The Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation has completed the competitive selection of scientific projects carried out by research teams of research centers and (or) scientific laboratories of educational institutions of higher education. The list of universities that will receive grants for the creation of laboratories in 2020 was published yesterday. Among the winners is the project "Catalytic processing of carbon-containing materials into synthetic motor fuels, isoparaffin and poly-alpha-olefin oils", presented by a group of scientists of the Research Institute "Nanotechnologies and New Materials" of YURSPU (NPI) under the leadership of Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor V.M. Chernyshev and Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor A.P. Savostyanov.

Our chemists will start creating a new laboratory for conducting fundamental scientific research at the beginning of the coming year. Their task is to develop a method for obtaining synthesis gas of the required composition from various carbon-containing raw materials (natural and associated petroleum gases, coal, biomass). The relationship between the nature of multifunctional catalysts, their activation methods and process selectivity, group composition and molecular weight distribution of synthesis products will be established. The expected results meet the world level of research and can be used to create new resource-saving technologies for the production of high-quality synthetic motor fuels. "Single-reactor" gas-petrochemical technologies using selective multifunctional catalysts will make it possible to use the currently unclaimed resources of associated petroleum gas, low-yield and remote gas fields, shale and mine methane.

In accordance with the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation, one of the priorities is the transition to environmentally friendly and resource-saving energy, increasing the efficiency of production and deep processing of hydrocarbon raw materials. Currently, the resources of carbon-containing raw materials are practically not in demand, due to the fact that most of the existing technologies for their processing are unprofitable. Russia, which has large reserves of hydrocarbons, should have innovative technologies for their processing. The project of our scientists is aimed at developing industrially acceptable methods for the conversion of carbon-containing materials into environmentally friendly high-octane gasoline, isoparaffin and poly-alpha-olefin oils.

The laboratory "Catalysts and technologies for processing carbon-containing materials" created for the implementation of this project will correspond to the world level of scientific research. The laboratory will create three installations for producing synthesis gas from solid (coal, biomass, etc.) and gaseous raw materials (natural and associated petroleum gases) and four installations for producing hydrocarbons from synthesis gas, including unique flow-circulation installations operating under pressure up to 10 MPa.

For the implementation of its project in 2020, the team of scientists of the YURSPU (NPI) will receive more than 22 million rubles from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.