Pyrolysis oil offers a valuable solution to the circular economy as it allows valorisation of waste (including lignocellulosic biomass and plastics), it potentially represents a renewable fuel for transport and power generation, and it can be used as a feedstock to produce valuable chemicals. However, raw pyrolysis oils are chemically and physically unstable. A multi-step stabilisation is necessary to reduce acidity and the content of reactive components (mainly carbonyls and carboxylic acids). During stabilisation, which involves deoxygenation and hydrogenation as the main steps, an aqueous phase is generated as a by-product. This stream contains mainly water, but relevant amounts of methanol and ethanol (2-8 wt%) are also present, together with minor concentrations of higher alcohols, C1-C4 carboxylic acids, and light esters. As the organics are highly diluted in water, this stream is currently a significant waste in the pyrolysis oil upgrading process.
In the FUEL-UP project, SINTEF’s aim is to design and optimise a process to isolate the chemicals embodied in the aqueous phase and exploit them as intermediates to generate biofuels, biochemicals, and pharmaceutical products.
If you are attending the ESCAPE Conference 2026 in Sheffield, UK, come discuss the thermodynamic modeling and process optimization results with us.
Presenter: Matteo Gilardi (Research Scientist, SINTEF) Date: June 23, 2026 Poster Title: “Process Design for the Recovery of Valuable Organic Compounds from Pyrolysis Oil Aqueous Phase”
Further info: https://virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/event/75694/titles?g_submission=573