W2 Energy Begins Development of Biobutanol from Syngas

26 June 2007

W2 Energy Inc., the developer of a GAT (Gliding Arc Tornado) plasma reactor for biomass gasification for power and fuels generation, is working to manufacture biobutanol from the GAT syngas.

A GAT is a non-thermal plasma system that uses a reverse vortex flow (i.e., tornado) to preserve the main advantages of traditional gliding arc systems and overcome their main drawbacks. In contrast to a traditional GA, the GAT system ensures much more uniform gas treatment and has a significantly larger gas residence time in the reactor. Additionally the GAT provides near-perfect thermal insulation from the reactor wall, indicating that the present GAT does not require the reactor wall to be constructed of high-temperature materials.

With a high level of nonequilibrium and a large residence time, the GAT system looks promising for industrial applications including fuel conversion, according to researchers at Drexel University.

W2 says that the Drexel Plasma Institute is a technology partner.

Resources:

• C. S. Kalra, Y. I. Cho, A. Gutsol, A. Fridman, T. S. Rufael, “Gliding arc in tornado using a reverse vortex flow”. Review of Scientific Instruments, 76, 025110 (2005)