2010 R&D 100 Winner
The annual global market for propylene glycol (PG)—used to make liquid detergents, antifreeze, paints, polyesters, pharmaceuticals, and more—is currently about 3.5 billion pounds, a third of which is consumed in the Uunited States, and all of which is petroleum-derived. Research at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Wash., with the help of Archers Daniels Midland, Decatur, Ill., has resulted in a potential way to reduce this dependence on fossil fuels: Propylene Glycol (PG) from Renewable Sources or PGRS.
The PGRS process relies on a metal-containing, carbon-based catalyst and the principles of catalytic hydrogenolysis to break one of the three carbon-oxygen bonds in the glycerol. Hydrogenolysis is a process in which a solid metals-containing catalyst is used to cut one primary carbon-oxygen bond on the glycerol molecule, replacing it with hydrogen. The result is one molecule of renewable propylene glycol and one molecule of water. The process is cost-competitive with petroleum-derived products, according to the development team, and is highly selective for PG (90% efficient) because almost all of the glycerol is converted to PG. The small amounts of byproducts formed are recovered and purified to obtain additional value.
Technology
Catalytic process for propylene glycol production
Developers
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Archer Daniels Midland Company
Development Team
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| (l-r): Alan Zacher, James F. White, John Frye |
The Propylene Glycol (PG) from Renewable Sources Development Team:
John Frye, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Todd Werpy, Archer Daniels Midland Company
James F. White, formerly with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Alan Zacher, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
