IEA Bioenergy - Task 39: Drop in biofuels

the key role that co-processing will play in its production

This update to the 2014 “drop-in” report was commissioned by IEA Bioenergy Task 39 with the goal of updating drop-in biofuels development, reviewing the status of technologies and the progress on the various technical approaches and assessing the challenges and obstacles that continue to restrict the large scale commercialization of drop-in biofuels. As described in the original report, “drop-in” biofuels are defined as “liquid bio-hydrocarbons that are functionally equivalent to petroleum fuels and are fully compatible with existing petroleum infrastructure”.

In this update of the report the technology pathways by which “drop-in” biofuels can be produced, continue to be summarised in the four broad categories below:

• Oleochemical
• Thermochemical
• Biochemical, and
• Hybrid pathways.