Forestry to fuels: Biodiesel via Fischer Tropsch

Both Australia and New Zealand are significant importers of refined petroleum products, adversely affecting their balance of payments, as well as contributing to the carbon emissions of both countries. Wood and forest residues are a potential indigenous source of sustainable diesel, jet fuel, LPGs and naphtha to replace some of those imports. These can be manufactured economically through gasification to synthesis gas followed by conversion to paraffinic hydrocarbons using the Fischer Tropsch reaction. Making diesel domestically from wood would lead to improved balance of payments, increased rural employment and decreased fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions as well as increase fuel security. In this paper we review a plant design for producing these fuels which is available for license from Davy Process Technology (Davy) and BP.