Fuels are produced in a number of ways. Fossil fuels, are extracted from the ground by various techniques, ranging from mining for coal, to drilling for oil. They then need to be refined to remove impurities and processed into particular grades of fuel for usage in various applications.
As the competition for fossil-based energy sources increases, in conjunction with a need to reduce carbon emissions and combat Climate Change, non-fossil and particularly renewable fuels are becoming an increasingly important part of our energy mix.
Technologies to produce low-carbon and renewable fuels include:
| Process |
Fuels Produced |
Additional Information |
| Electrolysis |
Hydrogen |
The hydrogen is only renewable if renewable energy powers the electrolyser |
| Anaerobic Digestion |
Biogas | Biogas is a renewable fuel produced by digesting organic materials |
| Hydrogen | Biogas can be Reformed to produce hydrogen |
| Gasification | Synthesis Gas (Syngas) | Biomass (organic materials), and plastics can be gasified to produce Syngas, which is a mixture of Hydrogen and carbon monoxide. Syngas can be used directly in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells and Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells. As there are a lot of organic and plastic materials in waste, gasification enables the conversion of waste into energy. |
| Hydrogen | Pure hydrogen can be separated from syngas by using a palladium membrane. |
| Synthetic Liquid Fuels (Synfuels) | Syngas can be converted into ultra-clean liquid fuels, called synfuels, using the fisher-tropsch (FT) process. These fuels contain no sulphur and are suitable fuels for fuel cells. Solid Oxide Fuel Cells can use FT Fuels directly, and FT fuels can also be reformed to produce pure hydrogen for use in PEM and Alkaline Fuel Cells. |
| Fermentation |
Ethanol |
Ethanol is a light hydrocarbon fuel which can be used directly in combustion engines and high temperature fuel cells. It can also be reformed to produce Hydrogen for use in PEM and alkaline fuel cells. Certain companies are also developing Direct Ethanol Fuel Cells |
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