(320b) Integration Options of Natural Gas Pyrolysis in a Methanol Production Process from Biomass: Techno-Economic Environmental Analysis

Low-carbon liquid fuels are needed for transportation and other difficult to electrify sectors. Biomass is a renewable carbon source which holds great promise for generating low-carbon fuel. However, biomass availability is limited, and it is hydrogen-lean; consequently -syngas generated from biomass through gasification is hydrogen deficient. By supplementing external hydrogen, carbon loss from the process can be avoided. Production of hydrogen from natural gas pyrolysis is showing great promise as an alternative to widely known water electrolysis. Natural gas pyrolysis has seen considerable renewed interest in recent years. Because of the endothermic nature of natural gas pyrolysis reaction, the source of the heat required by the process impacts the carbon and thermal efficiencies of the process. Five integration options of natural gas pyrolysis within a thermochemical methanol production process from biomass are analyzed. In addition to heat integration within the process, other integration options examined include natural gas, syngas or hydrogen combustion as well as electrical heating to provide heat for the pyrolyzer. Technoeconomic and environmental analyses of each of these options are performed. From the sustainability point of view, the design where part of the syngas is combusted for heat provision is the best performer while on the economic aspects, it’s the least favorite with highest levelized cost. The results confirm the tradeoff between sustainability and economic performance.