Decarbonizing fuels and other chemicals can be achieved by converting stranded methane-rich gas, which is commonly vented or flared, into useful products such as biomethanol or other biofuels. A mobile, transportable gas conditioning and gas-to-liquid platform allows for the conversion of geographically remote, small-pocket feedstocks for biomethanol and biofuel production. Directly converting methane-rich gas into methanol at the source reduces greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) while simultaneously producing a valuable product. Low-carbon biomethanol can be derived from biogas at landfills, wastewater treatment plants, and agricultural digesters. Gas conditioning systems, coupled with a non-catalytic, engine-derived, partial-oxidation reformer, which is tolerant of gas contaminants, enables the mobile gas-to-liquid conversion pathway. The engine reformer converts methane to a syngas intermediate for downstream methanol synthesis, leveraging a highly developed, mass-manufactured engine platform. The downstream methanol synthesis loop leverages mature catalyst technology in a compact, intensified plant design. Production of biomethanol and biofuel using this mobile platform would increase the supply of bio-derived fuels for rapid decarbonization of marine shipping. The development, manufacturing and deployment of modular plants for this pathway will be presented.
