Dec 5 2012
LanzaTech, a producer of low-carbon fuels and chemicals from waste gases, and Baosteel, a leading steel producer in China, have announced the success of their 100,000 gallon per year (300 tons) pre-commercial plant located at one of Baosteel's steel mills outside Shanghai, China. This plant operates at significantly larger scale than LanzaTech's pilot facility and test results have shown that the scaling of the technology has been successful.
As a global leader in low carbon technology solutions, China is committed to developing clean energy technologies that have no impact on food or land resources. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), who regulate technology in China, sent a review panel to the facility in early November 2012 to review the site and report on the process in detail. They reported that the waste-gas-to-ethanol project clearly met international standards regarding gas conversion rates and other technical milestones and that the project can now officially enter the commercialization phase, scaling the process further to make steel mill waste gas-biofuel a commercial reality in China. A full scale commercial facility with Baosteel is planned for 2013.
The Shanghai Baosteel LanzaTech New Energy Co., Ltd, established through a joint venture in March 2011, was created to commercialize LanzaTech's technology in China. Unconditioned steel mill off gases, rich in carbon monoxide (CO) are channelled from the operating steel mill into a LanzaTech bioreactor, producing ethanol. In the steel industry, LanzaTech adds value to the manufacturing process through the production of clean energy while enabling the facility to reduce its carbon footprint -- turning waste carbon from a problem into an opportunity. The success of the facility therefore begins to break the paradigm that economic growth and industrialization are at odds with an environmentally conscious operating strategy.
"The success of this facility will play an important role in the commercialization of clean energy technologies in China," said Mr. Jia Yanlin, Chairman of Baosteel Metal. "This technology has enormous potential in the Chinese market as it will positively impact our manufacturing sustainability as well as China's new energy development."
"This has been an exciting ride," said LanzaTech CEO Jennifer Holmgren. "Scaling new technologies can be a daunting process but our teams have worked well together and we have made great progress. With the successful completion of this demonstration milestone we are now ready to scale to commercial production facilties."
Source: http://www.lanzatech.com/