Supporting a more sustainable future for determining the bio-carbon content of products from the co-processing of bio-based feedstock

Renewable fuels have been widely developed in recent decades. Products derived from the processing of biological feedstocks have a lower carbon footprint than conventional petroleum products due to the absorption of carbon dioxide during the cultivation phase. Technologies for co-processing petroleum and renewable feedstocks are of particular interest due to their ease of integration into refineries. However, renewable feedstocks are not necessarily allocated to products according to the material balance of processing products separately. There is a problem in determining which part of the renewable carbon has gone into which fractions. This paper provides a comparative description of the methods for determining bioorganic carbon in petroleum products. The article considers the accuracy, technical and technical-economic parameters of both standardized and experimental methods for determining the biocarbon content. The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) method is characterized by high accuracy and a shorter analysis time. However, the cost of the necessary equipment is significantly higher than that of other methods. The Liquid-Solid Chromatography (LSC) method is less precise and more cost-effective but requires a longer analysis time. The Isotope-Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS) method offers a combination of the advantages, yet it is constrained by notable limitations in terms of the identified feedstocks. An assessment of the possibility of introducing such methods at enterprises engaged in co-processing is given, as a result of which the most optimal method for determining biocarbon is the direct LSC method. © 2024 The Institution of Chemical Engineers