Scientists Discover Biofuel Combustion is a Complex Process

The biofuel industry is on the verge of a boom. The technology is coming into place, the political decisions are being made, and researchers are starting to build the framework for large-scale production. Biofuel is a slang term for any combustible fuel which derives from a biological source. It could be corn, wood, vegetable oil, etc. The material is transformed into a liquid fuel (using a variety of processes), and that liquid can be used as a largely compatible substitute for traditional, petroleum-based fuels. The push for biofuels comes from the need and desire to make a move away from petroleum to a more renewable starting material. Petroleum can’t be quickly reproduced, while corn can be grown pretty simply.

While the technology for producing these alcohols, esters, and (especially) ethers from biomass is expanding at a rapid pace, some scientists are taking a step back and analyzing the usefulness of these compounds as fuels. It does little good to ramp up to huge biorefineries producing thousands of gallons of fuel if the fuel is not as useful as gasoline. If the fuel couldn’t serve as a direct replacement, it would take a huge infrastructure change (replacement of all combustion engines) to switch over to biofuels. One example of this phenomenon is ethanol, a simple two-carbon alcohol. It’s not as energy dense as gasoline, and without special modifications to engines, it can’t be used as a direct gasoline replacement. Biodiesel (produced from oils and fats) can be directly substituted for diesel, but diesel engines only represent part of the combustion engine population.

In order to more deeply understand how the products of biofuel production can be altered / blended / changed to match the performance characteristics of gasoline, a group of researchers lead by chemists at the Sandria National Laboratory recently undertook a detailed study of biofuel combustion. Understanding how the combustion process proceeds would allow chemists to lead biorefineries in the right direction. They published their results in the journal Angewandte Chemie, which is arguably the top science journal in Europe. The researchers used a variety of methods to study the incredibly complex process of combustion. Computer modeling, mass spectrometry, and laser spectroscopy were all used to diagnose the chemical reaction pathways of the biofuel decomposition and oxidation. The processes were found to be incredibly complex, with multiple reaction pathways including free-radicals and side-reactions of decomposition products.

The study’s results shed light on the rich and diverse chemistry available from biofuel combustion. An organic chemist myself, I am heavily involved in developing new methods for biofuel production and the transformation of biomass into useful materials. I have several patent-pending technologies in this area, and after reading this journal article, I’m more hopeful than ever that biofuels have a future. It might never replace the use of petroleum, but I’m confident that the production of fuel from plants will have an important place in our nations future, and I’m excited to be part of it.

The source of this article can be found at:

Cool, T.A. “Biofuel combustion chemistry: from ethanol to biodiesel”. Angewandte Chemie Int. Ed. Engl. 2010, 49, 3545.