Renewable Methanol Conversion to Lower Emissions Fuels

A. Behkish, S.H. Brown, D.C. Dankworth, M.A. Deimund, M.T. Kapelewski, K.H. Kuechler, M.P. Lanci, L.R. Martens, J.M. McMullan, S. Li, B. O’Neill, A. Souvaliotis, K. Trivedi, S. Weigel, A. Wiersum, L. Zhang
ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company,
United States

Keywords: renewable methanol conversion, lower emissions fuels

Summary:

Lower Emissions Fuels (LEF) will be required to meet the CO2 emissions mitigation ambition due to evolving regulations. Innovation, use of proven or scalable technology, and lower system cost will be key elements for potential solutions. LEF can be made using a variety of technologies, utilizing different feedstocks for different technologies. In this presentation, we will be discussing various LEF technologies for producing gasoline and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from renewable methanol (MeOH). The opportunities such as tailoring yield of specific molecules and further reducing capital cost and carbon intensity (CI) in methanol-to-sustainable products will be elaborate to provide insights on future R&D directions in commercialization of renewable MeOH conversion technologies. Renewable MeOH, as a versatile and lower carbon intensity intermediate, is anticipated to be produced in greater volumes during the energy transition. Advanced methanol conversion technology is a key enabler to address the world’s growing demand for a range of lower emission fuels and lower CI chemicals. The presentation will also discuss ExxonMobil’s recent methanol conversion technology efforts that have been focused on developing and deploying fully integrated scalable solutions to sustainable products from renewable methanol as the feedstock.