Oberon Fuels, Inc.

Reducing anthropogenic methane emissions is a critical challenge for the global community.This presentation will review the chem. processes used to convert waste methane into low- or neg.-carbon intensity renewable fuels and their end-use applications.The technologies discussed act as a mechanism to reduce livestock waste methane emissions while producing a renewable fuel that can displace the composition of fossil propane fuel and enable renewable hydrogen transportation and productionThe strategies discussed explore the potential for mitigating stranded renewable natural gas emissions from livestock operations lacking access to gas pipelines.The life cycle anal. of these technologies was conducted on a well-to-wheel basis utilizing the Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) model to evaluate the energy and environmental effects of the technologies and final fuels.With the present environmental costs of unabated methane emissions, it is shown that when renewable natural gas is converted to DME, the DME carbon intensity can be neg. by as much as -278 gCO2e/MJ.When 20% carbon-neg. DME is blended with propane, a close to 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is achieved.It is also shown that when DME is used as a carrier for hydrogen, it can reduce the life cycle emissions relative to fossil methane production and transportation pathways, as one tanker of DME can transport about four times the amount of hydrogen as a gaseous hydrogen tanker and demonstrate reduced hydrogen leakage.The results provide a useful approach to an economically feasible strategy for reducing stranded methane emissions and enabling renewable fuel transportation, production, and utilization.

What does it take to go from chemist to company co-founder? How can you develop from scientist to startup expert? This talk will discuss transitioning from the bench to the board, and draw on my background in chem., business, and leadership.As a PhD-trained chemist, I?ve used my scientific expertise to launch ventures designed to treat cancer and develop a cleaner alternative to diesel, among others.I will show how my educational background played a key role in helping me develop the skills necessary to pursue these opportunities, and offer advice for those interested in a similar career.

The Oberon Fuels production units use various feedstocks such as biogas, natural gas, and stranded gas to produce 3, 000-10,000 gal of DME per day.These small-scale units enable the development of regional fuel markets that service local customers engaged in regional hauls, bypassing the need for a national infrastructure.As the DME market develops, more small-scale production units will be deployed in each region, and new regions will be added across North America.The Oberon Fuels natural gas to di-Me ether (DME) process consists of three major steps: syngas production, methanol synthesis, and simultaneous DME synthesis and separation via reactive distillationWhile the first two process steps are common in large scale industrial applications, further development of these processes for small scale applications is open for improvement and implementation.Catalytic synthesis of DME coupled with purification is a well researched topic that is both promising and feasible, but has not been industrially implemented to date.DME is a clean-burning (no particulate matter/soot), non-toxic, sulfur-free fuel that has been used for decades as an energy source in China, Japan, Korea, Egypt, and Brazil.No modifications to the internal workings of a diesel engine are necessary when running on DME.DME offers improved performance in diesel engines while meeting strict new emissions standards