of the traveling towers, a hoist installed on the jib, and a crossbar configured to be selectively lowered and elevated by the hoist; a plurality of harvesters installed to form an N×M array in widthwise and lengthwise directions with respect to the crossbar, and provided with respective doors in the bottom surfaces thereof; a conveyor means configured to move along a lengthwise direction at a height between the microalgae cultivators and the harvesters; and a control panel configured to control the operations of the microalgae harvesting apparatus.

The present invention relates to the use of a fuel composition comprising at least 85% by weight of one or more hydrocarbon fractions consisting of one or more hydrotreated vegetable oils, said fraction(s) having a distillation range between 100 and 400° C. and having a paraffin content greater than or equal to 90% by weight, for reducing the deposits present in the internal parts of a compression ignition engine (or diesel engine). The present invention also relates to a method for cleaning the deposits present in the internal parts of a compression ignition engine using such a composition.

There is a method for extracting bio-oil from algal biomass, in particular oily microalgae, using solvents of a Deep Eutectic Solvents (DES) capable of producing a bio-oil with a low content of phospholipids and inorganic salts, mainly sodium chloride.

The process produces a diesel stream from a biorenewable feedstock by hydrotreating to remove heteroatoms and saturate olefins. The recycle gas is recycled to the hydrotreating reactor without removing hydrogen sulfide, which is needed in the biorenewable feed to keep the hydrotreating catalyst active. A purification unit can be utilized on a purge gas stream to purify the gas and improve hydrogen concentration in the recycle gas when added to the recycle gas.

A multipurpose fuel composition is disclosed which contains a petroleum derived jet fuel component and a renewable jet fuel component, wherein the multipurpose fuel composition has a freezing point of −40° C. or below, and an exemplary cetane number more than 40, preferably more than 45, more preferably more than 50.

An aviation fuel composition is disclosed, containing 50-95 vol-% of petroleum-derived jet fuel component, and 5-50 vol-% of renewable middle distillate component. The fuel composition has a viscosity of 12 mm2/s or below at −40° C., 10 mm2/s or below at −30° C., and 8 mm2/s or below at −20° C., as measured in accordance with an EN ISO 3104 (1996) standard. A method for producing the aviation fuel composition is also disclosed. The method containing mixing the petroleum derived jet fuel component and the renewable middle distillate component to obtain the aviation fuel composition, such that the petroleum-derived jet fuel component and the renewable middle distillate component are mixed together in an amount containing 5-50 vol-% of renewable middle distillate component and about 50-95 vol-% of petroleum-derived jet fuel component.

A number of different branched hydrocarbon compounds (formula I) having a star-like configuration (S) are prepared from renewable oils containing fatty acids or derivatives containing fatty acids. The branched hydrocarbon compounds may be isolated individually or in mixtures, and may be used as part of base oils, such as renewable base oils (RBOs). A process for preparing the branched hydrocarbon compounds of formula I involve conditions that favour a trimerisation reaction followed by hydrotreating conditions. The compounds of formula I may be made by catalytically treating renewable material in a process, and the compounds have desirable qualities relating to lubrication, cold flow as well as having a low Noack volatility.

Hydrotreatment of biological oil is disclosed for producing renewable base oil and a diesel oil from low value biological oils. Low value biological oils containing free fatty acids and fatty acid esters can be processed into a renewable base oil and a renewable diesel oil in an efficient manner by first separating at least part of the free fatty acids from the feedstock and then processing separately this free acid feed in a ketonisation reaction followed by hydrodeoxygenation and hydroisomerisation reactions to yield a renewable base oil stream. The remaining free fatty acid depleted feed is processed in a separate hydrodeoxygenation and hydroisomerisation step to yield a renewable diesel stream.

A process plant and a process for production of a hydrocarbon fraction suitable for use as jet fuel from a feedstock being a renewable feedstock or an oxygenate feedstock, including combining the feedstock with an amount of a hydrocracked intermediate product and optionally an additional liquid diluent, to form a combined feedstock, directing the combined feedstock to contact a material catalytically active in hydrodeoxygenation under hydrotreating conditions to provide a hydrodeoxygenated intermediate product, separating the hydrodeoxygenated intermediate product in at least two fractions; a vapor fraction and a liquid fraction, directing at least an amount of the liquid fraction to contact a material catalytically active in isomerization under isomerization conditions to provide an isomerized intermediate product, fractionating said isomerized intermediate product to provide at least a hydrocarbon suitable for use as jet fuel and a bottom fraction, hydrocracking the bottom fraction to provide the hydrocracked intermediate product.