I like the idea of mixed alcohols. Methanol has a few good points, but is very corrosive and its hard to start an engine so fueled, at temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, its energy content is only half that of gasoline. Ethanol is somewhat better regarding corrosivity and energy content. Butanol has an energy content almost as good as gasoline.

I wonder if the process described above, should aim for production of isobutanol rather than normal (i.e., straight carbon chain) butanol, for reasons of antiknock (octane) rating improvement.

I strongly encourage Syntec Biofuels to experiment with varying proportions of methanol, ethanol, propanol and butanol to come up with optimum fuels from the standpoint of antiknock rating, energy content, cost, energy economy (both production and end-use), and engine exhaust emissions.

Butanol and propanol should not be used for liquid fuels. These alcohols are necessary for the creation of many different complex chemicals used in just about every industrial application. They are typically petro derived and of very high value (the complex chems). Going to liquid fuels would be a waste of the true potential, petro displacement. Transportation should be electric, biomass to liquids should be reserved for displacing petroleum in ways in which we have no other option

Obviously if Syntec discovers a better market for its biobutanol and biopropanol than biofuels, it will pursue that market. The point is not whether these chemicals are better used as fuels or as high value chemicals. The point is how they are made--sustainably.

If the alcohols (and high value hydrocarbons) can be made sustainably from readily available biomass feedstocks rather than from relatively scarce petroleum, then the market can work out their distribution into the economy.

Hi guys,
I work for Syntec and would just like to clarify and comment on a few things from the above posting.

Alex: Thank you for your comments and I will pass them along to our technical team.

Phronesis: Syntec's motives in developing biobutanol and biopropanol are in fact directed more towards industrial, rather than fuel, applications. While we are not discounting the strong potential of biobutanol as a future biofuel, we recognize that the more immediate value and of these products is in the industrial markets.

I think we'd all like to see a shift in ALL industries & sectors - not just transportation - towards more sustainable and "green" operations. The fact that some pretty major industries are completely dependant on these petro-derived alcohols, is enough reason in my opinion to try and find an alternative production route.

Nobody thinks about how sustainable that coat of paint is on the keyboard their using...we'd like to change that.

Should anyone have any further questions or would like to find out more about what we are doing, please feel free to contact me.

Regards,

Annie Wang
Syntec Biofuel Inc.

Annie,
Thanks for your extra information.

Producing high value industrial solvents will clearly help to make the process profitable.

Can you clarify whether Syntec can influence the proportions of the various alcohols produced or whether the process produces the various alcohols in a fixed ratio?

China is taking Methanol route (extracted from Coal via syngas), US & Brazil have taken Ethanol route (using corn and cane), now the Bio-Propanol and Bio-Butanol is coming up.

So which fuel will evolve, will it be possible to run a vehicle using a mixture of Ethanol and Butanol or a mix of all four.

Or is it better to standardize Methanol as alcohol fuel, since we can get it from Natgas, Coal, Biofuels, etc and mix it with gas like M10, M20, M30, etc.

So many fuels are coming up. Also Methane (CNG) is another fast growing source with 9 million vehicles running on it worldwide.

Kristoff: Yes we can.

For the past few years we have successfully been maximizing our catalysts ethanol outputs, as it is what the current market demands.

However, we can easily adjust the catalyst to produce say significantly higher methanol content, with minimal amounts of ethanol, butanol and propanol in the mix.

Hope this answered your question.

IPA is a major solvent for cleaning.
My firm is trying to recycle the material for
resale into the fuel market.
Is this a bad idea?