Upgrading our Product

While we have been able to show that we can convert naphthenic acids into useful hydrocarbons there is still a lot of compounds in the tailings that will decrease the value of our product as a fuel. These compounds include sulfur and nitrogen containing heterocyclic atoms such as dibenzothiophene (DBT) and carbazole. Normally these compounds are removed through chemical means, but this requires expensive machinery, extreme pressurs and temperatures, and the addition of organic solvents. By using synthetic biology to do this in a simple bioreactor we can save the energy that is required to produce these conditions and reduce the cost of the expensive processes.

We took two main approaches for upgrading our hydrocarbons. The first method focused on reducing the sulfur content of the product through the action of desulfurization. This would prevent the production of toxic sulfur gasses when the hydrocarbons are combusted in an engine. Our second approach uses denitrogenation to remove nitrogen containing compounds from the product. This will reduce the emissions of nitrous oxide gasses that are heavily involved in global warming.

Click on OSCAR to learn more about what he can do!