Generating hydrogen from biodiesel waste

Researchers at the University of Leeds have a potential solution to the problem of large quantities of low value by-product generated in the synthesis of biodiesel – by turning it into high value hydrogen.

Biodiesel – motor fuel derived from vegetable oils - is currently considered as a renewable alternative to rapidly depleting hydrocarbon fuels for the transport sector. It is biodegradable and non-toxic, and production has increased enormously over the past few years.

However, for every molecule of biodiesel produced, another of low-value crude glycerol is generated. The disposal of such large quantities of glycerol presents a growing economic and environmental problem to producers - and a disincentive to companies looking to enter the market.

Dr Valerie Dupont and her co-investigators in the University’s Faculty of Engineering have developed a novel process that turns glycerol into a hydrogen-rich gas, a high value product in great demand for use in fertilisers, food production and chemical plants. Moreover, hydrogen is itself viewed as a future ‘clean’ replacement for hydrocarbon-based transport fuels, and most countries currently reliant on these fuels are investing heavily in hydrogen development programmes.

Dr Dupont’s process mixes glycerol with steam at controlled temperature and pressure, which separates the different components into hydrogen, water and carbon dioxide, leaving no waste residues. A special absorbent material filters out the carbon dioxide, which leaves a much purer product.

“Hydrogen has been identified as a key future fuel for low carbon energy systems such as power generation in fuel cells and as a transport fuel. Current production methods are expensive and unsustainable, using either increasingly scarce fossil fuel sources such as natural gas, or other less efficient methods such as water electrolysis.”

“Our process is a clean, renewable alternative to conventional methods. It produces something with high value from a low grade waste product for which there are few economical upgrading mechanisms” says Dr Dupont. “In addition, it’s a near ‘carbon-neutral’ process, since the CO2 generated is not derived from the use of fossil fuels.”

Dr Dupont believes the process is easily scalable to industrial production, and, as the race towards the ‘hydrogen economy’ accelerates, could potentially be an economically important, sustainable – and environmentally friendly – way of meeting the growing demand for hydrogen.

Dr Dupont’s research has been funded with a £270k grant from the EPSRC under its Energy programme, and is in collaboration with Professors Yulong Ding and Mojtaba Ghadiri from the Institute of Particle Science and Engineering, and Professor Paul Williams from the Energy and Resources Research Institute at Leeds. Industrial collaborators are Johnson Matthey and D1-Oils.

Source: University of Leeds

Related stories:

Scientists peel away the mystery behind gold's catalytic prowess
Few materials have exercised as much of a hold on the human imagination, or on human history, as has gold. But for all of its popular uses – money, medals, jewelry and more – gold's potential as a catalyst lay hidden until the 1980s, when Masatake Haruta and Graham Hutchings independently discovered that gold, which had long been considered inactive, could be an extraordinarily good catalyst. Haruta demonstrated the low-temperature oxidation of CO and Hutchings the hydrochlorination of acetylene to vinyl chloride.
Scientists Test 'Artificial Upwelling' to Learn More About Complex Ocean Ecosystem Behavior
(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of scientists is studying the complex ocean upwelling process by mimicking nature – pumping cold, nutrient-rich water from deep within the Pacific Ocean and releasing it into surface waters near Hawaii that lack the nitrogen and phosphorous necessary to support high biological production.
Bad sign for global warming: Thawing permafrost holds vast carbon pool
Permafrost blanketing the northern hemisphere contains more than twice the amount of carbon in the atmosphere, making it a potentially mammoth contributor to global climate change depending on how quickly it thaws.
Complex ocean behavior studied with 'artificial upwelling'
A team of scientists is studying the complex ocean upwelling process by mimicking nature – pumping cold, nutrient-rich water from deep within the Pacific Ocean and releasing it into surface waters near Hawaii that lack the nitrogen and phosphorous necessary to support high biological production.
Gustav headed for current that fuels big storms
(AP) -- The difference between a monster and a wimp for Gulf of Mexico hurricanes often comes down to a small patch of warm deep water that's easy to miss. It's called the Loop Current, and hurricane trackers say Gustav is headed right for it, reminiscent of Katrina.
Whether brown or red, algae can produce plenty of green fuel
Having studied the physiology of algae for more than 30 years, Rose Ann Cattolico is convinced the plant life found in oceans and ponds can be a major source of environmentally friendly fuels for everything from cars and lawn mowers to jet airplanes.
Exploding chromosomes fuel research about evolution of genetic storage
Human cells somehow squeeze two meters of double-stranded DNA into the space of a typical chromosome, a package 10,000 times smaller than the volume of genetic material it contains.
Study shows toll roads are more fair than taxes
(PhysOrg.com) -- Popular wisdom may suggest that toll roads are unfair to the poor, but a new joint study by UCLA and USC researchers shows that these pay-as-you-go transportation options may actually be fairer to all income levels than paying for road improvements through sales taxes.

News discussion:

General Science news