Swedish project aims to produce bio-oil from pulp mill black liquor lignin

July 11, 2013 |

In Sweden, biorefinery R&D project number 100 has now started in the Swedish Processum cluster, aimed at thermochemically converting lignin from black liquor to bio oil. It is run by the Swedish-Norwegian cooperation project “Biorefinery Midscandinavia” and the project partners are Processum Biorefinery Initiative, PFI, Metsä Board Sweden, Viken Skog (a Norwegian forest owner association) and the Bergen University.

Lignin is an aromatic polymer which is released in the pulp mills’ sulphate cooking sequence and ends up in the black liquor, is burnt and transformed into heat energy in the recovery boilers. When pulp mills are run increasingly energy efficient there may be an energy surplus in the form of steam. This energy surplus makes it possible to remove some of the lignin from the process, thus relieving the recovery boiler.

Processum Biorefinery Initiative AB in Sweden was started in 2003 and has developed into a leading biorefinery initiative, both on national and international level. The major part of the activities concerns support and initiation of research and development regarding biotechniques, energy techniques, inorganic and organic chemistry and sustainable raw materials. Together with other biorefinery initiatives along the northern coast of Sweden, Processum and the universities form an important hub for the development of new products, energy solutions and fuels from wood raw material. Processum hosts the growth initiative Biorefinery of the Future.

Category: Fuels

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