WO2009059149A1 - System and method for pretreating biomass - Google Patents

System and method for pretreating biomass Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2009059149A1
WO2009059149A1 PCT/US2008/082011 US2008082011W WO2009059149A1 WO 2009059149 A1 WO2009059149 A1 WO 2009059149A1 US 2008082011 W US2008082011 W US 2008082011W WO 2009059149 A1 WO2009059149 A1 WO 2009059149A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
liquid
temperature
biomass
pretreatment reactor
pretreatment
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2008/082011
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Mark T. Holtzapple
Cesar B. Granda
Original Assignee
The Texas A & M University System
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by The Texas A & M University System filed Critical The Texas A & M University System
Priority to CA2704471A priority Critical patent/CA2704471C/en
Priority to CN2008801226243A priority patent/CN101909713B/en
Priority to JP2010532283A priority patent/JP2011502753A/en
Priority to EP08844560A priority patent/EP2219754A1/en
Priority to BRPI0818867 priority patent/BRPI0818867A2/en
Priority to MX2010004664A priority patent/MX2010004664A/en
Priority to AU2008318478A priority patent/AU2008318478A1/en
Publication of WO2009059149A1 publication Critical patent/WO2009059149A1/en

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Classifications

    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C10PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10LFUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
    • C10L9/00Treating solid fuels to improve their combustion
    • C10L9/08Treating solid fuels to improve their combustion by heat treatments, e.g. calcining
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B01PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
    • B01DSEPARATION
    • B01D11/00Solvent extraction
    • B01D11/02Solvent extraction of solids
    • B01D11/0215Solid material in other stationary receptacles
    • B01D11/0219Fixed bed of solid material
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B01PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
    • B01DSEPARATION
    • B01D11/00Solvent extraction
    • B01D11/02Solvent extraction of solids
    • B01D11/028Flow sheets
    • B01D11/0284Multistage extraction
    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C10PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
    • C10LFUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
    • C10L5/00Solid fuels
    • C10L5/40Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin
    • C10L5/44Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin on vegetable substances
    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C13SUGAR INDUSTRY
    • C13BPRODUCTION OF SUCROSE; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR
    • C13B10/00Production of sugar juices
    • C13B10/02Expressing juice from sugar cane or similar material, e.g. sorghum saccharatum
    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C13SUGAR INDUSTRY
    • C13BPRODUCTION OF SUCROSE; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR
    • C13B10/00Production of sugar juices
    • C13B10/02Expressing juice from sugar cane or similar material, e.g. sorghum saccharatum
    • C13B10/04Expressing juice from sugar cane or similar material, e.g. sorghum saccharatum combined with imbibition
    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C02TREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE
    • C02FTREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE
    • C02F11/00Treatment of sludge; Devices therefor
    • C02F11/18Treatment of sludge; Devices therefor by thermal conditioning
    • YGENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02EREDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E50/00Technologies for the production of fuel of non-fossil origin
    • Y02E50/10Biofuels, e.g. bio-diesel
    • YGENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02EREDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E50/00Technologies for the production of fuel of non-fossil origin
    • Y02E50/30Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel

Definitions

  • This disclosure generally relates to biomass processing, and more particularly, to a system and method for pretreating biomass.
  • biomass pretreatment process can be performed in a reactor at high temperatures and pressures in the presence of a liquid. Certain agents, such as acids, alkalis, and oxidizers are often used to enhance this process.
  • Example pretreatment processes include, but are not limited to, those that are base catalyzed (ammonia, alkaline-peracetic acid, alkaline peroxide, alkaline-solvent, lime, lime under oxygen pressure, sodium hydroxide), non catalyzed (autohydrolysis, hot water, hot water -pH neutral, steam), acid catalyzed (concentrated or dilute acid using sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, peracetic acid, phosphoric acid, sulfur dioxide), solvent based (organosolv, other solvents), and chemical based (peroxide, wet oxidation).
  • base catalyzed ammonia, alkaline-peracetic acid, alkaline peroxide, alkaline-solvent, lime, lime under oxygen pressure, sodium hydroxide
  • non catalyzed autohydrolysis, hot water, hot water -pH neutral, steam
  • acid catalyzed concentrated or dilute acid using sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, peracetic acid, phosphoric acid
  • a method for heat treatment of a biomass includes allowing biomass in a pretreatment reactor to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process.
  • the pre-treatment reaction process yields pretreated biomass along with soluble components.
  • a first liquid having a first temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the first temperature to a second temperature.
  • At least a port of the soluble components are captured in the first liquid, and the at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid are removed from the pretreatment reactor.
  • a second liquid having a third temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the third temperature to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature being less than second temperature.
  • a technical advantage of one embodiment may include the capability to gradually cool and heat biomass in a reactor while efficiently recovering heat.
  • Other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to simultaneously allow the extraction and removal of soluble species generated during pretreatment in a reactor.
  • Yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to employ a technique known as "displacement extraction" to recover both heat and soluble species, letting liquid present in the biomass to be displaced by incoming liquid without any mixing, thus allowing a more efficient extraction and heat recovery.
  • Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to utilize hydrostatic head of liquid to keep the biomass particles interstitial spaces filled with liquid at all times, thus excluding air, allowing percolation rates to be much faster than when liquid is simply allowed to drain. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to employ an efficient mass transfer technique to efficiently recover heat and soluble species from the pretreated biomass. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to avoid the use of expensive dewatering equipment, such as screw presses or roller mills for extraction. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to avoid the use of expensive heat exchangers.
  • FIGURES IA through IH show one embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system in which a biomass may undergo a heating cycle
  • FIGURES 2A through 2H show the biomass pretreatment system of FIGURES IA through IH in which a biomass may undergo a cooling cycle
  • FIGURE 3 shows one embodiment of a purging process for each of the tanks of the biomass pretreatment system of FIGURES IA through IH;
  • FIGURE 4 is a diagram showing another embodiment of biomass pretreatment system in which multiple pretreatment reactors are implemented
  • FIGURE 5 is a diagram showing another embodiment of biomass pretreatment system in which multiple pretreatment reactors are implemented in a circular arrangement.
  • FIGURE 6 is a time chart showing one embodiment of implementing a pretreatment process using the embodiments of FIGURES 4 or 5.
  • this liquid is the preferred heat transfer fluid.
  • Some heat transfer may be attempted by removing the liquid in the reactor after the pretreatment has occurred and reusing this same liquid in the next pretreatment cycle.
  • the heat present in the biomass and the entrained water can not be recovered efficiently.
  • soluble species released during pretreatment can not be efficiently removed. Accordingly, teachings of certain embodiments recognize the use of displacement extraction where little, if any, axial mixing occurs, allowing recovery of the liquid present in a biomass bed without decreasing the liquid temperature or soluble species concentration. Additionally, teachings of certain embodiments recognize that through the use of several stages, the recovery of both heat and soluble products may be almost complete.
  • Displacement extraction is a process in which differing liquids may displace one another without significant mixing.
  • the displacement extraction process may use a Meichage effect for example, to extract sugar from sugarcane, as described in U.S. Patent No. 5,772,775.
  • U.S. Patent No. 5,772,775 describes transporting a bed of ground sugarcane from an inlet to an outlet of a horizontal drag conveyor system. The liquid from one particular stage is pumped upwards to flood the bed and displace any air present (i.e., Meichage effect). Then liquid from the next stage is used to displace the liquid present in the bed.
  • This process has been shown to be relatively efficient, attaining relatively good sugar extraction from cane with only three stages compared to 17 to 19 stages needed in conventional diffusers for sugar extraction.
  • Biomass pretreatment to enhance biodigestibility is often performed in a reactor at high temperatures and pressures in the presence of a liquid (e.g., water) that may contain certain agents, such as acids, alkalis, oxidizers. Efficient heat recovery and, many times, extraction of soluble species generated during pretreatment may be desirable. Accordingly, teachings of certain embodiments recognize the use of displacement extraction, aided by air exclusion (i.e., Meichage effect), to recover heat and soluble species from biomass pretreatment.
  • a series of tanks may be used to gradually heat or gradually cool down the biomass bed inside a pretreatment reactor.
  • the liquid present in the pretreatment reactor may be allowed to exit and is sent to the next tank/stage.
  • the displacing liquid may flow through the bed as an advancing front similar to the phenomenon that occurs in chromatography columns, where axial mixing ideally does not occur. In this manner, the liquid from the tank may displace the liquid present within the biomass bed at any given time and may allow the exiting liquid to maintain its temperature and soluble species concentration.
  • the fresh biomass contains natural soluble substances (e.g., sugars, proteins), in particular embodiments, it might be desirable to extract these natural solubles prior to the heating cycle.
  • natural soluble substances e.g., sugars, proteins
  • a separate set of tanks arranged in the same fashion as the proposed embodiment for the recovery of heat and soluble species generated during pretreatment, may also be employed.
  • the number of tanks/stages can be any number necessary to attain adequate and cost-effective heat and soluble species recovery. Because of temperature differences, in particular embodiments it may be beneficial to transfer the liquid in such a manner that a denser liquid is located at the bottom of the reactor to avoid undesired liquid buoyancies, which will cause axial mixing. That is, if the liquid in the tank is denser than the liquid in the reactor, it may be introduced at the bottom of the reactor. Conversely, if the liquid in the tank is less dense than the liquid in the reactor, it may be introduced at the top of the reactor.
  • FIGURES IA through IH show one embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system 10.
  • the biomass pretreatment system 10 generally includes a pretreatment reactor 12 configured to contain a biomass and a number of tanks 14 that are each configured to hold a liquid, such as water, at differing temperatures.
  • the tanks 14 are coupled to the pretreatment reactor 12 through a pump that is operable to alternatively pump liquid from each of the plurality of tanks 14 to the pretreatment reactor 12 such that the temperature of the biomass may be raised and lowered with relatively good efficiency.
  • FIGURES IA through IH shows a biomass pretreatment process that may be administered on a biomass contained in the pretreatment reactor 12.
  • FIGURE IA a biomass may be loaded into the pretreatment reactor 12 and liquid in each of the tanks 14 elevated to differing temperatures.
  • FIGURES IA through IH generally describes a heating cycle in which the temperature of the biomass may be gradually raised to an elevated temperature. Although specific temperatures and number of tanks and reactors are shown, it should be understood that different temperatures and a different number of tanks and/or reactors may be used in other embodiments.
  • the liquid from tank 14a is transferred to the reactor to flood the biomass bed and remove air, a process known as the Meichage effect.
  • the liquid in tank 14a is maintained at 4O 0 C. Because the biomass in the reactor is colder, this may cause the temperature to drop to approximately 30°C.
  • the entrained liquid which is at 30 0 C, is then displaced by liquid in tank 14b that may be at a temperature of 6O 0 C.
  • the exiting liquid at 30 0 C is directed to the tank 14a, whereas the biomass bed and the liquid in the reactor achieve an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 50 0 C.
  • the 50 0 C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14c that may be at a temperature of 8O 0 C.
  • the 5O 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14b.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 70 0 C.
  • the 70 0 C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14d that may be at a temperature of 100 0 C.
  • the 70 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14c.
  • the biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 9O 0 C.
  • the 90 0 C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14e that may be at a temperature of 120 0 C.
  • the 9O 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14d.
  • the biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 110 0 C.
  • the 110 0 C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14f that may be at a temperature of 140 0 C.
  • the 110 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14e.
  • the biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 130 0 C.
  • pretreatment agents may be added to the pretreatment reactor 12 to bring the reactor to a desired reaction temperature.
  • the pretreatment agent(s) may be added before or after the final heating to the desired temperature, although often it is preferred to add it before to use any heat that might be released from diluting the agent in the liquid.
  • the pretreatment process described above may use water as the medium and may occur over a period of approximately 6 hours.
  • water is maintained at 160°C, so the whole system may be pressurized to allow pretreatment at these relatively high temperatures.
  • steam may be injected into the reactor to raise the temperature to the desired level, but any other appropriate heating mechanism can also be employed.
  • the displacement extraction cycle for all the stages may take approximately 30 minutes to complete during heating and during cooling.
  • the pretreatment agent(s) such as acid, alkali, oxidizers
  • the pretreatment agent(s) may be added either before or after heat recovery.
  • an agent that has an exothermic heat of dilution e.g., quicklime, sulfuric acid
  • Mixing in the reactor during the pretreatment reaction may be implemented as appropriate (e.g., tumbling, recirculation of liquid through the biomass bed, augering).
  • the number of tanks/stages is six in the embodiment shown in FIGURES IA- IH, although more or fewer tanks/stages may be used.
  • FIGURES 2A through 2H show the biomass pretreatment system 10 describing one embodiment of a cooling cycle in which the temperature of the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 heated according to the heating cycle of FIGURES IA through IH may be gradually lowered.
  • the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 is at an elevated temperature of approximately 160°C.
  • the pretreatment reactor 12 is at the desired temperature and the appropriate pretreatment agents have been added, the reaction occurs for the desired time.
  • the temperature in the reactor may be controlled by either providing steam or other appropriate heating material or by cooling water, depending on the thermal nature of the pretreatment reaction.
  • the pretreatment is stopped and the cooling cycle commences.
  • the 160°C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in tank 14e that may be at a temperature of 110°C.
  • the 160 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14f.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 120°C.
  • the 120°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14d at a temperature of 9O 0 C.
  • the 120 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14e.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 100 0 C.
  • liquid at approximately 160 0 C in tank 14f may have a relatively high concentration of the soluble species extracted from the pretreatment process. To avoid accumulating these soluble products, a certain amount of this liquid may be purged and sent to a suitable downstream processing mechanism.
  • the purged liquid may be replaced with fresh liquid, which could be at ambient temperature or it could be hot fresh liquid generated from heat integration with other units in the bioconversion process.
  • tank 14f is shown as being purged in this embodiment at FIGURE 2C, in other embodiments purging may occur directly from the pretreatment reactor 12 instead of transporting the liquid to tank 14f with reference to FIGURE 2B.
  • the reactor 12 may be drained of fluid at FIGURE 2A (after processing) and the remaining steps of FIGURES 2B-2H may proceed.
  • the 100 0 C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14c at a temperature of approximately 70 0 C.
  • the 100 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14d.
  • the biomass bed may then have an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 80 0 C.
  • the 80°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14b at a temperature of approximately 50 0 C.
  • the 80 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14c.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 60 0 C.
  • the 60°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14a at a temperature of approximately 30 0 C.
  • the 60 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14b.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 40 0 C.
  • the 40°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by fresh water introduced through a fresh water inlet 16 at approximately 30 0 C.
  • the 40 0 C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14a.
  • the biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 3O 0 C. This liquid is sent to tank 14a where it will be used for the next heating cycle.
  • the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 may be saturated with fresh liquid, thus allowing the pretreated biomass to exit the system as a slurry to a downstream bioconversion.
  • the pretreated biomass may be free of soluble species, in which the downstream bioconversion may not be necessary.
  • each displacement for example as shown in FIGURES 2B- 2F, may pick up soluble species left behind from the immediately preceding displacement. Additionally, in such an embodiment, the fluid leaving the chamber in each respective displacement would have a lesser amount of soluble species than the fluid leaving the chamber in the prior displacement.
  • the biomass and any entrained liquid may be unloaded from the pretreatment reactor 12.
  • FIGURE 3 shows another embodiment of a process for replacing the liquid from the tank 14f.
  • This particular purging process may be used in place of the purging process as shown in FIGURE 2C. After purging the concentrated liquid, some liquid may be transferred sequentially from each tank 14a to tank 14f. Finally, fresh liquid enters the system at tank 14a.
  • FIGURE 3 shows another embodiment of a process for replacing the liquid from the tank 14f. This particular purging process may be used in place of the purging process as shown in FIGURE 2C. After purging the concentrated liquid, some liquid may be transferred sequentially from each tank 14a to tank 14f. Finally, fresh liquid enters the system at tank 14a.
  • FIGURE 3 shows another embodiment of a process for replacing the liquid from the tank 14f.
  • FIGURE 4 shows another embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system 20 in which multiple pretreatment reactors 12 may be serviced by the tanks 14. In this particular embodiment, seven pretreatment reactors 12 are shown; however, it should be appreciated that any quantity of pretreatment reactors 12 may be used.
  • two pumps 22 are used to perform the recovery of heat and soluble species. Movement of the liquid from the two pumps 22 may be provided by valves 24 configured on the inlets and outlets of each of the tanks 14 and pretreatment reactors 12.
  • FIGURE 5 shows another embodiment of the biomass pretreatment system 30 that is similar to the embodiment of FIGURE 4 except that the tanks 14 and pretreatment reactors 12 are configured in a circular arrangement for convenience and compactness.
  • FIGURE 6 is a time chart showing how the two pumps 22 may be used to service each of the seven pretreatment reactors 12 of FIGURES 4 and/or 5.
  • a 24 hour operation schedule for the biomass pretreatment systems 20 and 30 may be accomplished.
  • This schedule is an example of what could be accomplished as a relatively good layout for operation. It can be seen that the operations have been arranged in such a manner that equipment is operated at a relatively high duty cycle, as at any given time there is always one pretreatment reactor 12 being loaded, heated, cooled and unloaded, while the other pretreatment reactors 12 are engaged in pretreatment.
  • the biomass pretreatment methods that may potentially employ this system can be (but are not limited to) those that are base catalyzed (ammonia, alkaline- peracetic acid, alkaline peroxide, alkaline-solvent, lime, lime under oxygen pressure, sodium hydroxide), non catalyzed (autohydrolysis, hot water, hot water -pH neutral, steam), acid catalyzed (concentrated or dilute acid using sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, peracetic acid, phosphoric acid, sulfur dioxide), solvent based (organosolv, other solvents), chemical based (peroxide, wet oxidation).
  • This process use extraction displacement to displace liquid in one or more pretreatment reactors 12 where the pretreatment occurs.
  • the pretreatment reactors 12 are accompanied by a series of tanks 14, each one representing one extraction or recovery stage, which are filled and emptied sequentially with the liquid being sent through the pretreatment reactors 12 to displace the liquid present there at any given time. This would allow a gradual and thus more efficient cooling and heating of the biomass in the reactor.

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Abstract

According to one embodiment, a method for heat treatment of a biomass includes allowing biomass in a pretreatment reactor to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process. The pre-treatment reaction process yields pretreated biomass along with soluble components. A first liquid having a first temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the first temperature to a second temperature. At least a port of the soluble components are captured in the first liquid, and the at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid are removed from the pretreatment reactor. A second liquid having a third temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the third temperature to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature being less than second temperature.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PRETREATING BIOMASS
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
This disclosure generally relates to biomass processing, and more particularly, to a system and method for pretreating biomass.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 119 (e), this application claims priority from United States Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/985,059 entitled BIOMASS PRETREATMENT SYSTEM, filed November 2, 2007.
BACKGROUND QF THE DISCLOSURE
A variety of technologies exist to treat biomass. Oftentimes, prior to such "treating" of biomass, the biomass is "pretreated" in order to enhance biodigestibility of the biomass during treatment. The biomass pretreatment process can be performed in a reactor at high temperatures and pressures in the presence of a liquid. Certain agents, such as acids, alkalis, and oxidizers are often used to enhance this process. Example pretreatment processes include, but are not limited to, those that are base catalyzed (ammonia, alkaline-peracetic acid, alkaline peroxide, alkaline-solvent, lime, lime under oxygen pressure, sodium hydroxide), non catalyzed (autohydrolysis, hot water, hot water -pH neutral, steam), acid catalyzed (concentrated or dilute acid using sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, peracetic acid, phosphoric acid, sulfur dioxide), solvent based (organosolv, other solvents), and chemical based (peroxide, wet oxidation).
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
According to one embodiment, a method for heat treatment of a biomass includes allowing biomass in a pretreatment reactor to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process. The pre-treatment reaction process yields pretreated biomass along with soluble components. A first liquid having a first temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the first temperature to a second temperature. At least a port of the soluble components are captured in the first liquid, and the at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid are removed from the pretreatment reactor. A second liquid having a third temperature is transported into the pretreatment reactor and the pretreated biomass elevates the third temperature to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature being less than second temperature.
Certain embodiments of the invention may provide numerous technical advantages. For example, a technical advantage of one embodiment may include the capability to gradually cool and heat biomass in a reactor while efficiently recovering heat. Other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to simultaneously allow the extraction and removal of soluble species generated during pretreatment in a reactor. Yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to employ a technique known as "displacement extraction" to recover both heat and soluble species, letting liquid present in the biomass to be displaced by incoming liquid without any mixing, thus allowing a more efficient extraction and heat recovery. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to utilize hydrostatic head of liquid to keep the biomass particles interstitial spaces filled with liquid at all times, thus excluding air, allowing percolation rates to be much faster than when liquid is simply allowed to drain. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to employ an efficient mass transfer technique to efficiently recover heat and soluble species from the pretreated biomass. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to avoid the use of expensive dewatering equipment, such as screw presses or roller mills for extraction. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to avoid the use of expensive heat exchangers. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to provide a simple heat and soluble species recovery system, which can operated using pumps and opening and closing of valves. Still yet other technical advantages of other embodiments may include the capability to provide a system that can be flexibly applied to many different pretreatment technologies.
Although specific advantages have been enumerated above, various embodiments may include all, some, or none of the enumerated advantages. Additionally, other technical advantages may become readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after review of the following figures and description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more complete understanding of embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent from the detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: FIGURES IA through IH show one embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system in which a biomass may undergo a heating cycle;
FIGURES 2A through 2H show the biomass pretreatment system of FIGURES IA through IH in which a biomass may undergo a cooling cycle;
FIGURE 3 shows one embodiment of a purging process for each of the tanks of the biomass pretreatment system of FIGURES IA through IH;
FIGURE 4 is a diagram showing another embodiment of biomass pretreatment system in which multiple pretreatment reactors are implemented;
FIGURE 5 is a diagram showing another embodiment of biomass pretreatment system in which multiple pretreatment reactors are implemented in a circular arrangement; and
FIGURE 6 is a time chart showing one embodiment of implementing a pretreatment process using the embodiments of FIGURES 4 or 5.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS
It should be understood at the outset that, although example implementations of embodiments of the invention are illustrated below, the present invention may be implemented using any number of techniques, whether currently known or not. The present invention should in no way be limited to the example implementations, drawings, and techniques illustrated below. Additionally, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.
In practice, optimal heat recovery occurs between two liquids in heat exchangers. Because turbulence can easily be generated in liquids, heat transfer is relatively efficient. When dealing with gases, heat recovery using heat exchangers is also feasible, although heat transfer aids, such as fins, might be needed. In contrast, exchanging heat from solids is difficult, except in specialized cases, such as powders, which have a certain degree of fluidity, and, under certain conditions, allow enough mixing for turbulence to form. Some solids can, however, be easily slurried with an adequately small amount of liquid, which would increase their fluidity and thus allow heat transfer to occur in a heat exchanger. However, other solids, such as fibrous biomass, need a very large amount of liquid for slurrying (>25 times the amount of solid), which, because of the volumes, are cost prohibitive and inconvenient. With such solids, the best way to achieve heat transfer is to allow direct intimate contact of the solid and the heat transfer fluid. For instance, in gasification technology, fluidized bed and entrained gasifiers allow direct contact of the fluid (i.e., air) with the fibrous biomass, allowing efficient heat transfer.
In biomass pretreatment technology, where a hot liquid might be employed (e.g., water), this liquid is the preferred heat transfer fluid. Some heat transfer may be attempted by removing the liquid in the reactor after the pretreatment has occurred and reusing this same liquid in the next pretreatment cycle. However, the heat present in the biomass and the entrained water can not be recovered efficiently. In addition, soluble species released during pretreatment can not be efficiently removed. Accordingly, teachings of certain embodiments recognize the use of displacement extraction where little, if any, axial mixing occurs, allowing recovery of the liquid present in a biomass bed without decreasing the liquid temperature or soluble species concentration. Additionally, teachings of certain embodiments recognize that through the use of several stages, the recovery of both heat and soluble products may be almost complete. Displacement extraction is a process in which differing liquids may displace one another without significant mixing. The displacement extraction process may use a Meichage effect for example, to extract sugar from sugarcane, as described in U.S. Patent No. 5,772,775. Using the Meichage effect, U.S. Patent No. 5,772,775 describes transporting a bed of ground sugarcane from an inlet to an outlet of a horizontal drag conveyor system. The liquid from one particular stage is pumped upwards to flood the bed and displace any air present (i.e., Meichage effect). Then liquid from the next stage is used to displace the liquid present in the bed. This process has been shown to be relatively efficient, attaining relatively good sugar extraction from cane with only three stages compared to 17 to 19 stages needed in conventional diffusers for sugar extraction.
Biomass pretreatment to enhance biodigestibility is often performed in a reactor at high temperatures and pressures in the presence of a liquid (e.g., water) that may contain certain agents, such as acids, alkalis, oxidizers. Efficient heat recovery and, many times, extraction of soluble species generated during pretreatment may be desirable. Accordingly, teachings of certain embodiments recognize the use of displacement extraction, aided by air exclusion (i.e., Meichage effect), to recover heat and soluble species from biomass pretreatment.
As a non-limiting example embodiment, a series of tanks, each representing one stage, may be used to gradually heat or gradually cool down the biomass bed inside a pretreatment reactor. Each time that the liquid present in each tank/stage is sent to the pretreatment reactor, the liquid present in the pretreatment reactor may be allowed to exit and is sent to the next tank/stage. The displacing liquid may flow through the bed as an advancing front similar to the phenomenon that occurs in chromatography columns, where axial mixing ideally does not occur. In this manner, the liquid from the tank may displace the liquid present within the biomass bed at any given time and may allow the exiting liquid to maintain its temperature and soluble species concentration. If the fresh biomass contains natural soluble substances (e.g., sugars, proteins), in particular embodiments, it might be desirable to extract these natural solubles prior to the heating cycle. In addition to conventional methods for extracting natural solubles from crops (e.g., milling, diffusion), a separate set of tanks, arranged in the same fashion as the proposed embodiment for the recovery of heat and soluble species generated during pretreatment, may also be employed.
In particular embodiments, the number of tanks/stages can be any number necessary to attain adequate and cost-effective heat and soluble species recovery. Because of temperature differences, in particular embodiments it may be beneficial to transfer the liquid in such a manner that a denser liquid is located at the bottom of the reactor to avoid undesired liquid buoyancies, which will cause axial mixing. That is, if the liquid in the tank is denser than the liquid in the reactor, it may be introduced at the bottom of the reactor. Conversely, if the liquid in the tank is less dense than the liquid in the reactor, it may be introduced at the top of the reactor.
FIGURES IA through IH show one embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system 10. The biomass pretreatment system 10 generally includes a pretreatment reactor 12 configured to contain a biomass and a number of tanks 14 that are each configured to hold a liquid, such as water, at differing temperatures. As will be described in detail below, the tanks 14 are coupled to the pretreatment reactor 12 through a pump that is operable to alternatively pump liquid from each of the plurality of tanks 14 to the pretreatment reactor 12 such that the temperature of the biomass may be raised and lowered with relatively good efficiency.
Each of FIGURES IA through IH shows a biomass pretreatment process that may be administered on a biomass contained in the pretreatment reactor 12. In
FIGURE IA, a biomass may be loaded into the pretreatment reactor 12 and liquid in each of the tanks 14 elevated to differing temperatures. FIGURES IA through IH generally describes a heating cycle in which the temperature of the biomass may be gradually raised to an elevated temperature. Although specific temperatures and number of tanks and reactors are shown, it should be understood that different temperatures and a different number of tanks and/or reactors may be used in other embodiments.
In FIGURE IB, the liquid from tank 14a is transferred to the reactor to flood the biomass bed and remove air, a process known as the Meichage effect. The liquid in tank 14a is maintained at 4O0C. Because the biomass in the reactor is colder, this may cause the temperature to drop to approximately 30°C.
In FIGURE 1C, the entrained liquid, which is at 300C, is then displaced by liquid in tank 14b that may be at a temperature of 6O0C. The exiting liquid at 300C is directed to the tank 14a, whereas the biomass bed and the liquid in the reactor achieve an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 500C.
In FIGURE ID, the 500C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14c that may be at a temperature of 8O0C. The 5O0C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14b. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 700C. In FIGURE IE, the 700C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14d that may be at a temperature of 1000C. The 700C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14c. The biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 9O0C.
In FIGURE IF, the 900C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14e that may be at a temperature of 1200C. The 9O0C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14d. The biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 1100C.
In FIGURE IG, the 1100C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in the tank 14f that may be at a temperature of 1400C. The 1100C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14e. The biomass bed achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 1300C.
In FIGURE 1 H, pretreatment agents may be added to the pretreatment reactor 12 to bring the reactor to a desired reaction temperature. The pretreatment agent(s) may be added before or after the final heating to the desired temperature, although often it is preferred to add it before to use any heat that might be released from diluting the agent in the liquid.
In one embodiment, the pretreatment process described above may use water as the medium and may occur over a period of approximately 6 hours. In this particular embodiment, water is maintained at 160°C, so the whole system may be pressurized to allow pretreatment at these relatively high temperatures. In one embodiment, steam may be injected into the reactor to raise the temperature to the desired level, but any other appropriate heating mechanism can also be employed.
In another embodiment, the displacement extraction cycle for all the stages may take approximately 30 minutes to complete during heating and during cooling.
This includes the loading of the biomass before heating and the unloading of the biomass after cooling. After loading the biomass, the pretreatment agent(s) (if any), such as acid, alkali, oxidizers, may be added either before or after heat recovery. In some cases, such as when an agent that has an exothermic heat of dilution is used (e.g., quicklime, sulfuric acid), it might be convenient to add it after heat recovery.
This would decrease the heating duty needed from steam or other heating medium. Mixing in the reactor during the pretreatment reaction may be implemented as appropriate (e.g., tumbling, recirculation of liquid through the biomass bed, augering). The number of tanks/stages is six in the embodiment shown in FIGURES IA- IH, although more or fewer tanks/stages may be used.
FIGURES 2A through 2H show the biomass pretreatment system 10 describing one embodiment of a cooling cycle in which the temperature of the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 heated according to the heating cycle of FIGURES IA through IH may be gradually lowered. In FIGURE 2A, the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 is at an elevated temperature of approximately 160°C. After the pretreatment reactor 12 is at the desired temperature and the appropriate pretreatment agents have been added, the reaction occurs for the desired time. During pretreatment, the temperature in the reactor may be controlled by either providing steam or other appropriate heating material or by cooling water, depending on the thermal nature of the pretreatment reaction. After the desired reaction time has passed, the pretreatment is stopped and the cooling cycle commences.
In FIGURE 2B, the 160°C liquid in the reactor is then displaced by liquid in tank 14e that may be at a temperature of 110°C. The 1600C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14f. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 120°C.
In FIGURE 2C, the 120°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14d at a temperature of 9O0C. The 1200C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14e. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 1000C. In one embodiment, liquid at approximately 1600C in tank 14f may have a relatively high concentration of the soluble species extracted from the pretreatment process. To avoid accumulating these soluble products, a certain amount of this liquid may be purged and sent to a suitable downstream processing mechanism. The purged liquid may be replaced with fresh liquid, which could be at ambient temperature or it could be hot fresh liquid generated from heat integration with other units in the bioconversion process. Although tank 14f is shown as being purged in this embodiment at FIGURE 2C, in other embodiments purging may occur directly from the pretreatment reactor 12 instead of transporting the liquid to tank 14f with reference to FIGURE 2B. For example, the reactor 12 may be drained of fluid at FIGURE 2A (after processing) and the remaining steps of FIGURES 2B-2H may proceed.
In FIGURE 2D, the 1000C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14c at a temperature of approximately 700C. The 1000C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14d. The biomass bed may then have an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 800C.
In FIGURE 2E, the 80°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14b at a temperature of approximately 500C. The 800C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14c. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 600C. In FIGURE 2F, the 60°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by liquid in tank 14a at a temperature of approximately 300C. The 600C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to tank 14b. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 400C. In FIGURE 2G, the 40°C liquid in the pretreatment reactor 12 is then displaced by fresh water introduced through a fresh water inlet 16 at approximately 300C. The 400C liquid maintains its temperature and it is sent to the tank 14a. The biomass bed then achieves an intermediate equilibrium temperature of approximately 3O0C. This liquid is sent to tank 14a where it will be used for the next heating cycle. In one embodiment, the biomass in the pretreatment reactor 12 may be saturated with fresh liquid, thus allowing the pretreated biomass to exit the system as a slurry to a downstream bioconversion. In another embodiment, the pretreated biomass may be free of soluble species, in which the downstream bioconversion may not be necessary. In such an embodiment, each displacement, for example as shown in FIGURES 2B- 2F, may pick up soluble species left behind from the immediately preceding displacement. Additionally, in such an embodiment, the fluid leaving the chamber in each respective displacement would have a lesser amount of soluble species than the fluid leaving the chamber in the prior displacement.
In FIGURE 2H, the biomass and any entrained liquid may be unloaded from the pretreatment reactor 12.
FIGURE 3 shows another embodiment of a process for replacing the liquid from the tank 14f. This particular purging process may be used in place of the purging process as shown in FIGURE 2C. After purging the concentrated liquid, some liquid may be transferred sequentially from each tank 14a to tank 14f. Finally, fresh liquid enters the system at tank 14a. In the embodiment described in FIGURE
2, the purging and replacing of the liquid in tank 14f is assumed to decrease the temperature from 1600C to 1400C. At this point, all the temperatures in the tanks 14 are reset to the original temperatures shown in FIGURE 1 and are ready to start a new heating cycle. FIGURE 4 shows another embodiment of a biomass pretreatment system 20 in which multiple pretreatment reactors 12 may be serviced by the tanks 14. In this particular embodiment, seven pretreatment reactors 12 are shown; however, it should be appreciated that any quantity of pretreatment reactors 12 may be used. In this embodiment, two pumps 22 are used to perform the recovery of heat and soluble species. Movement of the liquid from the two pumps 22 may be provided by valves 24 configured on the inlets and outlets of each of the tanks 14 and pretreatment reactors 12.
FIGURE 5 shows another embodiment of the biomass pretreatment system 30 that is similar to the embodiment of FIGURE 4 except that the tanks 14 and pretreatment reactors 12 are configured in a circular arrangement for convenience and compactness.
FIGURE 6 is a time chart showing how the two pumps 22 may be used to service each of the seven pretreatment reactors 12 of FIGURES 4 and/or 5. In one embodiment in which the pretreatment takes 6 hours and the heating and cooling cycle take half hour each, then a 24 hour operation schedule for the biomass pretreatment systems 20 and 30 may be accomplished. This schedule is an example of what could be accomplished as a relatively good layout for operation. It can be seen that the operations have been arranged in such a manner that equipment is operated at a relatively high duty cycle, as at any given time there is always one pretreatment reactor 12 being loaded, heated, cooled and unloaded, while the other pretreatment reactors 12 are engaged in pretreatment.
The biomass pretreatment methods that may potentially employ this system can be (but are not limited to) those that are base catalyzed (ammonia, alkaline- peracetic acid, alkaline peroxide, alkaline-solvent, lime, lime under oxygen pressure, sodium hydroxide), non catalyzed (autohydrolysis, hot water, hot water -pH neutral, steam), acid catalyzed (concentrated or dilute acid using sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, peracetic acid, phosphoric acid, sulfur dioxide), solvent based (organosolv, other solvents), chemical based (peroxide, wet oxidation). This process use extraction displacement to displace liquid in one or more pretreatment reactors 12 where the pretreatment occurs. Two functions may be realized: (1) water-soluble components generated during pretreatment are extracted and (2) heat is recovered. The pretreatment reactors 12 are accompanied by a series of tanks 14, each one representing one extraction or recovery stage, which are filled and emptied sequentially with the liquid being sent through the pretreatment reactors 12 to displace the liquid present there at any given time. This would allow a gradual and thus more efficient cooling and heating of the biomass in the reactor.
Although the present invention has been described with several embodiments, a myriad of changes, variations, alterations, transformations, and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in the art, and it is intended that the present invention encompass such changes, variations, alterations, transformation, and modifications as they fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:
1. A method for heat treatment of a biomass comprising: transporting a first liquid having a first temperature into a pretreatment reactor containing biomass, the first liquid elevating the temperature of the biomass to a second temperature; removing the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor; transporting a second liquid having a third temperature into the pretreatment reactor, the second liquid elevating the temperature of the biomass to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature higher than the second temperature; allowing the biomass in the pretreatment reactor to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process at a temperature of at least the fourth temperature, the pre-treatment reaction process yielding pretreated biomass; and transporting a third liquid into the pretreatment reactor after the pretreatment reaction process, the pretreated biomass elevating the temperature of the third liquid to a fifth temperature.
2. The method of Claim 1 , wherein the first liquid is the third liquid, the temperature of the first liquid removed from the pretreatment reactor containing the biomass is less than first temperature.
3. The method of Claim 1, wherein the third liquid was removed from a second pretreatment reactor having a second biomass, and the third liquid elevated the temperature of the second biomass to a second temperature.
4. The method of Claim 1, further comprising: removing the second liquid from the pretreatment reactor; transporting a fourth liquid into the pretreatment reactor, the fourth liquid elevating the temperature of the biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fourth temperature, and the biomass undergoing a reaction at a temperature of at least the sixth temperature.
5. The method of Claim 4, further comprising: transporting a fifth liquid into the pretreatment reactor after the pretreatment reaction process, the pretreated biomass elevating the temperature of the second liquid to a seventh temperature, the seventh temperature higher than the fifth temperature of the third liquid.
6. The method of Claim 1 , wherein removing the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor is carried out in a displacement extraction process when the second liquid is transported into the pretreatment reactor and displaces the first liquid.
7. The method of Claim 1, further comprising: yielding soluble components in the pretreatment reactor during the pre- treatment reaction process; and capturing at least some of the soluble components in the first liquid when the first liquid is transported back into the pretreatment reactor having the pretreated biomass.
8. The method of Claim 7, further comprising: removing the at least some of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor.
9. A method for heat treatment of a biomass comprising: allowing biomass in a pretreatment reactor to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process, the pre-treatment reaction process yielding pretreated biomass along with soluble components; transporting a first liquid having a first temperature into the pretreatment reactor, the pretreated biomass elevating the first temperature to a second temperature; capturing at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid; removing the at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor; transporting a second liquid having a third temperature into the pretreatment reactor, the pretreated biomass elevating the third temperature to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature being less than second temperature.
10. The method of Claim 9, wherein the temperature of the first liquid after the removing the at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid and the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor is at the second temperature.
11. The method of Claim 9, further comprising: capturing at least another portion of the soluble components in the second liquid; removing the at least another portion of the soluble components in the second liquid and the second liquid from the pretreatment reactor.
12. The method of Claim 11 , wherein the removed first liquid has a higher concentration of soluble components than the removed second liquid.
13. The method of Claim 9, wherein removing the first liquid from the pretreatment reactor is carried out in a displacement extraction process when the second liquid is transported into the pretreatment reactor and displaces the first liquid.
14. The method of Claim 9, further comprising: unloading the pretreated biomass from the pretreatment reactor; loading new biomass into the pretreatment reactor; transporting the second liquid having the fourth temperature into the pretreatment reactor, the second liquid elevating the temperature of the biomass to a fifth temperature; transporting the first liquid having the second temperature into the pretreatment reactor containing the new biomass, the first liquid elevating the temperature of the new biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fifth temperature.
15. The method of Claim 9, further comprising: transporting the second liquid having the fourth temperature into a second pretreatment reactor having a second biomass, the second liquid elevating the temperature of the second biomass to a fifth temperature; transporting the first liquid having the second temperature into the second pretreatment reactor containing the second biomass, the first liquid elevating the temperature of the second biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fifth temperature.
16. The method of Claim 9, further comprising: purging soluble components from one of the at least a portion of the soluble components removed in the first liquid or the pretreatment reactor.
17. A system for heat treatment of a biomass comprising: a pretreatment reactor containing biomass, the pretreatment reactor operable to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process to yield pretreated biomass; a first tank with a first liquid having a first temperature, the first tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and first liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the biomass to a second temperature; a second tank with a second liquid having a third temperature, the second tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and the second liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the biomass to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature higher than the second temperature; a third tank with a third liquid, the third tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and the third liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor after the pretreatment reaction process, the pretreated biomass elevating the temperature of the third liquid to a fifth temperature.
18. The system of Claim 17, wherein the first liquid is the third liquid, and the first tank is the third tank.
19. The system of Claim 17, further comprising: a second pretreatment reactor having a second biomass, the third tank being fluidly coupled to the second pretreatment reactor, and the third liquid elevating the temperature of the second biomass to a second temperature.
20. The system of Claim 17, further comprising: a fourth tank with a fourth liquid, the fourth tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and the fourth liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fourth temperature.
21. The system of Claim 20, further comprising: a fifth tank with a fifth liquid, the fifth tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and the fifth liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor after the pretreatment reaction process, the pretreated biomass elevating the temperature of the fifth liquid to a seventh temperature, the seventh temperature higher than the fifth temperature of the third liquid.
22. The system of Claim 17, wherein the first liquid is operable to removed from the pretreatment reactor in a displacement extraction process when the second liquid is transported into the pretreatment reactor and displaces the first liquid.
23. The system of Claim 17, wherein soluble components are yielded in the pretreatment reactor during the pretreatment reaction process, and the first liquid is operable to capture at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid.
24. A system for heat treatment of a biomass comprising: a pretreatment reactor containing biomass, the pretreatment reactor operable to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process to yield pretreated biomass; a plurality of tanks fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, each of the plurality of tanks containing liquid, the liquid in each of the plurality of tanks being at different temperatures, and the liquid in each of the plurality of tanks operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the biomass; a plurality of second tanks fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, each of the plurality of second tanks containing second liquids, the second liquids in each of the plurality of second tanks being at different temperatures, and the second liquids in each of the plurality of second tanks operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor after the pretreatment reaction process, the pretreated biomass elevating the temperature of each of the plurality of second fluids.
25. The system of Claim 24, wherein at least some of the plurality of second tanks are at least some of the plurality of tanks.
26. The system of Claim 24, wherein the plurality of second tanks are the plurality of tanks.
27. The system of Claim 24, wherein the pretreatment reactor is a plurality of pretreatment reactors.
28. The system of Claim 27, wherein the plurality of second tanks are the plurality of tanks, and the pretreatment reactor are arranged circumferentially around the plurality of tanks.
29. A system for heat treatment of a biomass comprising: a pretreatment reactor containing biomass, the pretreatment reactor operable to undergo a pre-treatment reaction process to yield pretreated biomass along with soluble components; a first tank with a first liquid having a first temperature, the first tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, the first liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor to capture at least a portion of the soluble components in the first liquid, the pretreated biomass elevating the first temperature to a second temperature, and the at least a portion of the soluble components operable to be removed from the pretreatment reactor in the first liquid; a second tank with a second liquid having a third temperature, the second tank fluidly coupled to the pretreatment reactor, and the second liquid operable to be transported into the pretreatment reactor, the pretreated biomass elevating the third temperature to a fourth temperature, the fourth temperature being less than second temperature.
30. The system of Claim 29, wherein the second liquid is operable to capture at least another portion of the soluble components in the second liquid, the at least another portion of the soluble components operable to be removed from the pretreatment reactor in the second liquid.
31. The system of Claim 30 wherein the removed first liquid has a higher concentration of soluble components than the removed second liquid.
32. The system of Claim 29, wherein the first liquid is operable to be removed from the pretreatment reactor in a displacement extraction process when the second liquid is transported into the pretreatment reactor and displaces the first liquid.
33. The system of Claim 29, wherein the pretreated biomass is operable to be unloaded from the pretreatment reactor and new biomass is operable to be loaded into the pretreatment reactor, the second liquid is operable to be transported into the second pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the new biomass to a fifth temperature, and the first liquid is operable to be transported into the second pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the new biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fifth temperature.
34. The system of Claim 29, further comprising: a second pretreatment reactor containing a second biomass, wherein the second tank is fluidly coupled to the second pretreatment reactor, the second liquid operable to be transported into the second pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the second biomass to a fifth temperature, and the first tank is fluidly coupled to the second pretreatment reactor, the first liquid operable to be transported into the second pretreatment reactor to elevate the temperature of the second biomass to a sixth temperature, the sixth temperature higher than the fifth temperature.
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