Total Continues to Actively Promote DME (Dimeth...
TOTAL S.A.
This month, as a member of a Volvo-led consortium, Total is taking part in the
kick-off of the European Union's BioDME project in Stockholm and Piteå, Sweden,
to demonstrate the technical feasibility of the process.
Produced by gasifying black liquor, a pulp manufacturing waste product, the
DME(1) will be transported to service stations in four Swedish cities, including
Stockholm, Göteborg and Piteå, to fuel a pilot fleet of 14 Volvo trucks. This
preliminary stage is crucial before commercial production can be undertaken.
Total will be focusing on fuel specifications, additives and an appropriate
lubricant.
The four-year, EUR 28-million project will run from 2008 to 2012. It is being
jointly funded by the consortium partners(2), the EU Seventh Framework Program
(EUR 8 million) and the Swedish Energy Agency(3).
DME does not produce soot when burned, which significantly reduces emissions and
helps engines meet tougher international standards. Biomass-derived DME will
have an even lower climate footprint, while delivering highly competitive
efficiency in terms of kilometers traveled per hectare.
The project is in line with Total's commitment to developing new energies and
promoting new types of fuel.
(1) Dimethyl ether (DME) is synthesized from natural gas, biomass, coal or heavy
refining byproducts (petcoke). This clean, colorless gas, which is easy to
liquefy and transport, has been primarily used as an aerosol propellant in the
cosmetics industry since the 1960s. Yet DME also offers great potential as a
fuel for industrial and domestic applications (DME/LPG blend), as a fuel for
diesel vehicles, as a petrochemical feedstock to replace naphtha, and in power
generation.
(2) Chemrec, Delphi, ETC, Haldor Topsøe, Preem, Total and Volvo.
(3) For more information on the BioDME project, go to www.biodme.eu.
Total and DME
As part of its actions to promote DME, Total and its Japanese partners
inaugurated a DME production plant in Niigata on Honshu Island, Japan, on
September 3. The 80,000-metric-ton-per-year facility produces DME from imported
methanol.
Relatively undeveloped as a motor fuel at present, DME is expected to become
more widespread as a result of this type of project.
In addition, following trials and tests conducted by the French Petroleum
Institute (IFP), Total's Chinese LPG marketing subsidiary began commercial tests
of LPG/DME blends.
Lastly, Total and its Japanese partners initiated an ISO standardization process
relevant product specification in April 2007, which is expected to take two to
three years to complete. In addition to Japan, China and South Korea, countries
involved in standardization include the United States, Germany, Sweden, Poland
and Turkey.
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Total is one of the world's major oil and gas groups, with activities in more
than 130 countries. Its 96,000 employees put their expertise to work in every
part of the industry - exploration and production of oil and natural gas,
refining and marketing, gas & power and trading. Total is working to keep the
world supplied with energy, both today and tomorrow. The Group is also a first
rank player in chemicals. www.total.com
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