University of Twente develops simple catalyst for biomass-based oil

In the Netherlands, oil produced from biomass — such as wood chips or plant residues — seldom has the same quality and energy content as ‘classical’ crude oil. A new, simple catalyst, developed at the University of Twente, improves the quality of this oil before it is even transported to the refinery. This technology was selected from dozens of projects for the follow-up of CATCHBIO, the national research programme that is helping to realize the European 2020 objective: 20% of fuel must come from renewable sources by 2020.