Energy
Use of mineral oil for production of liquid fuels becomes ever more difficult and costly. Industry is searching for more abundant resources that would fit into existing energy infrastructure. New energy transformation technologies include fuel cells and gas-to-liquid (GTL). GTL challenge – to unlock the economic efficiency of the whole GTL process.
Infra Technology group has developed and patented a proprietary Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) technology (INFRA.xtl), based on the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process, for the production of light synthetic oil and clean liquid synthetic transportation fuels from natural and associated gas, as well as from biomass and other fossil fuels (XTL).
Capital investment
$24-70k per barrel of capacity per day - including engineering and documentation costs, cost of licenses and special services, cost of the equipment, assembly and construction costs
Cost of conversion
$6-10 per barrel - including cost of catalyst, direct labour, utilities and G&A
The market opportunity for applications of the technologies developed by INFRA are very substantial and growing:
- Unlocking remote and otherwise stranded gas resources,
- Monetizing associated gas,
- Improving economics of shale gas production,
- Helping to develop low quality oil fields.
In addition to vast economic benefits it offers:
(for a country with abundant natural/shale gas resources, such as the U.S.)
- Diversification of energy sources,
- Strengthening national energy independence.
Materials
We are on the forefront of research aimed at creating new carbon-based nano-structured materials. We develop high-strength/high-modulus composites and fibrous materials on the basis of centimetre-long carbon nanotubes. The world demand for such "classic" carbon fibre-based materials is growing 25% annually with the market size of $50 billion. Our solution will provide cheaper alternatives with improved properties.
Our proprietary reactor design allows growing 15-30 cm-long aligned strands of high-quality carbon nanotubes from gas feedstock in macroscopic amounts.
INFRA Technologies R&D team operates state-of-the-art research facilities - both owned by the company and its research partners, such as Technological Institute for Superhard and Novel Carbon Materials. The company has its own highly functional design and production group.
Coal
Coal is the world’s largest and most common fossil-based resource. Identified world coal reserves in 2005 exceeded 900 billion tonnes. Its known deposits are equivalent to 580 billion tonnes of oil, which is 3.5 times more than known deposits of oil itself. At the current rate of production, coal reserves will last for 120 years, gas for 60 years, whilst oil for 40 years only.
Problem
The majority of coal reserves is difficult and expensive to utilize because of environmental concerns and distance to traditional power markets.
Out of the top 6 countries with the largest coal deposits, only one (Russia) is the net oil exporter. All others depend on oil import.
Solution
Due to its lower capital and operating costs, INFRA.xtl technology makes conversion of coal into liquid fuels in conjunction with any gasification technology, economically viable, providing a new source of clean energy and reducing respective countries’ dependence on oil.
Technology
INFRA.xtl is the 4th generation of the Fischer-Tropsch technology. Developed by INFRA Technologies, INFRA.xtl finally makes production of synthetic oil economically feasible, ensuring that GTL process is profitable as a rule, rather than as an exception.
Current Technologies
INFRA.xtl technology
INFRA.xtl technology It is differentiated by the use of unique proprietary pelletized cobalt-based catalyst in the Fischer-Tropsch step of the process with the new generation tubular fixed-bed reactor.
The reactor and the catalyst have been shown to deliver significant productivity and catalyst performance benefits, allowing to improve the efficiency of the Fischer-Tropsch process dramatically, lowering capital and operating expenses, reducing the size of the reactor and eliminating certain stages required in other versions of this technology, making modular and scalable plant design economically viable. The process efficiency was independently verified and benchmarked.
INFRA.xtl produces more than 400 kg of the liquid hydrocarbon product per 1,000 m3 of dry gas (methane equivalent).
Main advantages of INFRA.xtl include:
- High quality monoproduct – liquid light hydrocarbon mixture (no heavy waxes) – straight out of the Fischer-Tropsch reactor – which does not require cumbersome and capital-intensive hydrocracking and upgrading stage;
- Elimination of hydrocracking and product upgrading facility increases the efficiency of the process and feedstock utilisation;
- Reduction in the size of the Fischer-Tropsch reactor due to higher catalyst productivity (270-300 kg of product per 1 m3 of reactor volume per hour) – an almost threefold increase in comparison with the industry’s benchmarks. This is confirmed by independent testing;
- Versatility – technology allows for utilization of feedgas with varying density, from dry methane up to heavy gases with average molecular weight 24. This is made possible by application of two technologies: firstly, by break-up of heavier hydrocarbons in adiabatic pre-reforming and; secondly, by steam/dry reforming, where H2/CO ratio in produced syngas is controlled by variation of CO2 feedrate;
- High temperature (250°С) of Fischer-Tropsch process in INFRA.xtl’s reactor allows to generate power-generating steam (40 bar), increasing the overall unit energy efficiency, and consequently, apply it to drive pumps and compressors of the plant, as well as generate electric power for external use – making the plant self-sufficient in utilities;
- Use of the large quantities of the Fischer-Tropsch off-gas containing hydrogen and methane – this feature allows to apply the proprietary design of the reforming flowsheet, where the flow of the fresh gas enters intratubular space only, while the flue gas is used as fuel gas (competing technologies use fresh gas for this purpose);
- Efficient and stable catalyst – it does not contain any precious metal promoters, reducing its cost. Very slow deactivation means longer lifetime (up to 2 years), which drives down operating costs and also requires fewer catalyst replacement service breaks;
- Ecological benefits – INFRA.xtl process generates just traces of oxygenates, eliminating the need for rejection units, thus allowing to use Fischer-Tropsch water in steam reforming block immediately or after a minimal express treatment in degassing boiler, and lowering the environmental impact;
- CO2 emission footprint minimisation – use of steam/dry reforming allows – unlike competing technologies – to sequester and utilise 75% of the carbon dioxide generated in the technology process.
INFRA.xtl GTL units produce light synthetic oil, which is close to a product, characterized by Shultz-Flory alpha of 0.77. INFRA.xtl’s unique quality characteristics include:
- More than 95% of liquid light fractions (FBP <360oC);
- No sulphur and aromatics;
- Large fraction of iso-paraffins and olefins;
- High cetane number for diesel fuel;
- Large (up to 45%) fraction of jet fuel fraction.
Properties of INFRA.xtl catalyst family also allow to fine-tune the process for the production of clean diesel and jet fuel.
INFRA.xtl GTL products are fully compatible with the existing oil industry infrastructure, processes and technologies and with the existing fleet of transportation vehicles without any alterations.
Its synthetic fuels have ultra-high quality and correspond to the highest ecological requirements: zero aromatics, zero sulphur, zero nitrogen, etc.
Some comparative characteristics of INFRA.xtl and 3rd generation GTL are provided in the table below:
Source: Infra XTL Technology
Advertisement
The 10 largest coal producers and exporters in Indonesia:
