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Making biofuel

Within the biobased economy, making biofuel from biomass is a great way to save on fossil raw materials. At Twence, we make biofuel in several different ways.

What are biofuels?

Our fossil raw materials are running out. This is why we are looking around the world for alternative fuels. Biofuel is one such alternative. It is made from biomass and exists in gaseous, liquid or solid form. As a sustainable fuel, it can be used for a wide range of applications, including as a fuel for transport and as an energy source for industrial processes. In its liquid form, it is an immediate replacement for petrol, diesel and kerosine, which are all still made using fossil raw materials.

Biofuel for a sustainable society

The production of biofuel is an important step for Twence towards making the region more sustainable. It is also contributing to our own ambition to be a regional sustainability company. By manufacturing biofuels, we are not only preventing the depletion of our fossil resources, but we are also contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gases. Some types of biofuel can reduce emissions of soot and particulates by up to 70%. And because we capture the gas released at our landfill sites and our fermentation plant and convert this into biofuel, we are also helping on the sidelines to reduce emissions.

What types of biofuel do we make at Twence?

At Twence, we currently have two ways of making biofuel. The first is the production of pyrolysis oil. We do that in the pyrolysis plant at Empyro. Here we convert woody biomass into oil and steam. We supply the oil to companies that use it as a sustainable source of energy for their production processes. The second way is to convert biogas into LBG fuel, or Liquefied Bio Gas. This is how we turn VFG waste into a valuable raw material that saves us 6.5 million diesel kilometres per year. That is more than 162 times around the world!

The process of making pyrolyse oil

At Empyro, we make oil and steam out of woody biomass. We only use waste wood and sawdust residue. We turn it into pyrolysis oil by applying extreme heat (500 degrees Celsius) for a very short time. Using this method, we produce about 650 kg of oil from every 1,000 kg of biomass. In other words, a fully biological fuel! We produce steam from the residual materials that remain after the pyrolysis process. We supply this steam to companies as sustainable energy. Read more about this process at Making pyrolyse oil.

The process from Biogas to LBG

LBG stands for Liquefied Bio Gas, as in, fluid biogas. This fuel is similar to liquefied natural gas, except that it is made from natural sources. At Twence, we aim to make this fuel from vegetable, fruit and garden waste from households and businesses in Twente. Biogas is created by fermenting fruit, vegetable and garden waste. We store this gas in a gas sphere, together with landfill gas and biogas from materials that have passed their expiry date. We clean the gas by removing CO₂ and other impurities. Next, this 'green gas' is liquefied by cooling it down to -162 C. Once it has become liquid, you can transport the LBG biofuel to filling stations in the region. Our dream is for waste collectors, among others, to fill up with this fuel and then collect VFG waste in the region.

Empyro pyrolysis oil

Results

A saving of 6.5 million kilometres in diesel fuel

We are making heavy road transport more sustainable with biofuel. By way of comparison: this will result in savings of at least 6.5 million diesel kilometres for heavy road transport over long distances. And this is equivalent to circling the earth more than 162 times.

Recovering more raw materials

By producing biofuel from vegetable, fruit and garden waste, we are making even more sustainable use of existing raw materials. We are the first in the Netherlands to use vegetable, fruit and garden waste collected from the region for the production of biofuel.