Hydrothermal liquefaction technology

CENER has developed and optimized hydrothermal liquefaction technology to convert suitable wet and carbon rich biowaste residual streams into a compatible biocrude for conventional hydrotreating and hydrocracking units, leveraging existing refinery assets. Transforming challenging wet streams into high-value liquid biocrude, and reducing disposal costs while creating renewable feedstock supply, it enables compliant advanced biofuels for road transport, Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) intermediates, and refined/distilled marine biofuels, providing a practical route for oil & gas players to integrate biogenic feed into current infrastructure with limited modifications.

This technology enables the direct conversion of a wide range of wet biomass sources and other carbon-based waste without energy-intensive drying (organic wastes, sludge, etc.) into a biocrude at moderate temperature (i.e., 250-450ºC) and high pressure (i.e., 10-40MPa) with flexibility for sub- and supercritical operation to tune yields and quality, enabling high carbon capture into liquids, feedstock versatility, and providing new pathways to specification fuels.

The obtained biocrude can be processed separately through an upgrading process to be converted into high quality advanced biofuels, or co-processed in a petrochemical industry, for the production of sustainable fuels for road transport, SAF for aviation, and marine advanced biofuels.

The technology has been tested from laboratory scale in batch reactors (TRL3) up to continuous pilot scale (TRL5), with a slurry feeding capacity covering 5-20 kg/h. Biocrude batches have already been manufactured for use as drop-in feedstock to conventional hydrotreating/hydrocracking workflows, supporting integration assessments with refinery partners.