Carbofrac®: case stories from a technology provider

Lignocellulosic biomass e.g. wheat straw, corn stover, poplar and sugarcane bagasse are potential sustainable substrates for usage within second generation biofuel industry and chemical production. For feasible biomass utilization a proper pretreatment is necessary in order to gain access to the components, especially the cellulosic sugar. However, different pretreatment strategies are needed for different lignocellulosic biomass. Strategies may vary within temperature, reaction time, additives and concentration of the additives. Furthermore, strategies may also vary with regard to the end product in mind.

BioGasol has specialized in the construction and scaling up of continuous pretreatment equipment for lignocellulose utilization, the Carbofrac® system. The equipment can be tailor made for each strategy needed from a customer perspective with regard to biomass, end product and capacity. Continuous pretreatment equipment for a great variety of purposes requires thorough optimization e.g. by statistical design, followed by scalability and feasibility studies.

This presentation will show cases from the use of a Carbofrac® system for biomass residue utilization and how an efficient pretreatment can impact plant economy.