Production of Fisher-Tropsch and methanol fuels using biogenic synthesis gas – A techno-economic comparison

Abstract

The immanent threat of climate change and the constantly rising crude oil prices force policymakers to take measures against these developments. One of the options at hand is to produce biogenic fuels for the transportation sector. The so called "second generation biofuels" can be produced via diverse routes. In this study, two Biomass-to-Liquid (BtL) synthesis processes, namely Fischer-Tropsch and methanol synthesis are compared and assessed regarding their technical and economic performance. The analyses are based on the limited system of synthesis and upgrading to final products excluding feed preparation steps, such as gasification and gas cleaning. Technical and economic data of already implemented Fischer-Tropsch and methanol synthesis using fossil resources have been applied. The main goal of the study was to search for the most promising technology to implement in the biofuel sector. Methanol has certain advantages regarding economics, simplicity of process and flexibility of further products, especially in combination with DME and MTBE production. On the other hand, its application concerning conventional fuels is limited because further methanol-to fuels technologies are still under essential research. Hence, methanol seems advantageous to be produced in lower capacity facilities, being used as base chemical and further processed to various products. Fischer-Tropsch is favourable taking its maturity regarding commercial fuel production into account. Due to the high complexity of the process, for the production of synfuels only highscale capacities are likely to run at competitive economics. In conclusion, it has to be stated that both technological pathways are suitable to produce synfuels or chemicals from biomass under specific framework conditions.