Altranex and Minnesota Soybean Processors sign an agreement to build a biorefinery
Minnesota
Soybean Processors (MnSP) is a farmer owned cooperative with more than
2,350 members. It operates a soybean crush facility (3,300 ton per day) and a biodiesel
refinery (30 million gallons per year) in Brewster (Minnesota). Its mission is
to provide the maximum value-added return to its members by using the latest soybean
processing technologies. For that matter, MnSP has recently invested in Altranex Corporation and entered into a
license and marketing agreement to build a biorefinery to produce renewable
lubricant base oils, waxes, diesel and other products (Altranex press
release). Thus, it will diversify its production finding new uses for its
soybean crude oil.
Altranex is a developer and marketer of biobased
chemical manufacturing processes and products including renewable lubricating
base oil (Altra-BASE™),
fuels (Altra-DZL™)
and chemicals for the polymers industry. The biorefinery will utilize
Altranex’s patented process (US
8961775 B2) using soybean oil as the feedstock.
Figure 1. Processes developed by Altranex (extracted from US
8961775 B2)
In the process, the plant oils are hydrolyzed
to fatty acids that are, subsequently, subjected to the Kolbe reaction (electrochemical
decarboxylation) to synthesize hydrocarbons. According to the patent, those
hydrocarbons can be subjected to the following sequences:
- Olefin metathesis → Separation (Figure 1A): Hydrocarbons suitable for diesel fuel and heavy fuel oil / Shorter linear alpha olefins that can be used as a kerosene fuel or precursors for advanced polymers, detergents and other fine chemicals.
- Separation → Hydroisomerization (Figure 1B): Hydrocarbons useful as lubricant base oil.
