Primus Green Energy (Hillsborough, N.J.; www.primusge.com) held an event yesterday to mark the official commissioning of its demonstration-scale plant for making drop-in gasoline from synthesis gas.
The company’s STG-plus process generates high-octane gasoline from syngas, without the need for further refining of the product. The 100,000 gal/yr demonstration plant will provide data for scaling the process up to 25 million gal/yr in the company’s first commercial-scale plant. Primus CEO Robert Johnsen says the commercial plant is expected to break ground in mid-2014.
The four-stage STG-plus process involves methanol synthesis from syngas in an initial step, followed by subsequent converstion of methanol to dimethyl ether in another reactor. The process then synthesizes and treats gasoline. Raw material for the process is municipal natural gas, which is converted to syngas via and steam-methane-reforming. The company also has the ability to use waste biomass or municipal solid waste as a feedstock and generate syngas through gasification.
At the commissioning event, Primus vice president for business development George Boyajian said the company’s process has a conversion efficiency of 35% by mass of syngas into transportation fuels, which is more than 80% of the theoretical maximum for the process. Primus is working to raise the efficiency further as the demonstration plant comes online.
Yesterday’s Primus event was highlighted by a keynote address by N.J. lieutenant governor Kim Guadangno, as well as appearances by other N.J. state politicians and leaders of Israel Corp., which provided early investment funding for Primus.
