Synthetic Fuels Production

Production of SA's Envirolene fuel is accomplished thought a Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) fuel technology almost identical to present methanol production as well as other emerging GTL synthetic fuels technologies. The major differences between SA's and other companies' GTL technologies are propriety chemical catalysts used, the types of synthetic fuels and costs involved to produce the fuels.

Our process involves four steps:

1. Feedstocks

Feedstocks are the raw materials required for an industrial process. For the vast majority of liquid fuels, the feedstock is crude oil. An advantage of the Standard Alcohol process is the abundant feedstocks that can be utilized for the process. The feedstocks of choice are natural gas and coal, and eventually biomass.

Natural Gas

Natural gas while being abundant in America, is also the most economically utilized feedstock for our process. Standard Alcohol will take advantage of this fact. Natural gas is converted to synthesis gas (a common chemical building block) via steam reformation.

Coal or Biomass

Coal, biomass and other solid forms of carbon such as municipal solid waste would also be converted to synthesis gas. However, being solids, they must be broken down into synthesis gas via gasification. The process heats the coal or biomass to high temperatures but inhibits combustion. The feedstocks eventually disassociate into synthesis gas.

Coal is one of America's most abundant resources and could supply liquid fuel plants for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, as oil becomes more expensive, coal will be used. However we still have a choice as to how the coal will be used: burned, with all the soot and pollution issues, or converted to a clean-burning synfuel.

2. Synthesis Gas

As mentioned, synthesis gas is a common chemical building block. Once the natural gas, coal or biomass has been converted to synthesis gas, it's scrubbed to clean it and remove impurities such as lead, sulfur and mercury.

3. Gas to Liquids Reactor

The cleaned synthesis gas is then sent to Standard Alcohols Gas to Liquids (GTL) reactor, where it is converted to alcohol fuels. In the GTL reactor, in the presence of our propriety catalyst, the synthesis gas, which consists of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, reconfigure into alcohol molecules.

From here the alcohol molecules are condensed into liquids and then under-go clean-up and purification.

4. Fuel Loadout

Once the fuels are synthesized, they are loaded out to the existing chemcials and liquid fuels industries for blending into gasoline and diesel.