ORNL using microbial process to produce hydrogen from biofuel processing wastewater

In Tennessee, “electrical” bacteria are the key ingredient in a new process developed by the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory that recycles wastewater from biofuel production to generate hydrogen. The hydrogen can then be used to convert bio-oil into higher grade liquid fuels such as gasoline or diesel. The team’s lab-scale demonstration can produce 11.7 liters of hydrogen per day at rates that are required for industrial applications. The hydrogen generated from the microbes could displace the need for natural gas, which is used later in the production process to upgrade bio-oil into more desirable drop-in liquid fuels.