H.C. Starck recently announced a partnership with Clausthaler Umwelttechnik-Institut (Cutec) to develop a new generation of catalyzers and process technology for the production of substitute natural gas from biomass as a renewable energy source. H.C. Starck and Cutec have engineered a range of catalyzers with an oxide base containing cobalt, molybdenum and aluminum, which has reportedly been successfully tested under laboratory and pilot plant conditions. The catalyzers proved to be robust and reclaimable, even under the most unfavorable conditions, having achieved high yields for the synthesis of substitute natural gas.

The use of biomass to generate energy offers many advantages. For instance, the energy supply is not dependent on naturally occurring forces of nature, and can be used to generate heat and electricity. At the same time, it conserves increasingly scarce fossil fuels. When it comes to the gasification of biomass, there has been a lack of economically efficient materials and processes for gas production in the past.

For more information, visit www.cutec.de or www.hcstarck.com.