Nova Scotia iHub intends to attract proposals to construct a biorefinery

By -


Nova Scotia, one of the four provinces which form Atlantic Canada, is aware that the emerging global bioeconomy represents an opportunity for its renewable bioresource sector that is formed by several subsectors (forest, agricultural, ocean and municipal solid waste). The first one of them is undergoing an unprecedented period of structural change in Canada. A new industry is raising to make sustainable use of wood, but the right actions must be taken to nurture and support successful transformation. In that context, stakeholders in the energy, forest research and economic development sectors have joined with the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources (NSDNR) to create the Nova Scotia Innovation Hub (iHub).

iHub is primary aimed to attract proponents interested in constructing a biorefinery in the province. To this end, FPInnovations and BioApplied have been mandated to provide NSDNR and other stakeholders with factual information on feedstocks, market access and financial opportunities that could benefit the province’s bioresource sector. Seven projects (Governance, Feedstocks, Biofuels, Industrial and Technological Benefits, Supply Chain, Modelling, Operations and Outreach) were undertaken in the first year to assess Nova Scotia’s current value proposition to potential proponents and to identify strategies to improve competitiveness. The results have been set up in this easy-to-read report: “Value Proposition for a Biorefinery Sector in Nova Scotia” (18/01/2017).

Figure 1. Cover photo of the report “Value Proposition for a Biorefinery Sector in Nova Scotia”

I would just like to highlight some interesting points about the results of the projects Feedstocks and Biofuels.

Feedstocks
  • Seven potential sites for establishing a biorefinery were identified across the province.
  • Each of the seven sites would have more than sufficient volumes of feedstock available to supply a commercial biorefinery. The Ensyn plant under construction in Quebec was taken as one of the references for this analysis (see previous post about this project).
  • Current and future prospects of supporting a biorefinery investment will be impacted by provincial policy planning and developments in the private sector. For example, there are 510,000 dry tons per year of harvest residues that could be sustainably recovered if forest management policy would allow for it and proper contractor infrastructure was in place.
  • The feedstock is available at a price comparable to neighboring jurisdictions.
Biobased Fuels
  • This project assessed the size of the local market for petroleum fuels and the existing supply chain for opportunities to introduce a new liquid biofuel (biodiesel).
  • 4 billion liters of petroleum fuel is consumed in Nova Scotia annually, 720 million liters of which is in the marine and heating fuel markets. If Nova Scotia were to introduce a 5% mandate for biodiesel, the result would be the de-risking of a significant portion of a future commercial biorefinery’s output.
  • The report emphasizes the importance of policy, prices, technology and local market opportunities.

Popular Posts

Biofuels from algae

By -
Image
In my opinion, the production of biofuels and biobased chemicals from algae is one of the most fascinating topics in the sector of the biorefineries and it will be one of the niches of opportunity with highest potential in the medium and the long terms. This post pretend to be a very basic approach to the topic Algae-to-Biofuels through three general key points. Algae 1,2,3,4,5 Algae include a wide variety of photosynthetic organisms capable of transforming light, water and specific nutrients into products that can be used with commercial and industrial purposes. We can say that algae are sunlight-driven factories with potential to convert CO 2 into biofuels, high-value biochemical, food and feed. There are four algae cultivation technologies currently in use for commercial algae cultivation and proposed for algal biofuel production: extensive or open ponds, intensive or raceway ponds, closed photobioreactors in many designs and closed fermenter systems. Algal biof
Read more

Hidrotratamiento (HVO) – Conceptos, materias primas y especificaciones

By -
Image
English version Sección: BIOCOMBUSTIBLES AVANZADOS Serie: HVO - Hidrotratamiento (HVO) – Conceptos, materias primas y especificaciones - Hidrotratamiento(HVO) – Ventajas sobre el biodiesel convencional y propiedades - Biorrefinerías de Aceites Vegetales Hidrotatados (HVO) – El auge del diésel renovable - Entradas: HVO                El acrónimo HVO significa en inglés “ Hydrotreated Vegetable Oils ” (“Aceites Vegetales Hidrotratados”) o ” Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils ” (“Aceites Vegetales Hidrogenados”). Clave del proceso: Tratamiento con hidrógeno. En el proceso de producción de HVO, el hidrógeno se usa para eliminar el oxígeno de los triglicéridos produciendo una mezcla de parafinas lineales, CO 2 y agua. Posteriormente, el producto de la primera etapa se isomeriza, siempre en presencia de hidrógeno, para ramificar las cadenas lineales con el propósito de mejorar las propiedades de flujo en frío de los productos finales. Por tanto, los HVO son
Read more

Biorrefinerías de ácido levulínico

By -
Image
Fecha de publicación: 16/11/2015 Última actualización: 20/02/2016 Descripción 1,2 El ácido levulínico (también conocido como ácido 4-oxopentanoico o ácido γ-cetovalérico) es un compuesto orgánico con fórmula química C 5 H 8 O 3 . Es un sólido cristalino soluble en agua y en disolventes orgánicos polares. Contiene un grupo cetona y un grupo carboxilo cuya presencia posibilita patrones reactivos interesantes. Es uno de los “ Biobased Chemical Building Blocks ” más reconocidos, precursor de un amplio número de compuestos (véase el apartado Aplicaciones más abajo). De hecho, fue reconocido por el DoE como una de las principales moléculas plataforma del futuro y puede cubrir de manera eficaz muchas de las atribuciones de productos químicos y materiales procedentes del petróleo. Tecnologías de proceso 1,3,4,5 La degradación controlada de azúcares C6 mediante ácidos es el proceso más usado para preparar ácido levulínico a partir de biomasa lignocelulósica. Se han estu
Read more

Etanol celulósico – Lo básico: Conceptos y materias primas

By -
Image
English version Sección: BIOCOMBUSTIBLES AVANZADOS Serie: Etanol celulósico - Lo básico: Concepto y materias primas - Lo básico: Ruta de conversión –Bioquímica - Lo básico: Ruta de conversión –Termoquímica - Cellulosic ethanol biorefineries at commercial scale Entradas: ETANOL CELULÓSICO 1. Conceptos generales El etanol (también conocido como alcohol etílico, alcohol para beber o simplemente alcohol) es un líquido volátil, inflamable e incoloro con la fórmula molecular C 2 H 6 O (también se puede escribir como CH 3 CH 2 OH y C 2 H 5 OH) y a menudo se abrevia como EtOH. La Asociación Europea de Etanol Renovable (ePURE) afirma que el mercado del etanol se puede dividir en tres segmentos: (1) Combustible : etanol utilizado como aditivo en la gasolina o como combustible alternativo. (2) Potable : etanol utilizado para producir bebidas espirituosas, como aditivo alimentario, para la extracción de aromas, para la conservación de alimentos y
Read more

FDCA (2,5-furandicarboxylic acid) biorefineries

By -
Image
Publication date: 15/06/2017 Last update: 24/01/2018 Introduction 1,2,3,4,5 2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), also known as dehydromucic acid and pyromucic acid, is an organic compound that was first detected in human urine. In fact, a healthy human produces 3-5 mg/day. It is a very stable compound. Some of its physical properties, such as insolubility in most of common solvents and a very high melting point (it melts at 342 °C), seem to indicate intermolecular hydrogen bonding. FDCA has two carboxylic acid groups, which makes it a suitable monomer for polycondensation reactions with diols or diamines. It is one of the top 12 value-added biobased chemicals listed by the US DoE in 2004. The list was updated in 2010 and FDCA was included again, but this time in a group together with furfural and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF). Those three molecules are the main representatives of the furanics (furan derivatives) that has been referred to as “Sleeping Giants” beca
Read more