A combined hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) and catalytic hydrothermal gasification (CHG) system and process are described that convert various biomass-containing sources into separable bio-oils and aqueous effluents that contain residual organics. Bio-oils may be converted to useful bio-based fuels and other chemical feedstocks. Residual organics in HTL aqueous effluents may be gasified and converted into medium-BTU product gases and directly used for process heating or to provide energy.

The present invention discloses a method for producing light oil through liquefying biomass. The method comprises the following steps: (1) mixing a biomass, a hydrogenation catalyst and a solvent oil to prepare a biomass slurry; (2) carrying out a first liquefaction reaction with the biomass slurry and hydrogen gas to obtain a first reaction product; (3) carrying out a second liquefaction reaction with the first reaction product and hydrogen gas to obtain a second reaction product; (4) subjecting the second reaction product to a first separation operation to produce a light component and a heavy component; (5) carrying out vacuum distillation on the heavy component to obtain a light fraction; (6) mixing the light component with the light fraction to form a mixture, carrying out a hydrogenation reaction on the mixture to obtain a hydrogenation product; and (7) subjecting the hydrogenation product to fractionation operation to obtain a light oil. The two steps of liquefaction on the biomass, followed by separation, vacuum distillation and hydrogenation reaction enable the yield of the light oil to be increased.

A continuous process for converting carbonaceous material contained in one or more feedstocks into a liquid hydrocarbon product, said feedstocks including the carbonaceous material being in a feed mixture including one or more fluids, said fluids including water and further liquid organic compounds at least partly produced by the process in a concentration of at least 1% by weight, where the process comprises converting at least part of the carbonaceous material by pressurising the feed mixture to a pressure in the range 250-400 bar; heating the feed mixture to a temperature in the range 370-450 C., and maintaining said pressurized and heated feed mixture in the desired pressure and temperature ranges in a reaction zone for a predefined time; cooling the feed mixture to a temperature in the range 25-200 C. and expanding the feed mixture to a pressure in the range of 1-70 bar, thereby causing the carbonaceous material to be converted to a liquid hydrocarbon product and separating from the converted feed mixture a fraction comprising liquid hydrocarbon product.

An IBTL system having a low GHG footprint for converting biomass to liquid fuels in which a biomass feed is converted to liquids by direct liquefaction and the liquids are upgraded to produce premium fuels. Biomass residues from the direct liquefaction, and optionally additional biomass is pyrolyzed using microwave pyrolysis to produce structured biochar, hydrogen for the liquefaction and upgrading, and CO.sub.2 for conversion to algae, including blue green algae (cyanobacteria) in a photobioreactor (PBR). Produced algae and diazotrophic microorganisms are used to produce a biofertilizer that also contains structured biochar. The structured biochar acts as a nucleation agent for the algae in the PBR, as a absorption agent to absorb inorganics from the biomass feed to direct liquefaction or from the liquids produced thereby, and as a water retention agent in the biofertilizer. The ratio of cyanobacteria to diazotrophic microorganisms in the biofertilizer can be selected so as to achieve desired total chemically active carbon and nitrogen contents in the soil for a given crop.

Process are disclosed for converting plastics, and especially thermoplastic oxygenated polymers, by hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) to hydrocarbons, such as aromatic hydrocarbons including benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers. These hydrocarbons may be recovered as chemicals and/or fuels, depending on the particular chemical structures of the starting materials, including the presence of oxygen in the polymer backbones. Advantageously, using a sufficiently active catalyst, only moderate conditions, such as in terms of hydrogen partial pressure, are required, in comparison to known hydrotreating processes. This leads to the formation, with fewer non-selective side reactions, of desired liquid hydrocarbons from substantially all carbon in the oxygenated polymer, as well as water from substantially all oxygen in the oxygenated polymer. In some cases, the liquid hydrocarbons obtained are platform chemicals that can be used for a number of specialized purposes. For example, they may be converted to monomers for regenerating the oxygenated polymer or otherwise for producing a different polymer.

A process for converting cellulosic biomass to fuel includes loading bales of cellulosic biomass into an enclosure, at least partially filling the enclosure with an aqueous liquid, wherein the aqueous liquid is filled to a level selected to at least partially submerge the bales of cellulosic biomass once loaded into the enclosure, and subjecting the bales loaded within the enclosure to an anaerobic digestion to produce biogas. The biogas, which contains methane, is provided as a fuel, is upgraded to provide a fuel. The biogas or upgraded biogas can be used to produce a fuel, chemical, or product. A process for converting biomass to fuel includes subjecting cellulosic biomass to anaerobic digestion, and feeding at least a portion of the digestate to hydrothermal liquefaction to produce bio-oil.

The invention relates to a hydrocarbon blend for input to a refinery and comprising a first blend component containing a renewable hydrocarbon component and a second blend component containing petroleum derived hydrocarbon to form at least part of a final hydrocarbon blend for processing in a refinery where the first blend component is characterized by comprising a hydrocarbon substance with at least 70% by weight having a boiling point above 220? C. and by having the characteristics (?.sub.d1, ?.sub.?1, ?.sub.h1)=(17-20, 6-12, 6-12) and; where the second blend component is characterised by having the characteristics (?.sub.{acute over (?)}2, ?.sub.?2, ?.sub.h2)=(17-20, 3-5, 4-7), where the first blend component is present in the final hydrocarbon blend in a relative amount of up to 80 wt %.

A process for the production of a higher hydrocarbon useful to produce diesel components from solid biomass is provided. The process provides for improved production of diesel components by contacting the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate containing diols produced from digestion and hydrodoxygenation of the solid biomass to an amorphous silica alumina catalyst to reduce the diols content, and removing water prior to contacting with the condensation catalyst to produce the higher hydrocarbon.

A continuous process for converting carbonaceous material contained in one or more feedstocks into a liquid hydrocarbon product, said feedstocks including the carbonaceous material being in a feed mixture including one or more fluids, said fluids including water and further liquid organic compounds at least partly produced by the process in a concentration of at least 1% by weight, where the process comprises converting at least part of the carbonaceous material by pressurizing the feed mixture to a pressure in the range 250-400 bar; heating the feed mixture to a temperature in the range 370-450 C., and maintaining said pressurized and heated feed mixture in the desired pressure and temperature ranges in a reaction zone for a predefined time; cooling the feed mixture to a temperature in the range 25-200 C. and expanding the feed mixture to a pressure in the range of 1-70 bar, thereby causing the carbonaceous material to be converted to a liquid hydrocarbon product and separating from the converted feed mixture a fraction comprising liquid hydrocarbon product.

The present disclosure relates to a process for the production of crude bio-oil which involves heating a mixture of biomass slurry and a mixed catalyst system in the presence of a hydrogen source at a temperature ranging from 200 to 350 C. and at a pressure ranging from 70 to 250 bars to obtain a mass containing crude bio-oil. The crude bio-oil can then be separated from said mass containing crude bio-oil. The mixed catalyst system remains in solid form and can be easily separated and reused in the next cycle of hydrothermal conversion of biomass to crude bio-oil.