News
08-10-2020
TNO brings PYRENA-PYPO pyrolysis equipment to Green Chemistry Campus’ demo facility
There it is! The long-awaited PYRENA-PYPO installation has arrived at Biorizon's headquarters at the Green Chemistry Campus in Bergen op Zoom. With this highly advanced pyrolysis equipment, TNO's Energy Transition Unit will produce samples of bio-aromatics that will be tested in applications such as bitumen, rubber, marine fuels and resins.
Bio-Aromatics: Impactful Green Alternative for Chemical Industry
Shared Research Center Biorizon, an initiative of TNO and VITO, has been co-creating technologies for the production of bio-aromatics at the Green Chemistry Campus in Bergen op Zoom since 2013. Together with industrial partners, Biorizon creates and develops innovative chemical processes for the production of renewable aromatics from residual biomass.
Aromatics are important building blocks for the chemical industry: no less than 40% of chemicals are aromatic, and they bring essential functionalities such as durability and thermal and UV stability to products like plastics, resins and coatings. Bio-aromatics provide new functionalities and an impactful and green alternative for current petrochemical products that are difficult to re-use or recycle, including paints, adhesives and lubricants. Biorizon’s aim is to enable commercial production of bio-aromatic building blocks by 2025.
Biorizon’s Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass to Bio-Aromatics Horizon
TNO’s Energy Transition Unit (former ECN) is responsible for Biorizon’s Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass to Bio-Aromatics Horizon. Starting from lignin or lignin-rich feedstocks, the overarching goal is to thermally depolymerize the material via pyrolysis and recover the pyrolysis vapours in a limited number of fractions that can be deployed as biobased additives for applications such as bitumen, rubber, marine fuels, resins and as feedstock for extracting high-value bio-aromatics.
PYRENA-PYPO: Continuous Pyrolysis Pilot for Biobased Additives & Aromatics
TNO has been developing various in-house technologies, such as FABIOLA for innovative fractionation of lignocellulosic biomass and PYRENA-PYPO, pyrolysis for renewable aromatics with closely coupled pyrolysis product obtention. The PYRENA-PYPO equipment will be installed in the demo facility of the Campus to produce test samples for industrial application. It’s a continuous pyrolysis pilot unit consisting of a 5-10 kg/h (input basis) pyrolyzer, PYRENA, with a closely coupled unit PYPO for fractionated recovery of the pyrolysis vapours. The technology uses an innovative downstream cascade approach to obtain different fractions with high potential for applications regarding biofuels and biobased materials. Furthermore, all the surrounding analytical equipment will be installed to characterize the full process chain, from feedstocks to products.
Contact Information
If you want to discuss the thermochemical conversion of biomass to bio-aromatics, please contact Biorefinery & Upscaling Consultant Biomass & Energy Efficiency Sergio Rios via +31 (0) 61 539 88 41 or sergio.rios@tno.nl.
See also:
TNO’s Energy Transition Unit Joins Biorizon’s HQ at Green Chemistry Campus
TNO’s Energy Transition Unit (former ECN) is joining Shared Research Center Biorizon at the Green Chemistry Campus in Bergen op Zoom, an incubator for the upscaling of sustainable materials and chemicals for the building and packaging industry. At the Campus, TNO will be working on bio-aromatics that can be applied in bitumen, rubber, marine fuels and resins. Now, all 3 horizons (research lines) of Biorizon are being represented at the Campus, that also functions as Biorizon’s headquarters. This further strengthens both Biorizon and the biobased economy in the region.
Biorizon Presents Virtual Reality Model of its Biomass to Bio-aromatics Lab at the Green Chemistry Campus
Biorizon presents a virtual reality model of TNO's biomass to bio-aromatics lab in the demo facility of the Green Chemistry Campus in Bergen op Zoom. By ‘walking through’ the model and by clicking on the hot spots you get detailed information about the continuous flow Diels-Alder skid, condensation skid, biphasic reactor & 20l batch reactor. A unique experience!
ECN brings thermochemical aromatics production to Biorizon
Today TNO, VITO and ECN signed an agreement to collaborate in the Shared Research Center Biorizon, with ECN incorporating its thermochemical research on the production of bio-aromatics within Biorizon. This research center works with industry on the technological development for the production of aromatics from biomass. Aromatics are one of the main building blocks for the chemical industry. By replacing fossil resources with biomass, Biorizon makes a significant contribution to the emergence of a sustainable economy.
Biorizon is powered by
This project is made possible by a contribution from the European
Regional Development Fund (ERDF) within the framework of OP-Zuid.
