Novel Processes and Feedstocks for Producing Biofuels Rafael Hernandez, Todd French, Mark Bricka,

1. Novel Processes and Feedstocks for Producing Biofuels Rafael Hernandez, Todd French, Mark Bricka, Andro Mondala, Jacklyn Hall, and Mark White Mississippi State University Sustainable Energy Center

2. Statistics on Soy Biodiesel Production and Feedstock Availability • Soybean oil production 2.75x109 gal in 2006; no significant increase predicted in 2008. • Consumption by the food industry reached 2.32x109 gal in 2006. • Projection of 1.5x109 gal of biodiesel production in 2008 would require 1.65x109 gal of soybean oil. • There is a need to search for other low-cost and abundant feedstock. • Potential to produce oil from existing WWTF: 7x109 gallons US Soybean Oil Production in billion pounds (1981-2006) US Biodiesel Consumption (1999-2006) Source: http://www.soystats.com/2007/Default-frames.htm

3. Wastewater Treatment Facilities: A New Source of Crude WTFs could be modified to generate large quantities of lipids for the Production of Fuels and Chemicals. There is at least a WTF in every State of the Nation Sustainable Energy Center

4. Primary Sludge Headworks Forced Main Influent blending Grit Removal Grit Dewatering & Thickening Primary Clarification Influent Wastewater Biosolids Influent Primary Solids Dewatering Finished Effluent to Discharge Secondary Clarification Aeration Tank Biogas Effluent Thickened Waste Sludge Air Thickening Waste Sludge Recycled Biomass Solids Anaerobic Digestor Sustainable Energy Center

5. State of the Science • Primary and secondary sludge from the Tuscaloosa Wastewater Treatment Facility has been extracted and converted into fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) • Yields of 1 gallon FAMEs/100 lbs of sludge ($3.08/gallon) and 2 gallons of FAMEs/100 lbs of sludge ($2.08/gallon) were obtained for secondary and primary sludge, respectively. An estimated 1 billion gallons of oil could be obtained from conventional WWTF. • Oleaginous microorganisms can accumulate more than 50% of their dry weight in oil. • Secondary sludge oil yield may be increase by a factor of 8 (8 gallons of FAMEs/100 lbs sludge) using these microbes • Wastewater treatment facilities has the potential of generating 7 billions gallons of oil per year

6. Envisioned Process: The New Biorefineries Oleaginous microbes Lignocellulose Sustainable Energy Center

7. Environmentally Sustainable Fuel Production Sustainable Energy Center

8. Tall Oil Industry • By-product of the pulp and paper industry • Producers • Arizona Chemical, Georgia-Pacific, Eastman Chemical, and MeadWestvaco • Products • Specialty chemicals, inks, paper sizing agents, rubber, etc. • Approximately 50 Mgallons of tall oil could be available for biodiesel production Sustainable Energy Center

9. Tall Oil Biodiesel - ASTM D-6751 Sustainable Energy Center

10. Chinese Tallow (Popcorn Tree) Sapium sebiferum Sustainable Energy Center

11. Potential Oil Seed Yields - - - Ref: Klass, Donald, Biomass for Renewable Energy, Fuels, and Chemicals, Academic Press, 1998. Sustainable Energy Center

12. CT Biodiesel Production Potential • 20 Million Gallons • 120,000 Acres of cultivation • Only 10% of Mississippi’s Soybean • Acres for 2002! Sustainable Energy Center

13. Chinese Tallow Distribution in USA Ref: http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/plant_profile.cgi?symbol=TRSE6 Sustainable Energy Center

14. Acknowledgements • US Department of Energy • USEPA-Region 4 • MSDEQ • Hilliard Fletcher Wastewater Treatment Plant, Tuscaloosa AL • Colin Gurtowski – Undergraduate research worker

15. Sustainable Energy Center

16. QUESTIONS?