SBIR-STTR Award

Environmental Fuel Research, LLC, proposes to commercialize a grease trap waste to biofuel process based on process research from Drexel University. Grease trap waste is dirty and low-value material produced by the food service industry that is high in lipids that can be converted to biodiesel. The quantity of grease trap waste in the United States could produce one-half billion gallons of biodiesel, which is approximately one-half the current domestic biodiesel capacity and ten times the potential production from waste fryer oil. Grease-to-biodiesel processes benefit grease collectors through reduced disposal costs and consumers through improved environmental impacts. However, there are several challenges to converting grease trap waste to biodiesel that have thwarted attempts at commercialization. Grease trap waste composition varies widely between 2 to 30 percent lipids, and the energetic costs of separating small amounts of brown grease lipids from wastewater can be prohibitive; this project includes a longitudinal study to document the variability in lipid content and research into low-energy lipid concentration methods. Brown grease contains highly degraded oils and fats that are 50 to 100 percent free fatty acids, which are difficult to convert to biodiesel; a bubble column reactor developed at Drexel is robust for converting free fatty acids to biodiesel even in the presence of impurities and water. Brown grease, and crude biodiesel produced from brown grease, contains sulfur far in excess of the specifications for biodiesel; collaborating researchers at Drexel and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are actively researching wiped-film evaporation and other purification techniques that have demonstrated significant reductions in sulfur content. The prior research by the project team and collaborators is promising. This SBIR Phase l project will address the uncertainties that are critical to commercial feasibility and environmental impacts through several research objectives: (1) demonstrate production of ASTM-quality biodiesel from grease trap waste; (2) conduct a longitudinal study of grease trap waste composition; (3) revise techno-economic and life cycle models to evaluate economic feasibility and environmental impacts; and (4) prepare a detailed commercialization plan to enable scale up in a subsequent Phase II project. Environmental Fuel Research, LLC, is focused on sustainable fuel solutions for the future; it is a woman-owned start-up headquartered in a HUB Zone, demonstrating the company's commitment to diversity. Environmental Fuel Research, LLC, has assembled a strong team of academic chemical engineers, process researchers, biodiesel practitioners and analytical chemists with the right set of skills to achieve the aims of this project. Supplemental

Keywords:
Biofuel, biodiesel, grease trap waste, lipids

Environmental Fuel Research, LLC (EFR-LLC), has demonstrated the technical feasibility of separating fats, oils, and greases (FOG) from grease trap waste (GTW) and converting FOG to biodiesel that can meet ASTM specifications. GTW is a dirty and low-value waste from the food service industry that is high in FOG and currently is treated as a liability. The EFR-LLC process uses a bubble column reactor with acid catalysts that simultaneously react FOG to crude biodiesel, remove by-product water, and facilitate reduction in sulfur content. With bubble column reactor technology proven, the peripheral pre- and-post conversion technologies now need adequate testing as proposed in this Phase II SBIR project. For the Phase II project, EFR-LLC proposes to partner with the Delaware County Regional Water Quality Control Authority (DELCORA) – a local wastewater treatment facility. DELCORA operates a grease receiving and grease concentration process that removes trash and partially dewaters GTW prior to incineration. Because DELCORA receives GTW from most of the regional waste grease collection companies, DELCORA is an ideal partner for process development and a potential customer for a full scale FOG-biodiesel process. The proposed pilot process at DELCORA will separate 50-100 gallons of FOG from 500 gallons of concentrated grease and convert the FOG to biodiesel. The pilot process will be used to evaluate and optimize several stages of the process including the reactor system, pretreatment and purification. Reducing the sulfur content of FOG-biodiesel is recognized by the industry as a critical limitation; Phase I results show that vacuum distillation can reduce sulfur content to meet the 15 PPM ASTM specifications; although optimizing the purification process during Phase II is critical to improving overall yields. The proposed FOG-biodiesel process has several environmental benefits including reducing the amount of GTW that is incinerated or landfilled, reducing the management intensity of waste greases, producing a valuable fuel that can substitute for petroleum-diesel, and reduced life cycle emissions of greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants. The improved environmental performance of the FOG-biodiesel process will be evaluated using operational performance of the pilot process through refinement of the life cycle assessment model developed in the Phase I. At the conclusion of the Phase II process, EFR-LLC will have a design of a full-scale GTW-FOG-biodiesel process that can be sold to potential customers in the grease collection and wastewater management businesses.