Butanol fuel

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about Butanol from biomass used as a platform chemical and fuel. For other alcohols used as fuels, see Alcohol fuel.

Butanol, a C-4 hydrocarbon is a promising bio-derived fuel, which shares many properties with gasoline.

drop-in fuel and thus works in vehicles designed for use with gasoline without modification.[1]
Both
n-butanol and isobutanol have been studied as possible fuels. Both can be produced from biomass (as "biobutanol"[2][3][4] ) as well as from fossil fuels (as "petrobutanol"[5]). The chemical properties depend on the isomer
(n-butanol or isobutanol), not on the production method.


Genetically modified organisms

Obtaining higher yields of butanol involves manipulation of the metabolic networks using

fermentation pathways for producing butanol remain inefficient. Titer and yields are low and separation is very expensive. As such, microbial production of butanol is not cost-competitive relative to petroleum-derived butanol.[8]

Although unproven commercially, combining electrochemical and microbial production methods may offer a way to produce butanol from sustainable sources.[9]

Escherichia coli

Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium. E. coli is the microorganism most likely to move on to commercial production of isobutanol.[10] In its engineered form, E. coli produces the highest yields of isobutanol of any microorganism.[citation needed] Methods such as elementary mode analysis have been used to improve the metabolic efficiency of E. coli so that larger quantities of isobutanol may be produced.[11]
E. coli is an ideal isobutanol bio-synthesizer for several reasons:

The primary drawback of E. coli is that it is susceptible to

bacteriophages when being grown. This susceptibility could potentially shut down entire bioreactors.[10] Furthermore, the native reaction pathway for isobutanol in E. coli functions optimally at a limited concentration of isobutanol in the cell. To minimize the sensitivity of E. coli in high concentrations, mutants of the enzymes involved in synthesis can be generated by random mutagenesis. By chance, some mutants may prove to be more tolerant of isobutanol which will enhance the overall yield of the synthesis.[13]

Clostridia

n-Butanol can be produced by

stalks.[14] According to DuPont, existing bioethanol plants can cost-effectively be retrofitted to biobutanol production.[15] Additionally, butanol production from biomass and agricultural byproducts could be more efficient (i.e. unit engine motive power delivered per unit solar energy consumed) than ethanol or methanol production.[16]

A strain of Clostridium can convert nearly any form of cellulose into butanol even in the presence of oxygen.[17]

A strain of Clostridium cellulolyticum, a native cellulose-degrading microbe, affords isobutanol directly from cellulose.[18]

A combination of

4-hydroxybutyrate, which is then metabolized further to crotonyl-coenzyme A (CoA). Crotonyl-CoA is then converted to butyrate. The genes corresponding to these butanol production pathways from Clostridium were cloned to E. coli.[19]

Cyanobacteria

aldehydes.[21]
Isobutanol-producing species of cyanobacteria offer several advantages as biofuel synthesizers:

The primary drawbacks of cyanobacteria are:

  • They are sensitive to environmental conditions when being grown. Cyanobacteria suffer greatly from sunlight of inappropriate wavelength and intensity, CO2 of inappropriate concentration, or H2O of inappropriate salinity, though a wealth of cyanobacteria are able to grow in brackish and marine waters. These factors are generally hard to control, and present a major obstacle in cyanobacterial production of isobutanol.[24]
  • Cyanobacteria
    bioreactors require high energy to operate. Cultures require constant mixing, and the harvesting of biosynthetic products is energy-intensive. This reduces the efficiency of isobutanol production via cyanobacteria.[24]

Cyanobacteria can be re-engineered to increase their butanol production, showing the importance of ATP and cofactor driving forces as a design principle in pathway engineering. Many organisms have the capacity to produce butanol utilizing an acetyl-CoA dependent pathway. The main problem with this pathway is the first reaction involving the condensation of two acetyl-CoA molecules to acetoacetyl-CoA. This reaction is thermodynamically unfavorable due to the positive Gibbs free energy associated with it (dG = 6.8 kcal/mol).[25][26]

Bacillus subtilis

gram-positive rod-shaped bacteria. Bacillus subtilis offers many of the same advantages and disadvantages of E. coli, but it is less prominently used and does not produce isobutanol in quantities as large as E. coli.[10] Similar to E. coli, B. subtilis is capable of producing isobutanol from lignocellulose, and is easily manipulated by common genetic techniques.[10] Elementary mode analysis has also been used to improve the isobutanol-synthesis metabolic pathway used by B. subtilis, leading to higher yields of isobutanol being produced.[27]

Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Saccharomyces cerevisiae, or S. cerevisiae, is a species of yeast. It naturally produces isobutanol in small quantities via its valine biosynthetic pathway.[28] S. cerevisiae is an ideal candidate for isobutanol biofuel production for several reasons:

  • S. cerevisiae can be grown at low pH levels, helping prevent contamination during growth in industrial bioreactors.[10]
  • S. cerevisiae cannot be affected by bacteriophages because it is a eukaryote.[10]
  • Extensive scientific knowledge about S. cerevisiae and its biology already exists.[10]

Overexpression of the enzymes in the valine biosynthetic pathway of S. cerevisiae has been used to improve isobutanol yields.[28][29][30]
S. cerevisiae, however, has proved difficult to work with because of its inherent biology:

Ralstonia eutropha

Cupriavidus necator (=Ralstonia eutropha) is a Gram-negative soil bacterium of the class Betaproteobacteria. It is capable of indirectly converting electrical energy into isobutanol. This conversion is completed in several steps:[31]

Feedstocks

High cost of raw material is considered as one of the main obstacles to commercial production of butanols. Using inexpensive and abundant feedstocks, e.g., corn stover, could enhance the process economic viability.[32]

food vs fuel debate). Glycerol is a good alternative source for butanol production. While glucose sources are valuable and limited, glycerol is abundant and has a low market price because it is a waste product of biodiesel production. Butanol production from glycerol is economically viable using metabolic pathways that exist in the bacterium Clostridium pasteurianum.[33]

Improving efficiency

A process called cloud point separation could allow the recovery of butanol with high efficiency.[34]

Producers and distribution

DuPont and BP plan to make biobutanol the first product of their joint effort to develop, produce, and market next-generation biofuels.[35] In Europe the Swiss company Butalco[36] is developing genetically modified yeasts for the production of biobutanol from cellulosic materials. Gourmet Butanol, a United States-based company, is developing a process that utilizes fungi to convert organic waste into biobutanol.[37][38] Celtic Renewables makes biobutanol from waste that results from the production of whisky, and low-grade potatoes.

Properties of common fuels

Isobutanol

Isobutanol is a second-generation biofuel with several qualities that resolve issues presented by ethanol.[10]

Isobutanol's properties make it an attractive biofuel:

  • relatively high energy density, 98% of that of gasoline.[39]
  • does not readily absorb water from air, preventing the corrosion of engines and pipelines.[10]
  • can be mixed at any proportion with gasoline,[40] meaning the fuel can "drop into" the existing petroleum infrastructure as a replacement fuel or major additive.[10]
  • can be produced from plant matter not connected to food supplies, preventing a fuel-price/food-price relationship.[10][11][12][27]
  • assuming that it is produced from residual lignocellulosic feedstocks, blending isobutanol with gasoline may reduce GHG emissions considerably.[41]

n-Butanol

Butanol better tolerates water contamination and is less corrosive than ethanol and more suitable for distribution through existing

pipelines for gasoline.[15] In blends with diesel or gasoline, butanol is less likely to separate from this fuel than ethanol if the fuel is contaminated with water.[15] There is also a vapor pressure co-blend synergy with butanol and gasoline containing ethanol, which facilitates ethanol blending. This facilitates storage and distribution of blended fuels.[15][42][43]

Fuel Energy
density
ratio
 Specific
energy
vaporization
 RON MON AKI
Gasoline and biogasoline 32 MJ/L 14.7 2.9 MJ/kg air 0.36 MJ/kg   91–99   81–89   87-95
Butanol fuel 29.2 MJ/L 11.1 3.6 MJ/kg air 0.43 MJ/kg   96   78   87
Anhydrous Ethanol fuel 19.6 MJ/L   9.0 3.0 MJ/kg air 0.92 MJ/kg 107   89   98
Methanol fuel 16 MJ/L   6.4 3.1 MJ/kg air 1.2 MJ/kg 106   92   99

The

t-Butanol is used as an additive in gasoline but cannot be used as a fuel in its pure form because its relatively high melting point of 25.5 °C (79 °F) causes it to gel and solidify near room temperature. On the other hand, isobutanol has a lower melting point than n-butanol and favorable RON of 113 and MON of 94, and is thus much better suited to high fraction gasoline blends, blends with n-butanol, or as a standalone fuel.[46]

A fuel with a higher octane rating is less prone to

knocking (extremely rapid and spontaneous combustion by compression) and the control system of any modern car engine can take advantage of this by adjusting the ignition timing. This will improve energy efficiency
, leading to a better fuel economy than the comparisons of energy content different fuels indicate. By increasing the compression ratio, further gains in fuel economy, power and torque can be achieved. Conversely, a fuel with lower octane rating is more prone to knocking and will lower efficiency. Knocking can also cause engine damage. Engines designed to run on 87 octane will not have any additional power/fuel economy from being operated with higher octane fuel.

Butanol characteristics: air-fuel ratio, specific energy, viscosity, specific heat

Alcohol fuels, including butanol and ethanol, are partially oxidized and therefore need to run at richer mixtures than gasoline. Standard gasoline engines in cars can adjust the air-fuel ratio to accommodate variations in the fuel, but only within certain limits depending on model. If the limit is exceeded by running the engine on pure ethanol or a gasoline blend with a high percentage of ethanol, the engine will run lean, something which can critically damage components. Compared to ethanol, butanol can be mixed in higher ratios with gasoline for use in existing cars without the need for retrofit as the air-fuel ratio and energy content are closer to that of gasoline.[42][43]

Alcohol fuels have less energy per unit weight and unit volume than gasoline. To make it possible to compare the net energy released per cycle a measure called the fuels specific energy is sometimes used. It is defined as the energy released per air fuel ratio. The net energy released per cycle is higher for butanol than ethanol or methanol and about 10% higher than for gasoline.[47]

Substance Kinematic
viscosity
at 20 °C
Butanol 3.64 cSt
Diesel >3 cSt
Ethanol 1.52 cSt
Water 1.0 cSt
Methanol 0.64 cSt
Gasoline 0.4–0.8 cSt

The viscosity of alcohols increase with longer carbon chains. For this reason, butanol is used as an alternative to shorter alcohols when a more viscous solvent is desired. The kinematic viscosity of butanol is several times higher than that of gasoline and about as viscous as high quality diesel fuel.[48]

The fuel in an engine has to be vaporized before it will burn. Insufficient vaporization is a known problem with alcohol fuels during cold starts in cold weather. As the heat of vaporization of butanol is less than half of that of ethanol, an engine running on butanol should be easier to start in cold weather than one running on ethanol or methanol.[42]

Butanol fuel mixtures

Standards for the blending of ethanol and methanol in gasoline exist in many countries, including the EU, the US, and Brazil. Approximate equivalent butanol blends can be calculated from the relations between the

stoichiometric fuel-air ratio of butanol, ethanol and gasoline. Common ethanol fuel mixtures for fuel sold as gasoline currently range from 5% to 10%. It is estimated that around 9.5 gigaliter (Gl) of gasoline can be saved and about 64.6 Gl of butanol-gasoline blend 16% (Bu16) can potentially be produced from corn residues in the US, which is equivalent to 11.8% of total domestic gasoline consumption.[32]

Consumer acceptance may be limited due to the potentially offensive

fossil fuels. Because its longer hydrocarbon chain causes it to be fairly non-polar
, it is more similar to gasoline than it is to ethanol. Butanol has been demonstrated to work in vehicles designed for use with gasoline without modification.

Butanol in vehicles

Currently no production vehicle is known to be approved by the manufacturer for use with 100% butanol. As of early 2009, only a few vehicles are approved for even using E85 fuel (i.e. 85% ethanol + 15% gasoline) in the USA. However, in Brazil all vehicle manufacturers (Fiat, Ford, VW, GM, Toyota, Honda, Peugeot, Citroen and others) produce "flex-fuel" vehicles that can run on 100% Gasoline and or any mix of ethanol and gasoline up to 85% ethanol (E85). These flex fuel cars represent 90% of the sales of personal vehicles in Brazil, in 2009. BP and DuPont, engaged in a joint venture to produce and promote butanol fuel, claim[15] that "biobutanol can be blended up to 10%v/v in European gasoline and 11.5%v/v in US gasoline".[50][51] In the 2009 Petit Le Mans race, the No. 16 Lola B09/86 - Mazda MZR-R of Dyson Racing ran on a mixture of biobutanol and ethanol developed by team technology partner BP.

See also

References

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External links

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