The use of biofuel from plant waste in vehicles can result in greenhouse gas emissions reductions of over 50 per cent when compared with the emissions from traditional fossil fuels.
Licella has developed a process to convert plant material into stable bio-crude oil, which can be refined into fuel for the transport and aviation industries.
The company’s process avoids the usual ‘food versus fuel’ challenge often created by the production of biofuels, as arable land isn’t required to produce the feedstock. The result, says Licella, is a more environmentally-friendly second-generation biofuel.
Planting biofuels
Licella’s business model involves choosing manufacturing locations where waste is aggregated in large quantities, such as at timber and paper mills, and
developing a plant on location.
Relevant waste is converted to bio-crude on the site, before being shipped to a central refinery where it can be converted into a higher quality fuel, such as petrol, diesel or jet fuel.
Over the last three years, Licella’s technology has been tested at a pilot plant in Somersby, New South Wales, where radiata pine sawdust has successfully been converted into bio-crude oil.
With the research and development of this technology now complete, Licella is expanding the application of the technology with the development of a
commercial demonstration plant.
Licella Chief Executive Steve Rogers has told Sustainability and Infrastructure that the new facility will be ten times the scale of the pilot plant. It has been funded in part by a $2.4 million Federal Government grant, provided through the ‘Gen II’ Biofuels Research and Development Program.
The facility will aim to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of the technology on a large commercial scale.
Close to the source
A major issue for biofuel producers is the cost of aggregating and transporting bio-mass. According to Mr Rogers, Licella’s commercial demonstration plant will be located in regional Australia in close proximity to a feedstock source to combat this issue.
“The key benefit of locating Licella’s plant close to the feedstock source is that we will overcome the challenges and costs of aggregating and transporting the feedstock to the plant and subsequently gain a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions,” says Mr Rogers.
“We may also be able to leverage components of existing infrastructure projects, like waste water treatment.”
One of the key benefits of Licella’s bio-crude oil, according to Mr Rogers, is that it can be ‘dropped’ into existing refinery and distribution infrastructure without the need for pre hydro-treatment.
“We don’t have to construct additional refinery capability in order to process our bio-crude oil, nor double up on distribution transportation costs and incur the related carbon dioxide emissions in order to deliver the final fuel products to our end customers.”
Future commercialisation
In collaboration with Enterprise Connect, an initiative by the Federal Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Licella aims to commercialise its biofuels globally within the next three to five years.
“We’re at a stage where we need to go to the next phase of commercialisation and raise funds,” says Mr Rogers. “We need to be questioned and challenged.”
The company has signed a Heads of Agreement with a global bio-feedstock provider. The partnership with the feedstock provider will eventually result in 200,000 tonnes of aggregated feedstock per annum producing 400,000 barrels of bio-crude oil.
The next step, notes Mr Rogers, is to transport the crude to a nearby refinery where it can be converted into higher grade fuels and sold to transportation and aviation stakeholders.
“Get on board with biofuels, or you’ll get left behind,” Mr Rogers says.
