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Energy writer Elizabeth Souder, environmental writer Randy Lee Loftis and editorial writer Colleen McCain Nelson blog about energy, the environment and air quality issues in Texas. February 2010
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The University of Texas at Arlington has found a way to turn coal into crude oil, and, perhaps more importantly, the money to do so on a large scale. Researchers with UTA's Center for Renewable Energy and Science Technology expect to license the technology to a company, which will build a refinery by the end of the year to turn lignite coal into oil. According to a press release, the process can produce oil for around $30 a barrel -- far less than the current market price for crude of around $75 a barrel. While the process doesn't create renewable fuel, it would create a domestic source for vehicle fuel and plastics. The center recently received $700,000 in federal funding, bringing the center's total funding to $2.4 million. Jump for the full press release. Added lab space to accelerate move toward micro-refineryNews Release -- 9 February 2010 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ARLINGTON - New UT Arlington lab space will speed up refinement of an alternative fuel that researchers say will lead to development of a micro-refinery later this year. Researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington's Center for Renewable Energy and Science Technology are perfecting a coal-to-crude process that has produced an energy source costing much less than traditional crude oil. U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, whose Sixth Congressional District includes UT Arlington, will help open the new synthetic fuel chemistry labs at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 19, in Room 310 of Science Hall. Barton has helped secure funding for CREST through the years. Several years ago, he challenged Rick Billo, UT Arlington's associate dean for research in the College of Engineering, to come up with a fuel derived from lignite coal. The CREST research team has been awarded an additional $700,000 in federal and industry funding in the past three months for research into synthetic fuels. That sum brings total funding for the program to more than $2.4 million during the last two years. Barton recently introduced an additional $1 million in Congress for CREST. Billo recalls reviewing UT Arlington's biofuel program with the congressman several years ago when Barton suggested using lignite coal, which is plentiful in Texas. "Now we've done it," Billo said. "We will license the technology to an energy company sometime this year to build the first coal-to-liquids micro-refinery." The micro-refinery will be about the size of a small business office and about two stories tall, Billo added. When the facility opens, Billo said, he expects to have "rock-solid" data on how much it will cost to produce the fuel, which he compares to West Texas Intermediate Crude. He expects the price to be about half the current price per barrel of West Texas Intermediate Crude. In addition, CREST researchers are refining conversion of natural gas to liquid fuel. They also are working on capturing and converting carbon dioxide to fuel. Barton said this kind of alternative energy is just what the country needs. "Thanks to the work going on here at UT Arlington, the state of Texas continues to be a leader in energy innovation. Anything we can discover that cuts into our dependence on foreign oil is a plus," Barton said. "Rick and his team have made excellent use of the funding they've received. Now, this idea and technology are moving toward becoming a real-world market." Engineering Dean Bill Carroll said the congressman's support has been vital. "CREST is where much of the alternative energy research at UT Arlington is being conducted," Carroll said. "Congressman Barton's support has been critical for building the laboratory facilities and funding the personnel necessary to move the various projects forward." Krishnan Rajeshwar, associate dean of the College of Science and co-founder of CREST, said it's clear that "the energy and environment problem is massive enough to require the mobilization of teams of researchers with complementary expertise. CREST provides the ideal platform to do that on this campus." Pam Jansma, dean of the UT Arlington College of Science, said that under the CREST umbrella, engineers and scientists drawn from the two Colleges have tackled projects ranging from solar hydrogen to photovoltaic cells and fuel cells in an integrated and seamless manner. CREST serves as a center of excellence in energy research and development in Texas. The technologies and intellectual properties that will accrue from this major initiative address important national energy needs and will promote local and regional economic development by spawning Texas companies and technology licensing. CommentsE-mail entry:TrackBackTrackBack URL for this
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I applaud UTA for conducting this research, but there is nothing new about converting coal to crude. this was developed in the 1920s when it appeared oil was running out then abandoned when the East Texas Giant was discovered. Nazi Germany through IGFarben continued research in the technology eventually constructing several plants in Germany. Most recently South Africa had built several conversion plants to offset the lack of oil due to the anti-apartheid boycotts.
I would prefer to see UTA conduct research into improving how we could efficiently burn coal while reducing the amount of pollutants that burning produces
PeterK is correct in saying that the Fischer-Tropsch process and its variants have been around a long time. Many, many patents in many countries mark its time with us. The original process was downright abusive in the amount of fuel it consumed and the amount of CO2 it produced, and problems remain. Application of the process flies in the face of concerns that CO2 produces global warming. In theory, one should be able to use alternative energy sources to bind carbon and hydrogen into a synthesized fuel. That would still have the problem that burning would release CO2, but would constitute a breakthrough achievement in many people's book. I would like to hear more about what UTA has done that is new.
Fossil fuels can be thought of as a continuum--from natural gas, to natural gas liquids (e.g. propane), to condensate (natural gasoline), to light/sweet crude, to heavy/sour crude, to bitumen, to various grades of coal.
This is a progression from a gas, to a liquid to a solid. It is also generally a progression from cleaner fuels to dirtier fuels, and from less carbon to more carbon.
What we want is liquid transportation fuels (gasoline, jet fuel, diesel), and we get the highest yield of liquid transportation fuels (LTF), for the least expenditure of money and energy, from light/sweet crude. But as light/sweet crude becomes more scarce and expensive, we are moving toward the endpoints--natural gas and coal, using gas to liquids technology and coal to liquids technology (with bitumen tar sands in between crude oil and coal).
However, the bottom line is that we can't have an infinite rate of increase in our consumption of a finite fossil fuel resource base, and natural gas and coal are already being used for heating and power generation.