Virtual Forum Series

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A virtual version of EFI's Forum series featuring authoritative updates from stakeholders on a wide spectrum of emerging energy technologies and processes.

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Aligning Technology Innovation and Policy Pathways in the Energy Transition

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 25 May 2021

US Capitol		Energy Innovation and Carbon Pricing: The Options Being Explored Regulatory and legislative initiatives aimed at the reduction of GHG emissions and carbon intensity, coupled with an increasing emphasis on ESG performance, are likely to play a significant role in the energy transition over the coming years. The EU's "European Green Deal" includes growth strategies aimed at making Europe the first climate-neutral continent, while in the United States recent pledges to cut GHG emissions by more than double previous targets are likely to rely on technology innovation throughout the energy industry. In the United States, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (H.R. 2307) represents one such initiative aiming to encourage market-driven innovation of clean energy technologies. This briefing by three executives with deep expertise across the fossil and renewable fuels and chemicals industries, will outline the regulatory options being considered and their potential impacts for an EFI audience familiar with the emerging energy technology space. The briefing will also provide information about new initiatives such as the AIChE's Energy Innovation Corps enabling industry members to join with other engineers to contribute technical expertise to proposed solutions addressing energy innovation and climate change.

Upcoming Editions

Green Hydrogen and Methanol Pathways Towards Local, Circular Economies

Topsoe Autothermal Reformer

Tore Jeppesen
Senior Vice President
Haldor Topsoe

Electrifying the Fuel and Chemicals Industries

The third of a series of briefings on renewable methanol and various pathways for the production of sustainable fuels and chemicals via the utilization of waste streams, electrolysis hydrogen, and CO2 capture, from an international industry process technology leader.

Haldor Topsoe is involved in a number of projects to demonstrate and commercialize various emerging technologies for the production of green hydrogen and methanol, and small-scale production of fossil methanol. The company's eSMR Methanol demonstration plant in Denmark; an eMethanol plant project with a consortium involving Liquid Wind, Siemens, Nel Hydrogen and Carbon Clean Solutions; a sustainable fuel project involving companies covering the entire value chain for renewable hydrogen, methanol and jet fuel; and the recently announced project in the US utilizing the company's modular, small-scale MeOH-to-Go technology are examples of these technologies and interests driving their deployment.

Recent Editions
Content available online to members

Distributed, Small-Scale CNG, LNG and BioLNG Gas Monetization
Technology Options

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 27 April 2021

Flare-to-fuel via Last Mile Fueling & CNG in a Box pilot Ferus NGF & GE Oil & Gas \| Williston Basin EFI site visit	Trip Bates Managing Director Silver Lake Energy	Enabling the Virtual Pipeline: Modular, Scalable CNG & LNG Technology Options An overview of the processes and technology options employed to provide a virtual pipeline for associated and stranded natural gas, and of lessons learned in the field. The briefing, delivered by executives behind a recently launched consultancy with deep practical expertise obtained from the extensive commercialization of distributed virtual pipeline networks in North America involving a variety of technology options, provides an excellent overview of how this experience is being leveraged to provide solutions for flare gas monetization.
Production routes for bioLNG and green hydrogen Ewen Energy	Jeff Rault CEO Ewen Energy	Adapting Small-Scale LNG for Emerging BioLNG and Low-Cost Green Hydrogen Opportunities A briefing on the development of small- and micro-scale liquefaction packages for application in the expanding bioLNG market by a pioneer responsible for the design, construction and development of some of the first small-scale LNG remote regasification and power plants in North America. Emerging technology opportunities for the production of low-cost green hydrogen from LNG from flares or bioLNG are outlined.
	Daniel Haynes Research Engineer Reaction Engineering Team NETL Christina Wildfire Research Scientist Reaction Engineering Team Leidos	Mitigating Flaring with Microwave Assisted Catalysis An introduction to a project requiring industry input to guide research at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) for the development of technology addressing needs of the natural gas industry. The project's focus is development of a modular, microwave-based catalytic reactor system enabling the direct (non-syngas) conversion of remote natural gas resources into olefins and aromatics at the well head, mitigating flaring and facilitating monetization. The project's team of researchers and industry mentors seek input from a wide range of industry members to gain a better understanding of the key drivers around associated gas flaring, and the decision making process and methods used for emission mitigation.

Recovery & Monetization of Associated Gas & Emissions

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 23 March 2021

ZerO2 flare elimination & vapor recovery system
EcoVapor

Peter Mueller
CEO
EcoVapor

Tank Vapor Recovery for the Monetization of Gas and NGLs

A briefing on the opportunities to reduce well pad emissions and flaring by a company with more than 100 units installed in the field in five major basins in North America, and technology enabling up to 100% gas capture on site along with the monetization of flash gas from storage tanks, instead of being flared.

Bakken basin

John-Henry Charles
Commercial Analyst
Capterio

Not-So-Stranded Gas and the Potential for Profitable Recovery Near Demand Centers

An introduction to key findings from a global analysis published this month that explores the data related to the proximity of all flared gas to gas pipelines and potential demand centers (power stations, petrochemical facilities, LNG terminals, LPG plants) - with interesting and thought-provoking results.

The briefing highlighted a case-study involving flaring being done close to a demand center in Mexico, of particular relevance given recent power outages in the country exacerbated by reductions in imports of natural gas from the United States following power cuts in Texas last month.

Scalable Conversion Technology Routes for Methane-to-Gasoline

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 9 March 2021

Haldor Topsoe gasoline synthesis reactors
World's first natural gas-to-gasoline plant
Turkmengaz GSG-1 plant | Ovadan-Depe, Turkmenistan

Rickard Vannby
Director Licensing
Haldor Topsoe

Synthesis Routes Enabling Synthetic and "Green" Gasoline Production via MTG and STG

An update following the initial year of operation of the world's first and only natural gas-to-gasoline plant, and information about new technical and project developments related to the production of liquid fuel using the Topsoe Improved Gasoline Synthesis (TiGAS) Process.

Innovations related to the production of gasoline from methanol (MTG) and from syngas (STG) were covered, including the ability to increase yields and emerging opportunities and interest in the production of renewable "green" gasoline from biomass-derived syngas.

Scalable Conversion Technology Routes for Methane-to-Gasoline

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 23 February 2021

World's first methanol-to-gasoline plant

Mobil MTG process | Motunui, New Zealand

Fengrong Chen
Technical Sales Manager
Catalysts & Licensing
ExxonMobil

Innovating the Methanol-to-Gasoline Route

An overview of the process and technology innovations being made to a benchmark synthetic fuels process enabling the conversion of fossil and renewable feedstocks to a single high-value, fungible liquid fuel.

ExxonMobil's scalable Methanol-to-Gasoline (MTG) process produces conventional gasoline with virtually no sulphur and low benzene, which can be sold as-is or blended with ethanol, methanol or with petroleum refinery stocks. The presentation will provide an overview of recent developments and design updates to the process and catalyst technology, whose simplicity and scalability keep the process as relevant now as it was when first commercialized thirty-five years ago.

rMeOH and rDME Technology Pathways

Forum Edition | Tuesday, 9 February 2021

World's first rDME production

Chemrec | Pitea, Sweden

Ingvar Landalv
Director
Fuels & Energy Consulting

Greg Dolan
CEO
Methanol
Institute

A briefing by two pioneers in the rMeOH and rDME space and featuring two contributing authors to the joint report on renewable methanol just published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Methanol Institute.

In his previous role as Chief Technology Officer of Chemrec, Ingvar Landalv led production of the world's first rMeOH-to-rDME at the company's plant in Pitea, Sweden, fuel used in heavy-duty vehicle applications as part of the BioDME project.

The IRENA/MI publication - Innovation Outlook: Renewable Methanol - builds upon IRENA's 2013 report on the subject, with a focus on the production of renewable methanol and rDME via both biogas/biomass gasification routes as well as from green hydrogen generated from renewable electricity and CO2 capture/use. The report is being shared with policy leaders and energy system modelers from 161 IRENA member states, and to inform high-level policy discussions on low-carbon options for hard to abate sectors.

First rDME production in the United States
Oberon Fuels | Imperial Valley, California

Elliot Hicks
COO
Oberon Fuels

Oberon Fuels has recently upgraded its existing DME pilot plant to demonstration scale to enable the first production of rDME in the US, with a target production capacity of 1.6 million gallons per year.

Modular and Digital Flare Mitigation, Gas Processing and Emission
Reduction
Forum Edition | Tuesday, 2 February 2021

Digital Flare Mitigation units in the field Crusoe Energy Systems \| Williston Basin	Cully Cavness President Crusoe Energy Systems	Digital Flare Mitigation, Digital Energy Storage & the Digital Pipeline An introduction to Crusoe Energy Systems' scalable, modular assembly enabling the conversion of stranded natural gas to power for consumption in mobile data centers deployed directly to the well site. The company has systems currently operating in the Bakken and Denver Basins, providing pathways to resource monetization and regulatory and environmental compliance in a variety of use cases for both production and exploration scenarios.
Vaporcatcher units in the field Pioneer Energy \| DJ Basin	Eyal Aronoff CEO Pioneer Energy	Flare Mitigation, Gas Processing & Emissions Reduction A comprehensive update from Pioneer Energy on current technology demonstrations and commercial operations involving the company's line of small-scale, modular flare gas monetization and gas processing solutions, modular fractionation systems and Gas-to-Liquids solutions. Projects including the 20 TPD flare gas to methanol facility being designed for a customer in Canada will be covered.

Policy and Technology Initiatives for Flare Reduction -
The 2021 Landscape
Forum Edition | Tuesday, 26 January 2021

Digital Flare Mitigation units in the field Crusoe Energy Systems \| Williston Basin	Zubin Bamji Program Manager GGFR The World Bank	Industry Flaring Facing Increasing Global Attention
Flarecatcher units in the field Pioneer Energy \| DJ Basin EFI site visit	Theo Fleisch Consultant GGFR The World Bank	The Small-Scale Gas Conversion Technology Landscape in 2021

Identification, Measurement, Elimination and Monetization
of Gas Emissions and Flares
Forum Edition | Tuesday, 15 December 2020

Erin Tullos
Environmental Risk Mgmt. Team Lead
ExxonMobil

David Allen
Professor
Chem. Engineering
UT Austin

Project Astra - Advanced Technologies to Detect and Minimize Methane Emissions

A briefing from project leaders on the recently launched project leveraging advanced technologies to significantly improve the ability to measure and minimize methane emissions into the atmosphere from oil and gas production sites. Launched this year, Project Astra is a collaborative effort involving ExxonMobil, Pioneer Natural Resources, the Gas Technology Institute, the Environmental Defense Fund and the University of Texas. The project involves the application of advanced methane-sensing technologies, data sharing and data analytics to enable continuous monitoring of methane emissions across large areas.

Mark Davis
CEO
Capterio

Acceleration and Scale-Up of Gas Flare Monetization Options in the Field

Perspectives and data on the compelling commercial opportunities and strategies being pursued for flare gas monetization from a project developer bringing assets, technologies and financing together for projects in the field.

The briefing will cover a number of significant decarbonization opportunities in CO2-equivalent emissions from flaring, venting and leaking, and an overview of the economic and environmental drivers behind current projects aimed at the identification, elimination and monetization of natural gas methane emissions in oil and gas operations.