RIKARBON INC — Department of Energy SBIR Phase I: C56-10d

Description

2-Methylfuran (2MF) is a versatile non-food biomass derived low-carbon number performance advantaged bio-product. It is used for manufacturing green solvent (2-methyltertrahydrofuran (2MeTHF)), UpSycal?oils that RiKarbon is manufacturing for end-use natural and sustainable cosmetics and lubricants, and chemical/pharmaceutical intermediates. Currently fossil-based incumbent solvents such as tetrahydrofuran, dichloromethane, ethyl-tert-butyl ether, and other generic solvents cause life cycle emissions of~2-6 kgeqCO2/kg solvents. Similarly incumbent petroleum-based cosmetic oil (e.g., white mineral oil, cyclo-silicone compounds) and lubricant base oils cause ~3-5 kgeqCO2/kg product. Alternative bio-based 2MF-derived green solvents and products such as 2MeTHF, UpSycal?oils and other chemical/pharmaceutical intermediates can significantly decarbonize this industrial sector. Currently 2MF and its intermediate furfural are majorly produced in China. American companies are largely relying on the Chinese supply chain. For example, RiKarbon Inc is manufacturing bio-based UpSycal?emollients and UpSycal?BioPAO (PAO = poly-a-olefin) for cosmetic and synthetic lubricant products to (i) mitigate regulatory challenges posed on the incumbent petroleum-based products, (ii) deliver alternative safer and natural products to consumers and (iii) reduce carbon emissions. Recently, RiKarbon announced a partnership with BASF to launch its first version of UpSycal?emollient. 2MF is an important raw material for UpSycal?emollients and UpSycal?BioPAO products of total market size ~ $9 billion. RiKarbon currently sources 2MF from Chinese companies. Recent volatility in the supply chain, increased cost-pressure and other ramification is creating challenges to a sustainable and secure bioeconomy in the domestic sector. The proposed 2MF manufacturing in America will enhance a sustainable, safe and secure bioeconomy, decarbonize 2MF and downstream high value bioproducts manufacturing and reduce manufacturing costs by up to 70%. In Phase I, we will develop manufacturing process for 2MF in a process intensified fixed bed flow reactor. We will develop and optimize reaction parameters to produce 2MF with very high selectivity and yield to mitigate separation complexity for the product. We will identify optimal catalyst pallet’s size and shape and perform time-on-stream study. We will generate key kinetic parameters for process modeling and reactor design and fabrication for scale up demonstration. After development of 2MF manufacturing process in Phase I and scale up demonstration, we will integrate it with our current UpSycal? products manufacturing processes. After volume expansion of 2MF, we will sell it to other entities for 2MeTHF and other chemical/pharmaceutical intermediates manufacturing.