The Velocys Inc. microchannel reactor features 900 microchannels-and none of these channels have anything to do with cooking, sports or news. The people of Gussing, Austria, a town known for its pioneering spirit on renewable energy production, are still watching, though. Through a joint venture combining the Velocys reactor technology, a specialized catalyst made by the Oxford Catalyst Group, and the management skills of Portuguese-based SGC Energia, Gussing now has a Fischer Tropsch demonstration facility capable of producing FT biofuel after the partnership began running the plant. Once the biomass gasification plant began operations in 2001, Gussing has remained energy self-sufficient. Jeff McDaniel, business development director for Velocys, says the company&#8217;s decision to locate the facility there was a combination of the city&#8217;s past and the &#8220;enthusiasm of the local technology community.&#8221; 

 
 If performance achievements created by the reactor/catalyst collaboration are an indication, the southern Austrian town&#8217;s populace should be happy. Already, the plant is producing 0.75 kg of FT liquids per liter of catalyst per hour, which correlates to conversion efficiencies in the range of 70 percent per pass, as opposed to typical conversion rates of 50 percent or less per pass, according to Oxford Catalysts. The 70 percent efficiency rate stems from the reactor&#8217;s channel diameters, which are in the millimeter range versus conventional reactor&#8217;s using channel sizes in centimeters. Because of the smaller channels, the reactor is able to dispel heat more quickly, which then allows for the use of more active catalysts. And for active catalysts, the Oxford Catalyst Group has just the thing: the Organic Matrix Combustion OMX catalyst. 
 
 Characterized by crystallites that have a terraced surface to enhance activity, the OMX catalyst also uses a metal salt and organic compound mixture to stabilize the catalyst when it&#8217;s in the reactor. A single reactor block measuring 60x60x60 cm implementing the OMX can produce more than 30 barrels of liquid fuel a day using wood chips from the surrounding area. According to Derek Atkinson, business development director at Oxford Catalysts, the OMX will hold up over time. &#8220;We believe that the unit in Gussing works well and is demonstrating the fact that our designs are robust,&#8221; he says. 
 
 In 2008, Velocys ran a two-gallon per day microchannel demonstration unit for more than 4,000 hours, the results of which showed more than 1,500 kg/m3/h, compared to 100 kg/m3/h for fixed bed reactors and 200 kg/m3/h for slurry bed reactors. The positives of the process seen through the Gussing facility and past tests don&#8217;t just stop at production efficiencies, however. McDaniel says the FT system presents a possible user the ability to &#8220;number up.&#8221; Instead of major structural changes typically needed for expansion, a Velocys reactor, he says, allows a facility to simply add another module (reactor) when scaling up. And, in Gussing, performance is expected to improve even more after the steam superheating section of the plant is debottlenecked. 

 
 Atkinson says the only real obstacle presented by the reactor/catalyst system is making more. &#8220;Given the number of reactors that would be required to expand into other facilities, the biggest barrier to expanding this technology to other facilities is the need to put in place the manufacturing capability to build the reactors,&#8221; he says. For facilities looking to implement a proven process, the partners are working to secure manufacturers for the reactors. Most importantly, Atkinson notes, &#8220;For this technology the catalyst and the reactors will be considered as a single package.&#8221;

The Velocys Inc. microchannel reactor features 900 microchannels-and none of these channels have anything to do with cooking, sports or news. The people of Gussing, Austria, a town known for its pioneering spirit on renewable energy production, are still watching, though.

900 Reasons to Watch

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