Title: Residual lipids incorporation in a petroleum refinery

Authors: Stella Bezergianni; Athanasios Dimitriadis; Loukia P. Chrysikou

Addresses: Laboratory of Environmental Fuels and Hydrocarbons – LEFH, Centre for Research and Technology Hellas – CERTH, Chemical Process and Energy Resources Institute – CPERI, 6th km Charilaou-Thermi, P.O. Box 60361, 570 01, Thessaloniki, Greece ' Laboratory of Environmental Fuels and Hydrocarbons – LEFH, Centre for Research and Technology Hellas – CERTH, Chemical Process and Energy Resources Institute – CPERI, 6th km Charilaou-Thermi, P.O. Box 60361, 570 01, Thessaloniki, Greece ' Laboratory of Environmental Fuels and Hydrocarbons – LEFH, Centre for Research and Technology Hellas – CERTH, Chemical Process and Energy Resources Institute – CPERI, 6th km Charilaou-Thermi, P.O. Box 60361, 570 01, Thessaloniki, Greece

Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the technical feasibility and environmental benefits from integrating waste cooking oil (WCO) in a refinery, towards producing a new hybrid diesel. This new hybrid diesel, partially of fossil- and partially of bio-based origin, was evaluated as an alternative to market diesel according EN 590 specifications, showing comparable if not superior quality in the case of the former. Another scope was to compare the environmental impacts of the new hybrid diesel and the market diesel, in order to identify the most environmentally friendly fuel with the higher sustainability potential. The comparison was based on a well-to-tank (WTT) analysis including only the production processes of both fuels considered. Based on this study, the new hybrid diesel produced via co-hydroprocessing petroleum fractions with WCO presented the lower carbon foot-print, validating its sustainability superiority. It is evident that integrating residual biomass in a refinery is the most sustainable approach for incorporating biomass in the transportation sector.

Keywords: co-hydroprocessing; hybrid diesel; biofuel; life cycle assessment; LCA; hydrotreated vegetable oil; HVO; waste cooking oil; WCO.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGW.2017.087196

International Journal of Global Warming, 2017 Vol.13 No.3/4, pp.473 - 487

Received: 05 Sep 2015
Accepted: 17 Nov 2015

Published online: 11 Oct 2017 *

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