Renewable Diesel Technology

1 Renewable Diesel Technology Renewable Diesel Subcommittee of the WSDA technical Work Group July 25, 2007 Table of Contents 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .. 4 BIODIESEL AND Renewable Diesel 8 Renewable Diesel TECHNOLOGIES .. 8 THERMAL 8 Co-processing with 8 Bio-only Hydrotreating .. 10 BIOMASS-TO-LIQUID (BTL) .. 11 PYROLYSIS/RAPID THERMAL 13 REGISTRATION AND STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT .. 13 EPA 13 ASTM STANDARD 14 NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON WEIGHTS AND 15 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DEFINITIONS OF Renewable Diesel .. 15 DEPARTMENT OF 15 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 15 INTERNAL REVENUE 16 17 Tables Table 1. Summary of Renewable Diesel Technologies .. 5 Table 2. Comparative fuel Specifications for ConocoPhillips Renewable Diesel 9 Table 3. Summary of Emission Comparisons for Various Blends of NExBTL with Two Base Petro- Diesel Fuels on Light-Duty Diesel 10 2 Introduction Over the past year, questions have been raised by members of the Executive Branch and the Legislature regarding non-ester Renewable Diesel or Renewable Diesel .

2 This product is a petroleum Diesel fuel substitute that is distinctly different than biodiesel and, with regard to the Washington State Renewable fuel Standard, is not encompassed by the definition of biodiesel in current Washington state law. The Renewable Diesel Subcommittee of the WSDA Biofuels technical Workgroup was created to review and summarize the technical information regarding Renewable Diesel . As part of this effort, the Subcommittee has attempted to: identify a working definition for Renewable Diesel , address technical issues pertaining to production technologies, describe the feedstock utilized by each Technology , delineate potential fuel registration and standard development processes, and summarize available fuel emissions, life-cycle information, and toxicity and biodegradability data. The Subcommittee attempted to provide the best available and most up to date information.

3 Because some of the processes used to produce the fuel have been developed by and are under the control of private industries, some information is not yet publicly available. The Subcommittee has purposely refrained from entering into the public policy debate regarding this fuel and has made no recommendations regarding actions. At the same time, we have attempted to address those technical issues that may impact potential public policy. This topic, due to both ongoing technical advancement and public policy debate, is in a state of continual development. In the technical arena, ongoing research and process development will likely have an impact on the potential feedstocks for and future sources of Renewable Diesel fuel . In addition, considerable discussion is currently taking place on the national stage regarding Renewable Diesel , especially in regard to an April 2007 ruling by the Internal Revenue Service that expanded the definition of Renewable Diesel in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

4 The IRS ruling appears to allow fuel produced by multiple processes to qualify for the one-dollar per gallon tax credit. Legislation has been introduced in the current congressional session to clarify what fuels are eligible for the tax credit. We note this as a reminder that the contents of the current paper are a review of the topic at one point in time and any use of its contents should be supplemented with information that might have arisen or become available since the date of this submission. Mark Brady, Puget Sound Clean Cities Coalition Todd Ellis, Imperium Renewables Ken Kimura, BP John Kim Lyons, Washington State University Extension Energy Program H. Daniel Sinks, ConocoPhillips Jeffrey R. Stephens, Washington Biodiesel 3 4 Executive Summary The State of Washington has recently adopted a Renewable fuel Standard. Beginning on December 1st, 2008, 2% of the Diesel fuel sold in the State by volume will be biodiesel.

5 If certain criteria are satisfied, the required percentage of biodiesel sold in the state would be increased to 5%. The State has defined biodiesel as the monoalkyl esters of long chain fatty acids .. Questions have arisen regarding the suitability and applicability of other Diesel fuel substitutes that do not meet this definition. We define here Renewable Diesel as any of several potential Diesel fuel substitutes, produced from Renewable feedstocks, that chemically are not esters and thus are distinct from biodiesel. The following points regarding Renewable Diesel alternatives can be ascertained from this report. Several technologies, some in early stages of commercialization, some still in the pre-commercialization stage, produce Diesel substitutes from a variety of Renewable plant and/or animal feedstocks. Preliminary performance and emissions testing has been performed on these Renewable Diesel fuels and, in general, show favorable results.

6 Independent toxicity and biodegradability data, however, are not generally available. Only one of the products has been registered by the EPA as a fuel or fuel additive, a specific requirement prior to introduction as a commercial product. Additional products will likely be introduced as developing technologies are commercialized. The timeline for deployment of these technologies in the is open ended. One company is already producing a bio-oil in the while several other companies have made announcements of their intentions to produce a Renewable Diesel in the Changing World Technologies is currently producing a Renewable fuel oil substitute at their commercial scale pilot facility in Missouri, with a stated capacity of 10 million gallons/year. Conoco-Philips, in a partnership with Tyson Foods, announced that it would begin production of Renewable Diesel fuel in the in 2007, with the stated objective of producing up to 175 million gallons of fuel by 2009.

7 Recently, Dynamic Fuels LLC, a joint venture between Tyson Foods and Syntroleum, announced their intention to build a 75 million gallon per year Renewable Diesel facility with production commencement targeted for 2010. While other commercial entities have stated an interest in deploying Technology in the , no other formal announcements have been made. Table 1 below, provides a summary of the technologies, companies, and important issues, regarding Renewable Diesel . Table 1. Summary of Renewable Diesel Technologies Technology Feedstock Product Commercial Entity Commercial Status Outstanding Commercial Issues Animal fats/vegetable oils co-processed with petroleum Diesel Hydrocarbon mixture meets ASTM D975 ConocoPhillips/ Tyson Ireland refinery producing since Dec. 2006. Announced production to begin in 2007 175 million gals/yr expected by 2009. EPA Registration Toxicity and biodegradability testing Animal fats/vegetable oils co-processed with petroleum Diesel Hydrocarbon mixture Meets national fuel quality standards in Australia BP Australian refinery producing 5% Renewable blend.

8 EPA Registration Toxicity and biodegradability testing Animal fats/ vegetable oils Hydrocarbon mixture meets ASTM D975 Neste Oil First plant (58 MGPY) opened in Finland in May 2007. Two other EU plants in planning. EPA Registration Toxicity and biodegradability testing Marketplace use blend ratio, cetane enhancer, etc. Animal fats/ vegetable oils Hydrocarbon mixture Petrobras (Brasil, H-Bio Technology ) Commercial production to begin at several refineries in Brasil by the end of 2007. Hydrotreating Animal fats Hydrocarbon mixture Dynamic Fuels (Syntroleum/Tyson) Commercial pilot to start construction in 2008, production in 2010. Standards Development EPA Registration Economics 5 GHG life-cycle analysis Toxicity and biodegradability testing Vegetable oils Hydrocarbon mixture ENI (UOP Technology ) Plant to be constructed in Italy, 95 million gals/yr production in 2009.

9 Cellulosic biomass Hydrocarbon mixture JV with Choren/Daimler-Chrysler/VW Pilot plant ( MGPY) to open in late 2007. Standards Development EPA Registration Economics GHG life-cycle analysis Toxicity and biodegradability testing Cellulosic biomass Hydrocarbon mixture Neste Oil/Stora Enso Pre-commercialization Standards Development EPA Registration Economics GHG life-cycle analysis Toxicity and biodegradability testing Biomass-to-liquid (via gasification/ Fischer-Tropsch) Cellulosic biomass Hydrocarbon mixture Syntroleum Pre-commercialization Standards Development EPA Registration Economics GHG life-cycle analysis 67 Toxicity and biodegradability testing Cellulosic biomass, municipal or industrial solid waste Hydrocarbon mixture In Research Stage In Research Stage Standards Development EPA Registration Economics GHG life-cycle analysis Toxicity and biodegradability testing Pyrolysis-Rapid Thermal Processing Slaughterhouse waste, other carbon-containing solid waste Hydrocarbon mixture meets ASTM D 396, can be refined to ASTM D975 Changing World Technologies Commercial-scale pilot plant in Missouri is producing ~250,000 gallons/mo of fuel from slaughterhouse waste.

10 1. Marketplace use heating fuel , refining to transportation fuel . ASTM D396 Standard Specification for fuel Oils ASTM D975 Standard Specification for Diesel fuel Oils Biodiesel and Renewable Diesel Definitions While there is considerable discussion about Renewable Diesel , there is no universally accepted definition or technical standard that exists for this emerging fuel . There are multiple technologies that produce a product that has been called Renewable Diesel fuel . While some of these technologies are in commercial production, others are still in the research and development phase, years away from producing commercially available product. The different technologies use widely different feedstocks, including wood biomass, slaughterhouse waste, tallow, and recycled or virgin vegetable oil. One commonality of these fuels is that they are not biodiesel, which is defined in Washington State law as the monoalkyl esters of long chain fatty acids derived from plant or animal matter that meet the registration requirements for fuels and fuel additives established by the federal environmental protection agency and standards established by the American society of testing and materials.