Synthesis Energy Systems Plans Coal-to-Methanol Project in China with Multinational Chemical Company
27 November 2007
Synthesis Energy Systems, Inc. (SES) has executed a project development agreement with a major and as-yet un-named US-based multinational chemical company to perform feasibility studies and devise plans for the potential development of a coal-to-methanol gasification plant in China.
The planned plant would support the company’s existing facilities in China.
The planned plant will use SES’ U-GAS gasifier in the production of syngas from coal. This plant is intended to further refine the syngas into methanol. The capacity of this plant would be similar in size to other SES coal-to-chemical projects currently underway in China. (Earlier post.)
The global methanol market is expanding, especially in China where the demand for methanol as a transportation fuel has grown at a particularly fast pace during the past decade.
—Tim Vail, SES President and CEO
The primary advantage of U-GAS relative to other gasification technologies is its overall low cost, made possible by fuel flexibility, low operational cost, and the technology’s ability to economically scale projects to meet the needs of industrial customers. U-GAS technology produces lower levels of regulated emissions, including sulfur oxides, nitrous oxides and particulates, than conventional coal combustion plants. It also allows for the capture of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide.
The Development Agreement covers a number of project development phases. During phase one, SES will conduct feasibility studies to identify the optimum site for the construction of the proposed plant in order to ensure adequate coal supply, coal and methanol transport costs and the permitting process.
Subject to a successful plant-site designation, SES will conduct additional scoping work that will include further definition of project design, schedules and costs.
Well, Methanol has only 50 % energy of Gasolene.
So it can be mixed upto 10 % as M10 like E10.
Even better is using pure Methanol from a separate tank for short commutes of 50 miles or less. For long distance driving, we can use gasolene from regular tank.
But our vehicle should be designed for this.
Posted by: Max Reid | 27 November 2007 at 01:29 PM
How clean burning is methanol, and how clean and regulated can the coal-> methanol process be?
Posted by: AES | 27 November 2007 at 02:02 PM
In the course of my studies of automotive engineering at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan, I wrote a paper on methanol as an alternative fuel.
As a result of my studies, I'm not enthusiastic about methanol as an automotive fuel. Its very corrosive, it absorbs water readily (thus inviting fraud by dishonest service station operators), has only half the energy content (weight and volume-wise) as gasoline, and is not really all that clean-burning (there is a problem with formaldehyde in the exhaust).
If China is going to go the coal-to-methanol route, perhaps it would be better to find a catalyst that can convert synthesis gas into a mixture of alcohols, i.e. methanol, ethanol, propanol and butanol. This would most likely be a better fuel for spark-ignition engines than straight methanol.
Finally, it should be noted that Indianapolis 500-type racing cars are now running on ethanol rather than methanol. Drivers are pleased with ethanol; they report good performance and also, exhaust from ethanol-fueled cars doesn't sting their eyes as much as when methanol was used.
Posted by: Alex Kovnat | 28 November 2007 at 04:46 AM