System and method for converting biomass into biofuel using geothermal heat technology field

Abstract

A system for converting biomass to biofuel includes a biomass processing station configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester, output the biomass to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, and receive treated biomass from the HTL converter. The system includes a conduit configured to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station to the HTL converter and transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter to the biomass processing station. The HTL converter includes a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from a geothermal heat source to the biomass to convert the biomass to treated biomass. The system also includes a controller configured to monitor a condition of the biomass at locations along the conduit and adjust operation of components along the conduit to thereby adjust the condition of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This application relates generally to the conversion of biomass to biofuels, and more particularly to geothermal biofuel production based on algae and seaweed. [Background technology]

[0002] Algae-derived fuels, often referred to as third generation biofuels, are superior to earlier biofuels based on plant crops, including sugarcane and corn (e.g., "first generation biofuels"), and plant or animal waste (e.g., "second generation biofuels").

[0003] Algal biofuels have advantages including higher biofuel yields compared to conventional systems, a diverse set of fuel types including biodiesel, butanol, ethanol, and jet fuel are possible, and large-scale algal cultures can be deployed in open ponds or more advanced closed-loop systems. Biofuel production from algae is possible on land not suitable for food crops, eliminating concerns that algal biofuel feedstock crops will compete with food producers.

[0004] Algae-based biofuel companies have tried unsuccessfully to chemically engineer algae that can be scaled up to produce tens of millions of gallons of fuel at a price competitive with fossil fuels. Fuel conversion from algae has generally been based on the feedstock's high concentration of lipids, i.e., fatty, oleaginous molecules that can be extracted to produce biofuels. Algae can be converted into various types of fuel, depending on the technology and part of the cell used. The lipid, or oily, portion of the algae biomass can be extracted through processes similar to those used for other vegetable oils and converted into biodiesel or in refineries as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels. Alternatively, after lipid extraction, the carbohydrate content of the algae can be fermented into bioethanol or butanol fuels.

[0005] Biofuels are typically produced from algae by dehydration or hydrothermal liquefaction. Hydrothermal liquefaction involves a continuous process in which harvested wet algae is subjected to high temperatures and pressures, such as 350° C. (662° F.) and 3,000 pounds per square inch (21,000 kPa). Unfortunately, the cost of generating such high temperatures and pressures has traditionally exceeded the value of the resulting algae-based biofuel products. Such products include crude oil, which can be further refined into aviation fuel, gasoline, or diesel fuel using one or more upgrading processes. Other outputs from the conversion process include clean water, gas fuel, or nutrients (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium).

[0006] Despite significant efforts to develop cost-effective and scalable conversion processes, a practical biofuel production system has yet to be realized. Technical challenges remain related to the energy balance of lipid extraction, maintaining suitable growth conditions in open aquatic environments, power consumption, and the enormous amounts of water, CO2, and fertilizers required for algae to photosynthesize fast enough in large quantities.

[0007] Although there have been numerous research efforts to develop algal biofuel production systems, none of the existing production efforts have been able to convert algae into biofuels in a sufficiently scalable and cost-effective manner. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] overview The present application, in various embodiments, addresses the shortcomings in converting biomass, such as algae, into biofuel.

[0009] The systems and methods described herein enable an efficient hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) process that utilizes geothermal energy sources within the ocean and / or underground to thermochemically convert wet algae and / or microalgae to produce liquid energy carriers called "bio-oil," "biofuel," or "bioclude," along with gaseous, aqueous, and / or solid by-products. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In one aspect, a system for converting biomass to biofuel includes a biomass processing station configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester, output the biomass to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, and receive treated biomass from the HTL converter. The system includes a conduit configured to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station to the HTL converter and transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter to the biomass processing station. The HTL converter includes a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from a geothermal heat source to the biomass and convert the biomass to treated biomass. The system further includes a controller configured to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit and adjust operation of one or more components along the conduit to thereby adjust one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit.

[0011] In one embodiment, the system includes one or more sensors disposed in one or more sections of the conduit, allowing the controller to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data associated with the one or more conditions of the biomass from the one or more sensors. The biomass may include algae, and the treated biomass may include bio-oil, bio-crude, and / or bio-fuel. In certain configurations, converting the biomass to the treated biomass includes depolymerizing the biomass into bio-oil. The controller may be configured to coordinate operation of the one or more components to optimize the one or more conditions of the biomass to optimize a quality and / or yield of the treated biomass. The one or more components may include at least one of a pump and a flow control valve. The one or more conditions of the biomass may include a temperature, a temperature change rate, a pressure, a flow rate, a catalyst concentration, and / or a residence time in the HTL converter.

[0012] The geothermal heat source may include a volcano, a volcanic vent, and / or a hydrothermal vent. The HTL converter may be within a body of water and a substantial portion of the conduit may be surrounded by the body of water. The biomass processing station and the biomass harvester may be within proximity to one another within the body of water.

[0013] In another aspect, a method of converting biomass to biofuel includes: receiving biomass from a biomass harvester at a biomass processing station; transporting the biomass from the biomass processing station via a conduit to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, where the HTL converter is located remote from the biomass processing station and near a geothermal heat source; transferring thermal energy from the geothermal heat source to the biomass and converting the biomass to treated biomass; monitoring one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit; adjusting operation of one or more components along the conduit to adjust one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit; and receiving the treated biomass from the HTL converter via the conduit at the biomass processing station.

[0014] In a further embodiment, a system for converting biomass to biofuel includes a biomass processing station configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester, output the biomass to an HTL converter, and receive treated biomass from the HTL converter. The system includes a first conduit configured to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station to the HTL converter and transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter to the biomass processing station. The HTL converter includes a first heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from a superheated fluid to the biomass to convert the biomass to the treated biomass. The system includes a second conduit that transports the superheated fluid from a second heat exchanger proximate to a geothermal heat source to the HTL converter. The second heat exchanger is configured to transfer thermal energy from the geothermal heat source to the superheated fluid. The system further includes a controller configured to perform at least one of the following: i) monitoring one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the first conduit and adjusting operation of one or more components along the first conduit, thereby adjusting one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the first conduit, and ii) monitoring one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit and adjusting operation of one or more components along the second conduit, thereby adjusting one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit.

[0015] Two or more of the features described herein, including in this "Overview" section, may be combined to form an embodiment not specifically described herein. Additionally, although reference may be made herein to examples of systems, methods, and apparatus relating to bioreactors for producing algae or seaweed, such techniques may be applied to bioreactors configured for culturing other organisms or products as well.

[0016] The systems and methods described herein can refine any biomass, including land-based, and plastic waste can also be refined as part of the feedstock. In some embodiments, the primary output of the systems and methods includes biocrude, biofuel, and hydrogen. In the case of hydrogen, the embodiments described herein can provide a set of carbon compound by-products that can be sequestered or applied, for example, to concrete and other industrial materials. Thus, as a platform or process, the systems and methods described herein have the potential to be a carbon-negative solution for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) based on the lack of emissions as a refinery system. In various embodiments, the systems and methods described herein can also produce by-products of other valuable materials, including nitrogen, phosphorus, and potentially a range of rare earth metals such as scandium, or other rare earth elements (REEs), depending on the material being processed. Although a small percentage, this is noteworthy when processing a million tons per day. Another application of the systems and methods described herein could be to provide materials for the materials market, for example, bioplastics. The geothermal and / or hydrothermal liquefaction systems and methods described herein, with their ability to accept waste plastics along with biomass, also serve as recycling solutions. Geothermal-assisted HTL (GeoHTL) refineries (such as those described in connection with the systems and methods herein) can also be located on land, on the sea surface, or under the sea.

[0017] The details of one or more implementations are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary biomass to biofuel conversion process;

[0019] [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram of a controller computer system configured to control the operation of a biomass-to-biofuel conversion system;

[0020] [Diagram 3] Figure 3 shows a system for converting biomass into biofuel using a geothermal heat source;

[0021] [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows another system for converting biomass into biofuel using a geothermal heat source;

[0022] [Diagram 5] Figure 5 shows a further system for converting biomass to biofuel using a geothermal heat source;

[0023] [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows a land-based system that uses a geothermal heat source to convert biomass to biofuel.

[0024] [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows the process of converting biomass into biofuel using a geothermal heat source. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] Like reference numbers in different drawings indicate like elements.

[0026] Detailed explanation

[0027] The present application, in various embodiments, addresses deficiencies in converting biomass, such as algae, to biofuel. The present application describes exemplary systems, methods, and apparatuses that effectively and efficiently perform biomass-to-biofuel conversion by using a geothermal heat source to enable depolymerization of the biomass to bio-oil. The conversion process can be improved by controlling the conditions associated with the biomass during conversion, including controlling the temperature, temperature ramp rate, pressure, catalyst concentration, and / or flow rate of the biomass through the HTL converter, thereby optimizing the yield of bio-oil and / or bio-fuel obtained from the conversion. The optimization can be further enhanced by: monitoring the biomass and / or bio-oil conditions using sensors along the conduits that transport the material to and from the HTL converter, providing the sensor data to a controller using AI and / or ML, processing the sensor data, and dynamically adjusting the operation of various conversion system components to adjust one or more conditions within the conduits and / or the HTL converter, thereby optimizing the quality and / or yield of the biofuel or optimizing the characteristics of the biofuel for a particular use.

[0028] 1 is a diagram of an exemplary biomass-to-biofuel conversion process 100. The conversion process 100 includes a biomass growth stage 102, a harvesting stage 104, a fractionation stage 106, and a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) stage 108. In the biomass growth stage 102, a carbon source (e.g., algae seeds) 110 is combined with at least light 112, water 114, and nutrients 116 to promote growth of biomass (e.g., algae) in, for example, a photobioreactor. Detailed descriptions of onshore, closed-loop, open, and deep-sea photobioreactors are described in: U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 172,407, entitled "Photobioreactor Systems and Methods," U.S. Patent Application No. 17,564,779, filed December 29, 2021, entitled "Photobioreactor Systems and Methods," and U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 564,814, filed December 29, 2021, entitled "Systems and Methods for Deepwater Photobioreactor."

[0029] Once the biomass is formed in the growth stage 102, it is harvested, for example, from the photobioreactor. During harvesting, the harvested biomass may be further fractionated via fractionation stage 106 to reduce the size of the biomass material. The biomass is then depolymerized in the HTL stage 108 to become bio-oil or bio-fuel. By-products of the HTL stage 108 may include CO2-rich gases that can be returned to the biomass growth stage 102 via feedback 124 to enhance the biomass growth process. Other materials such as water and nutrients may be recycled to the biomass growth stage 102 via feedback 126 for more efficient biofuel production. Solid residue 120, including, for example, char, may be extracted from the biofuel in stage 108. Biocrude 122, biofuel, and / or bio-oil may also be extracted for storage, use, or further processing as fuel.

[0030] FIG. 2 includes a block diagram of a computer system 200 for performing computer functions such as the controllers of FIGS. 3, 4, 5, and 6. The exemplary computer system 200 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 202, a memory 204, and an interconnecting bus 206. The CPU 202 may include a single microprocessor or multiple microprocessors to configure the computer system 200 as a multiprocessor system. The memory 204 illustratively includes a main memory and a read-only memory. The computer 200 also includes a mass storage device 208 having, for example, various disk drives, tape drives, and the like. The main memory 204 also includes a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and a high-speed cache memory. In operation, the main memory 204 stores at least a portion of the instructions and data for execution by the CPU 202.

[0031] Mass storage 208 may include one or more magnetic disk or tape drives, or optical disk drives, or solid state memory for storing data and instructions used by CPU 202. At least one component of mass storage system 208, preferably in the form of a disk drive, solid state, or tape drive, stores a database used to process sensor data from sensor array 116 and to run an AI and / or ML engine and / or neural network for controlling biofuel conversion systems 300, 400, and 500. The AI ​​and / or ML engine may implement ANNs and / or deep learning architectures (e.g., deep neural networks, deep belief networks, recurrent neural networks, convolutional neural networks, etc.) to dynamically adjust environmental conditions within the conduits, HTL converters, or other components of systems 300, 400, 500. To achieve automated control of the systems 300, 400, 500, 600, the computer 200 may send control signals to the various components 322, 324, 326, 424, 426, 428, 524, 526, and 528 of the systems 300, 400, 500, or components of the system 600 to open, close, turn on, turn off, adjust flow rates, adjust mixing rates, or adjust cooling rates to optimize biocrude and / or biofuel production within the HTL converter of the systems 300, 400, 500, or 600. The mass storage system 208 may also include one or more drives for various portable media, such as floppy disks, flash drives, compact disk read only memories (CD-ROM, DVD, CD-RW, and variations), memory sticks, or integrated circuit non-volatile memory adapters (i.e., PC-MCIA adapters), to input and output data and code to and from the computer system 200. In some embodiments, the computer 200 and / or the controller 118 may simultaneously control multiple bioreactors via a data network, such as the network 212 .The controller 118 may coordinate operations among the multiple bioreactors to optimize output production and / or yield among the multiple bioreactors. The network 212 may include wireless, ad-hoc, and / or mobile networks supporting the implementation of multiple computing servers in a cloud computing environment. Various environmental sensors and / or multiple biofuel conversion systems, harvesters (e.g., photobioreactors), and biomass processing stations, and / or robots servicing components of these systems may be communicatively connected via the network 212, for example, as Internet-of-Things (IoT) enabled systems and / or devices. In some embodiments, the network 212 may enable the computer 200 and / or the controller 118 to coordinate operations of multiple photobioreactors using predictive analytics, for example, by processing global positioning system (GPS) data and other big data, and coordinating the operation and control of multiple simultaneously operating bioreactors across a geographic region. In certain embodiments, the network 212 can enable, for example, the collection of GPS data from multiple bioreactors and ML programs can be used to improve the safety and / or performance of biofuel production on land or at sea.

[0032] The computer system 200 may also include one or more input / output interfaces for communication, illustratively shown as an interface 210 and / or transceiver for data communication over a network 212. The data interface 210 may be a modem, an Ethernet card, or other suitable data communication device. To provide the functionality of the computer 102, the data interface 210 may provide a relatively high speed link, directly or through another external interface, to a network 212, such as an intranet or the Internet. The communication link to the network 212 may be, for example, optical, wired, or wireless (e.g., via a satellite or cellular network). Alternatively, the computer system 200 may include a mainframe or other type of host computer system capable of web-based communication over the network 212. The computer system 200 may include software for operating network applications, such as a web server and / or a web client.

[0033] Computer system 200 may also include appropriate input / output ports, which may interface with portable data storage devices, or computer system 200 may use interconnect bus 206 for interconnection with a local display 216 and keyboard 214, etc., which serve as a local user interface for programming and / or data retrieval purposes. Display 216 and / or display 120 may include touch screen functionality that allows a user to interface with system 200 by touching a portion of the surface of display 216. Remote operators may interact with system 200 to control and / or program the system from a remote terminal via network 212.

[0034] Computer system 200 may execute various application programs and store associated data in a database in mass storage system 208. One or more such applications may include biofuel conversion controllers 344, 450, 550, and 612 that control various components of systems 300, 400, 500, and 600 during the biofuel conversion process.

[0035] Components included in computer system 200 may enable the computer system to be used as a server, a workstation, a personal computer, a network terminal, a mobile computing device, and the like. As discussed above, computer system 200 may include one or more applications that enable cleaning and sanitizing one or more footwear soles. System 200 may include software and / or hardware that implements a web server application. Web server applications may include software in HTML, XML, WML, SGML, PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor), CGI, and other languages.

[0036] The aforementioned features of the present disclosure may be implemented as software components operating within the system 200, when the system 200 includes a UNIX workstation, a Windows workstation, a LINUX workstation, or other type of workstation. Other operating systems may be employed, such as, but not limited to, Windows, MAC OS, LINUX. In some embodiments, the software may be optionally implemented as a computer program written in C language or any high-level language, including, but not limited to, JavaScript, Java, CSS, Python, PHP, Ruby, C++, C, Shell, C#, Objective-C, Go, R, TeX, VimL, ​​Perl, Scala, CoffeeScript, Emacs Lisp, Swift, Fortran, or Visual BASIC. Specific script-based programs may be employed, such as XML, WML, PHP, etc. The system 200 may use a digital signal processor (DSP).

[0037] As previously mentioned, the mass storage device 208 may include a database. The database may be any suitable database system, including the commercially available Microsoft® Access database, and may be a local or distributed database system. The database system may implement Sybase and / or SQL Server®. The database may be supported by any suitable persistent data memory, such as a hard disk drive, a RAID system, a tape drive system, a floppy diskette, or other suitable system. It should be understood that while the system 200 may include a database that is integrated with the system 200, in other embodiments the database and the mass storage device 208 may be external elements.

[0038] In certain embodiments, system 200 may include an Internet browser program and / or may be configured to operate as a web server. In some configurations, the client and / or web server may be configured to recognize and interpret various network protocols that may be used by the client or server programs. Commonly used protocols include, for example, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Telnet, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), Transport Layer Security (TLS), etc. However, new protocols and revisions to existing protocols may be introduced frequently. Thus, new revisions of server and / or client applications may be continually developed and released to support new and revised protocols.

[0039] Computer system 200 may include a web server running Web 2.0 applications, etc. Web applications running on system 200 may use server-side dynamic content generation mechanisms, such as, but not limited to, Java Servlets, CGI, PHP, or ASP. In certain implementations, mashed-up content may be generated by a web browser running client-side scripts, including, but not limited to, JavaScript and / or applets on a wireless device.

[0040] In certain implementations, the system 200 and / or the controller 118 may include applications employing technologies such as Asynchronous JavaScript+XML (Ajax) that use asynchronous loading and content presentation techniques. These technologies may include, but are not limited to, XHTML and CSS for style presentation, Document Object Model (DOM) APIs exposed by web browsers, asynchronous data exchange of XML data, web browser side scripting (e.g., JavaScript), etc. Certain web-based applications and services may utilize web protocols including, but not limited to, Service-Oriented Access Protocol (SOAP) and Representational State Transition (REST). REST may utilize HTTP with XML.

[0041] System 200 may also provide enhanced security and data encryption. Enhanced security may include access control, biometric authentication, cryptographic authentication, message integrity checks, encryption, digital rights management services, and / or other similar security services. Security may include protocols such as IPSEC and IKE. Encryption may include, but is not limited to, DES, 3DES, AES, RSA, and public or private key based schemes.

[0042] 3 illustrates a system 300 for converting biomass to biofuel using a geothermal heat source 302. The system 300 includes a biomass processing station 304 configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester 306 and output the biomass to an HTL converter 308. The processing station 304 also receives treated biomass from the HTL converter 308. The system 300 uses a conduit 310 to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station 304 to the HTL converter 308 and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter 308 to the biomass processing station 304. The HTL converter 308 includes a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from the geothermal heat source 302 to the biomass transported through the conduit 310 to convert the biomass to treated biomass. System 300 also includes a controller 344 configured to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 310 via sensors 314, 316, 318, and 320, and to adjust the operation of one or more components 322, 324, and 326 along conduit 310, thereby adjusting one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 310.

[0043] The conditions monitored by the sensors 314-320 may include, but are not limited to, temperature, temperature rate of change, pressure, flow rate, catalyst concentration, and / or residence time of the biomass in the HTL converter 308. The controller 344 may monitor one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data related to the one or more conditions of the biomass from one or more of the sensors 314-320. The biomass may include algae, while the treated biomass may include bio-oil, bio-crude, and / or bio-fuel. The conversion of the biomass to bio-fuel may include depolymerization of the biomass to bio-oil.

[0044] In various embodiments, controller 344 is configured to adjust the operation of one or more of components 322, 324, and 326 to optimize the conditions of the biomass and, thereby, optimize the quality and / or yield of the treated biomass. Components 322 and 324 may include flow regulators (e.g., pumps and / or flow control valves, etc.). The pump may be a variable speed pump for adjusting the flow rate in conduit 310. The flow control valve may be adjustable to adjust the flow rate in conduit 310. Heat exchanger 326 may be controlled by controller 344 to adjust the output temperature from heat exchanger 326 before the treated biomass, e.g., biofuel, is returned to processing station 304. Heat exchanger 326 may receive cooling water at a temperature set by the depth of water inlet 328 and may pass water to extract heat from the treated biomass that also passes through heat exchanger 326 via conduit 310. The flow rate of the cooling water through the heat exchanger 326 may be regulated by a flow regulator controlled by the controller 344. The heated cooling water is then discharged into the surrounding body of water 340, e.g., the ocean. In this manner, the temperature of the treated biomass is reduced prior to processing in the processing station 304. Although not shown in FIG. 3, the controller 344 is in electrical communication with the sensors 314-320 and components 322-326, e.g., via electrical conduits, to enable electrical communications related to controlling the condition of the biomass in the system 300.

[0045] Geothermal heat source 302 may include, but is not limited to, a volcano, a volcanic vent, or a hydrothermal vent. Although HTL converter 308 is shown adjacent to geothermal heat source 302, HTL converter 308 may extend through geothermal heat source 302 and into earth 338 below ocean floor 336. HTL converter 308 may include a portion of conduit 310 that extends through and / or near source 302. The location of HTL converter 308 relative to source 302 may depend on the desired amount of heat exchange and temperature required to convert biomass to processed biomass. HTL converter 308 may include a length of pipe (i.e., a portion of conduit 310) that extends through the area of ​​geothermal heat source 302. The pipe may be substantially straight, U-shaped, serpentine, and / or curved in certain portions. The HTL converter 308 may include multiple parallel pipes and / or capillaries having a common inlet and outlet that interface with the conduit 310 .

[0046] As shown in Figure 3, the HTL converter 308 may reside in a body of water 340, such as an ocean, where a substantial portion of the conduit 310 may be surrounded by the body of water 340. Although Figure 3 shows the harvester 306 and biomass processing station 304 on land 322, the biomass processing station 304 and the biomass harvester 306 may reside near one another in the body of water 340. The biomass processing station 304 may be located on a vessel, rig, or platform on the body of water 340. The harvester 306 may include one or more photobioreactors or deep sea photobioreactors that are in the body of water 340 and near the system 300 and / or station 304. The harvester 306 may be about 5 miles (about 8 Km) or less, about 3 miles (about 4.8 Km) or less, about 1 mile (about 1.6 Km) or less, about 0.5 miles (about 0.8 Km) or less, or about 0.25 miles (about 0.4 Km) or less from the system 300 and / or biomass processing station 304.

[0047] In certain embodiments, the controller 344 is configured to enable automated control of the components 322, 324, and 326 of the biofuel conversion system 300. The controller 344 may include a processor implementing artificial intelligence (AI) and / or machine learning (ML), neural networks, Bayesian networks, and / or fuzzy logic to process sensor data received from one or more of the sensors 314-316 and control various biomass parameters of the system 300, including, but not limited to, biomass flow rate, temperature, temperature change rate, nutrient concentration, pH level, dissolved gas concentration, and / or residence time within the HTL converter 308. The controller 344 may implement artificial neural networks (ANNs) and / or deep learning architectures (e.g., deep neural networks, deep belief networks, recurrent neural networks, convolutional neural networks, etc.) to dynamically adjust the biomass and / or conduit 310 conditions within the systems 300, 400, 500, and 600. The controller 344 may implement supervised learning, reinforcement learning, and / or unsupervised learning. Reinforcement learning may include optimization based on game theory, control theory, operations research, information theory, and / or simulation to dynamically adjust the conditions of the biomass and / or conduit 310 in the systems 300, 400, 500, and 600. The growing and / or conversion environment of the system 300 may be represented as a Markov decision process (MDP). The controller 344 may create multiple decision trees to solve multiple conversion optimization problems. The controller 344 may use a Bayesian network to optimize the biomass to biofuel conversion process.

[0048] The controller 344 may use one or more neural networks, such as a multi-layer perceptron (MLP), a convolutional neural network (CNN), or a deep Boltzmann machine (DBM), trained to compute a function that maps an input vector to an output vector. The N-element output vector may convey an estimate of the probability of the N biomass conversion configurations. In some implementations, the controller 344 uses a recurrent neural network (RNN), whose neurons send feedback signals to each other to enable dynamic temporal behavior. The controller 344 may use an extended RNN called a long short-term memory (LSTM) and / or a hierarchical temporal memory (HTM). The controller 344 may combine the aforementioned AI algorithms to form a hybrid control system. A decision tree is a general term that describes a decision process that may use one or more attributes at each node and / or use information-theoretic measures to formulate queries at each node to arrive at a decision regarding the optimal biomass conversion configuration for producing biofuel using the system 300, 400, 500, or 600.

[0049] In operation in some embodiments, the biomass processing station 304 receives biomass from the biomass harvester 306. A conduit 310 transports the biomass from the biomass processing station 304 to an HTL converter 308, which is remote from the biomass processing station 304 and proximate the geothermal heat source 302. One or more pumps, flow regulators 322, and / or flow regulators 324 in the processing station 304 can be operated to facilitate transport of the biomass through the conduit 310. In the HTL converter 308, thermal energy is transferred from the geothermal heat source 302 to the biomass such that the biomass is converted to treated biomass, e.g., biocrude. A controller 344 may monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit 310 via sensors 314-320 and, in response to sensor data received from one or more of sensors 314-320, may adjust operation of one or more components 322, 324, and 326 along the conduit 310 to adjust one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit 310. The treated biomass from the HTL converter 308 is then received at the biomass processing station 304 via conduit 310. The treated biomass may then be discharged from the biomass processing station via outlet 342 to a storage facility or further processing facility. The biomass processing station may include or be part of a fuel refinery.

[0050] Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a thermal depolymerization process used to convert wet biomass and other polymers into crude oil at moderate to high temperatures and pressures. The crude oil may have a low heating value, for example 33.8-36.9 MJ / kg, and a high energy density with 5-20% by weight of oxygen and renewable chemicals. The reaction may include homogeneous and / or heterogeneous catalysts to improve product quality and yield. Carbon and hydrogen from organic materials such as biomass can be thermochemically converted to hydrophobic compounds with low viscosity and high solubility. Depending on the processing conditions, biofuels can be used in large engines, including marine and rail, or upgraded to transportation fuels such as diesel, gasoline, or jet fuel.

[0051] In the hydrothermal liquefaction process, the long carbon chain molecules in the biomass are pyrolyzed and oxygen is removed in the form of H2O (dehydration) and CO2 (decarbonation). These reactions produce bio-oil with a high H / C ratio, where H / C = (wt% hydrogen / atomic wt hydrogen) / (wt% carbon / atomic wt carbon). A typical embodiment of hydrothermal liquefaction involves operating the catalyst at a temperature of 250-550°C and a high pressure of 5-25 MPa for 20-60 minutes. However, in certain embodiments, the controller 344 may adjust the temperature in the HTL converter 308 and / or conduit 310 higher or lower to optimize the gas or liquid yield of the treated biomass. At these temperatures and pressures, the water present in the biomass may be sub- or supercritical depending on the conditions and may act as a solvent, reactant, and catalyst to facilitate the reaction of the biomass to treated biomass, e.g., bio-oil.

[0052] The controllers 344, 450, 550, and 612 may control the biomass to bio-oil conversion parameters based on controlling one or more of various conditions including feed composition, temperature and heating rate, pressure, flow rate, solvent composition, residence time in the HTL converter 308, and catalyst composition. In some configurations, the controller 344 may control the residence time in the HTL converter 308 by controlling the biomass flow rate through the HTL converter 308. For example, if the length of the conduit 310 of the HTL converter 308 is 200 m, the controller 344 may set the operation of the flow regulator 322, for example, to set the biomass flow rate through the HTL converter 308 to 10 m / min. This results in a biomass residence time in the HTL converter of 20 minutes, which is equal to the distance of 200 m divided by the flow rate (10 m / min). The residence time of the biomass in the HTL converter 308 may be about 60 minutes or less, 40 minutes or less, 20 minutes or less, 10 minutes or less, 5 minutes or less, 1 minute or less. The controller 344 may adjust the residence time based on reaction conditions, such as, but not limited to, feedstock, solvent ratio, and temperature. In certain embodiments, optimizing the residence time allows for complete depolymerization of the biomass without further reaction.

[0053] The reaction temperature in the HTL converter 308 determines the depolymerization of biomass to bio-oil along with the repolymerization of biomass to char. The ideal reaction temperature depends on the feedstock used, but temperatures above the ideal will lead to increased char production and therefore increased gas production, while temperatures below the ideal will reduce depolymerization and overall product yield. In various embodiments, the controller 344 automatically determines the optimal conditions to produce optimal biofuel quality and / or yield.

[0054] The controller 344 may also control the heating rate of the biomass in the HTL converter 308, potentially controlling the effects of secondary reactions that may dominate if the heating rate is too low, which may lead to the formation of char. Although a high heating rate may be required to form liquid bio-oil, the controller 344 may set a threshold heating rate and temperature at which secondary reactions favor gas production while suppressing liquid production. The controller 344 may adjust the pressure along with the temperature to determine the supercritical or subcritical state of the solvent, the overall reaction kinetics, and / or the energy input required to produce the desired treated biomass, e.g., biofuel.

[0055] Although water acts as a catalyst for the HTL reaction, other catalysts can be added to the HTL converter 308 and / or conduit 310 to optimize the conversion of biomass to biofuel. The system 300 may also include catalysts having water-soluble inorganic compounds and salts including KOH and Na2CO3, and / or transition metal catalysts using Ni, Pd, Pt, and Ru supported on either carbon, silica, or alumina in the HTL converter 308 and / or conduit 310. Adding these catalysts can increase the bio-oil yield by 20% or more, for example, as the catalysts convert proteins, cellulose, and hemicellulose to oil.

[0056] Biofuels produced by hydrothermal liquefaction are carbon neutral in that there are no net carbon emissions produced when the biofuel is burned. The algae used to produce bio-oil grow using photosynthesis, thus consuming carbon dioxide from the ocean and / or atmosphere. When biofuels produced from algae or other plants are burned, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. However, this is almost completely offset by the carbon dioxide consumed by growing the algae or plants. Furthermore, hydrothermal liquefaction is a clean process and does not produce harmful compounds such as ammonia, NOx, or SOx. Instead, heteroatoms such as nitrogen, sulfur, and chlorine are converted into harmless by-products, including N2 and inorganic acids that can be neutralized with base.

[0057] FIG. 4 illustrates a system 400 that uses a geothermal heat source 402 to convert biomass to biofuel. However, the system 400 uses a second conduit 412 and a heat exchanger 434 to capture thermal energy from the geothermal heat source 402. The conduit 412 transfers the thermal energy using a superheated fluid to an HTL converter 408 to convert the biomass to processed biomass (e.g., biofuel). By using the second conduit 412 and the heat exchanger 434, the system 400 is configured to control the temperature in the HTL converter 408 by controlling the temperature of the superheated fluid transported in the second conduit 412 to the HTL converter 408. The controller 450 controls the temperature and / or flow rate of the superheated fluid in the conduit 412 by controlling the operation of the flow regulator 438 and the temperature regulator 440. The flow regulator 438 may operate similarly to, and may have similar components as, the flow regulators 322 and 324. Temperature regulator 440 may include a heat exchanger, such as heat exchanger 326, and may include components, such as heat exchanger 326. Controller 450 may control the flow rate of cooling water through regulator 440 to control the temperature of the superheated fluid exiting regulator 440 and then delivered to HTL converter 408.

[0058] The system 400 includes a biomass processing station 404 configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester 406 and then output the biomass to an HTL converter 408. The processing station 404 also receives treated biomass from the HTL converter 408. The system 400 uses a first conduit 410 to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station 404 to the HTL converter 408 and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter 408 to the biomass processing station 404. The biomass processing station 404 can output the treated biomass via an outlet 452 to a storage facility and / or a processing facility for further processing. The HTL converter 408 includes a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from the superheated fluid in the conduit 412 to the biomass transported through the conduit 410 to convert the biomass to treated biomass. The superheated fluid is heated by a geothermal heat source 402 via a heat exchanger 434. Controller 450 is configured to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 410 via sensors 414, 416, 418, 420, and 422, and to adjust the operation of one or more components 422, 424, and 426 along conduit 410, thereby adjusting one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 410.

[0059] The conditions monitored by sensors 414-422 may include, but are not limited to, temperature, temperature rate of change, pressure, flow rate, catalyst concentration, and / or residence time of the biomass in the HTL converter 408. The controller 450 may monitor one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data related to the one or more conditions of the biomass from one or more of the sensors 414-422. The biomass may include algae, while the processed biomass may include bio-oil, bio-crude, and / or bio-fuel. The conversion of the biomass to bio-fuel may include depolymerization of the biomass to bio-oil.

[0060] In various embodiments, controller 450 is configured to adjust the operation of one or more of components 424, 426, and 428 to optimize the conditions of the biomass and, thereby, optimize the yield of the treated biomass. Components 424 and 426 may include flow regulators (e.g., pumps and / or flow control valves, etc.). The pump may be a variable speed pump for adjusting the flow rate in conduit 410. The flow control valve may be adjustable to adjust the flow rate in conduit 410. Heat exchanger 428 may be controlled by controller 450 to adjust the output temperature from heat exchanger 428 before the treated biomass, e.g., biofuel, is returned to processing station 404. Heat exchanger 428 may receive cooling water at a temperature set by the depth of water inlet 430 and may pass water to extract heat from the treated biomass that also passes through heat exchanger 428 via conduit 410. The flow rate of the cooling water through heat exchanger 428 may be regulated by a flow regulator controlled by controller 450. The heated cooling water is then discharged via outlet 432 into the surrounding body of water 442, e.g., the ocean. In this manner, the temperature of the treated biomass is reduced prior to processing in processing station 404. Although not shown in FIG. 4, controller 450 is in electrical communication with sensors 414-422 and 436, and components 322-328 and 438-440, e.g., via electrical conduits, to enable electrical communications related to controlling the condition of the biomass in system 400.

[0061] In various embodiments, the controller 450 monitors one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit 412 via the sensor 436 and adjusts the operation of one or more components 438 and 440 along the second conduit 412 to adjust one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit 410. By adjusting the temperature of the superheated fluid in the conduit 412, the temperature in the HTL converter 408 can be set to a desired temperature to promote more efficient HTL conversion of biomass to biofuel in the conduit 410. One of the technical advantages of the system 400 is that the temperature of the superheated fluid in the HTL converter 408 can be adjusted in a more consistent manner regardless of possible fluctuations in the thermal energy output from the geothermal heat source 402. The controller 450 may utilize AI applications and / or deep learning techniques described with respect to the systems 200 and 300 to automatically control and optimize biofuel production in the system 400.

[0062] As shown in Figure 4, the HTL converter 408 may reside in a body of water 442, such as an ocean, where a substantial portion of the conduit 410 may be surrounded by the body of water 442. Although Figure 4 shows the harvester 406 and biomass processing station 404 on land 444, the biomass processing station 404 and the biomass harvester 406 may reside near one another in the body of water 444. The biomass processing station 404 may be located on a vessel, rig, or platform on the body of water 442. The harvester 406 may include one or more photobioreactors or deep sea photobioreactors in the body of water 442 and in proximity to the system 400 and / or station 404. The harvester 406 may be about 5 miles (about 8 Km) or less, about 3 miles (about 4.8 Km) or less, about 1 mile (about 1.6 Km) or less, about 0.5 miles (about 0.8 Km) or less, or about 0.25 miles (about 0.4 Km) or less from the system 400 and / or biomass processing station 404.

[0063] Although the heat exchanger 434 is shown adjacent to the geothermal heat source 402, the heat exchanger 434 may extend through the geothermal heat source 402 and into the earth 448 below the ocean floor 446. The heat exchanger 434 may include a portion of the conduit 412 that extends through and / or near the source 402. The location of the heat exchanger 434 relative to the source 402 may depend on the desired amount of heat exchange and temperature required to convert the biomass to processed biomass. The heat exchanger 434 may include a length of pipe (i.e., a portion of the conduit 412) that extends through the area of ​​the geothermal heat source 402. The pipe may be substantially straight, U-shaped, serpentine, and / or curved in some portions. The heat exchanger 434 may include multiple parallel pipes and / or capillaries having a common inlet and outlet that interface with the conduit 412. Conduit 410 and / or conduit 412 may comprise one or more sections of pipe comprising at least one of tungsten and titanium.

[0064] In some embodiments, the system 400 may interface with a geothermal source that emits temperatures up to 900° C. The conduit 412 may use a much larger diameter pipe than the traditional 200 mm used on oil rigs. In some embodiments, the superheated fluid includes a supercritical CO2 (SCCO2) fluid. Supercritical CO2 has properties intermediate between a gas and a liquid. It flows like a liquid even at pressures of 100 atmospheres or more, but its volumetric density is inversely proportional to temperature, so it can be ten times less dense while still behaving like a liquid. Conventional enhanced geothermal systems operate at temperatures as low as 200° C. to 300° C., and the complexity of these conventional systems makes them less practical. In some embodiments, the system 400 uses a higher temperature fluid in the conduit 412, including, for example, a SCCO2 fluid, which provides more efficient high temperature geothermal operation and biomass conversion. In some embodiments, the volumetric density change of the SCC02 fluid means that the flow rate in conduit 412 must maintain the mass flow, which is approximately 0.7844 g / cc at 50° C. and 200 bar, and 0.1244 g / cc at 550° C.

[0065] 5 illustrates a system 500 for converting biomass to biofuel and generating electrical power using a geothermal heat source 502. In addition to including a biomass processing station 504, system 500 includes a power turbine 556 and a generator 558 configured to output electrical power via a power outlet 560. The electrical power generated via generator 558 may be used to power an external load and / or to power one or more components of system 500.

[0066] The system 500 includes a biomass processing station 504 configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester 506 and then output the biomass to an HTL converter 508. The processing station 504 also receives treated biomass from the HTL converter 508. The system 500 uses a first conduit 510 to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station 504 to the HTL converter 508 and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter 508 to the biomass processing station 504. The biomass processing station 504 can output the treated biomass via an outlet 554 to a storage facility and / or a processing facility for further processing. The HTL converter 508 includes a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from the superheated fluid in the conduit 512 to the biomass transported through the conduit 510 to convert the biomass to treated biomass. The superheated fluid is heated by a geothermal heat source 502 via a heat exchanger 534. Controller 550 is positioned to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 510 via sensors 514, 516, 518, 520, and 522, and to adjust the operation of one or more components 522, 524, and 526 along conduit 510, thereby adjusting one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 510.

[0067] The conditions monitored by sensors 514-522 may include, but are not limited to, temperature, temperature rate of change, pressure, flow rate, catalyst concentration, and / or residence time of the biomass in the HTL converter 508. The controller 550 may monitor one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data related to the one or more conditions of the biomass from one or more of the sensors 514-522. The biomass may include algae, while the treated biomass may include bio-oil, bio-crude, and / or bio-fuel. The conversion of the biomass to bio-fuel may include depolymerization of the biomass to bio-oil.

[0068] In various embodiments, controller 550 is configured to adjust the operation of one or more of components 524, 526, and 528 to optimize the conditions of the biomass and, thereby, optimize the yield of the treated biomass. Components 524 and 526 may include flow regulators (e.g., pumps and / or flow control valves, etc.). The pump may be a variable speed pump for adjusting the flow rate in conduit 510. The flow control valve may be adjustable to adjust the flow rate in conduit 510. Heat exchanger 528 may be controlled by controller 550 to adjust the output temperature from heat exchanger 528 before the treated biomass, e.g., biofuel, is returned to processing station 504. Heat exchanger 528 may receive cooling water at a temperature set by the depth of water inlet 530 and may pass water to extract heat from the treated biomass that also passes through heat exchanger 528 via conduit 510. The flow rate of the cooling water through heat exchanger 528 may be regulated by a flow regulator controlled by controller 550. The heated cooling water is then discharged via outlet 532 into the surrounding body of water 562, e.g., the ocean. In this manner, the temperature of the treated biomass is reduced prior to processing in processing station 504. Although not shown in FIG. 5, controller 550 is in electrical communication, e.g., via electrical conduits, with sensors 514-522, 536, and 542, and components 522-528 and 538-540, to enable electrical communications related to controlling the condition of the biomass in system 500.

[0069] In various embodiments, the controller 550 monitors one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit 512 via sensors 536 and 542 and adjusts the operation of one or more components 538 and 540 along the second conduit 512 to adjust one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit 510. By adjusting the temperature of the superheated fluid in the conduit 512, the temperature in the HTL converter 508 can be set to a desired temperature to promote more efficient HTL conversion of biomass to biofuel in the conduit 510. One of the technical advantages of the system 500 is that the temperature of the superheated fluid in the HTL converter 508 can be adjusted in a more consistent manner regardless of possible fluctuations in the thermal energy output from the geothermal heat source 502. The controller 550 may utilize AI applications and / or deep learning techniques described with respect to systems 200 and 300 to automatically control and optimize biofuel production in the system 500. The superheated fluid in conduit 512 may also be used to drive a turbine 556, which in turn may drive a rotor in a generator 558 to generate electricity.

[0070] 5, the HTL converter 508 may reside in a body of water 562, such as an ocean, where a substantial portion of the conduit 510 may be surrounded by the body of water 562. Although FIG. 5 shows the harvester 506 and biomass processing station 504 on land 546, the biomass processing station 504 and the biomass harvester 506 may reside near one another in the body of water 562. The biomass processing station 504 may be located on a vessel, rig, or platform on the body of water 562. The harvester 506 may include one or more photobioreactors or deep sea photobioreactors in the body of water 562 and near the system 500 and / or station 504. The harvester 506 may be about 5 miles (about 8 Km) or less, about 3 miles (about 4.8 Km) or less, about 1 mile (about 1.6 Km) or less, about 0.5 miles (about 0.8 Km) or less, or about 0.25 miles (about 0.4 Km) or less from the system 500 and / or biomass processing station 504.

[0071] Although the heat exchanger 534 is shown adjacent to the geothermal heat source 502, the heat exchanger 534 may extend through the geothermal heat source 502 and into the earth 552 below the ocean floor 548. The heat exchanger 534 may include a portion of the conduit 512 that extends through and / or near the source 502. The location of the heat exchanger 534 relative to the source 502 may depend on the desired amount of heat exchange and temperature required to convert the biomass to processed biomass. The heat exchanger 534 may include a length of pipe (i.e., a portion of the conduit 512) that extends through the area of ​​the geothermal heat source 502. The pipe may be substantially straight, U-shaped, serpentine, and / or curved in some portions. The heat exchanger 534 may include multiple parallel pipes and / or capillaries having a common inlet and outlet that interface with the conduit 512. Conduit 510 and / or conduit 512 may comprise one or more sections of pipe comprising at least one of tungsten and titanium.

[0072] In some embodiments, the system 500 may interface with a geothermal source that emits temperatures up to 900° C. The conduit 512 may use a much larger diameter pipe than the traditional 200 mm used on oil rigs. In some embodiments, the superheated fluid includes a supercritical CO2 (SCCO2) fluid. Supercritical CO2 has properties intermediate between a gas and a liquid. It flows like a liquid even at pressures of 100 atmospheres or more, but its volumetric density is inversely proportional to temperature, so it can be ten times less dense while still behaving like a liquid. Conventional enhanced geothermal systems operate at temperatures as low as 200° C. to 300° C., and the complexity of these conventional systems makes them less practical. In some embodiments, the system 500 uses a hotter fluid in the conduit 512, including, for example, a SCCO2 fluid, which provides more efficient high temperature geothermal operation and biomass conversion. In some embodiments, the volumetric density change of the SCC02 fluid means that the flow rate in conduit 512 must maintain the mass flow, which is approximately 0.7844 g / cc at 50° C. and 200 bar, and 0.1244 g / cc at 550° C.

[0073] 6 is a cutaway view of a land-based system 600 for converting biomass to biofuel using a geothermal heat source 602. The system 600 includes a biomass processing station 604 configured to receive biomass from a biomass harvester 606 and then output the biomass to an HTL converter 608 in the Earth 616. The processing station 604 also receives treated biomass from the HTL converter 608. The system 600 uses a conduit 610 to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station 604 to the HTL converter 608 and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter 608 to the biomass processing station 604. The HTL converter 608 can include a heat exchanger, including, for example, a portion of the conduit 610, configured to transfer thermal energy from the geothermal heat source 602 to the biomass transported through the conduit 610 to convert the biomass to treated biomass. System 600 also includes a controller 612 configured to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass via sensors at one or more locations along conduit 610 and adjust the operation of one or more components along conduit 610 to thereby adjust one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along conduit 610. The sensors and components of system 600 may be configured and / or operate in a manner similar to the sensors and components described with respect to systems 300, 400, and 500. In some embodiments, some of the sensors and / or components may be present in biomass processing station 604. The biomass processing station may output and store treated biomass, e.g., biofuel, to a storage tank and / or reservoir 614.

[0074] 7 illustrates a process 700 for converting biomass to biofuel using a geothermal heat source, such as heat sources 302, 402, and 502. Process 700 includes: receiving biomass from a biomass harvester at a biomass processing station (step 702); transporting the biomass from the biomass processing station via a conduit to a hydrothermal HTL converter, the HTL converter being located remote from the biomass processing station and proximate to the geothermal heat source (704); transferring thermal energy from the geothermal heat source to the biomass and converting the biomass to treated biomass (706); monitoring one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit (708); adjusting operation of one or more components along the conduit in response to the monitored conditions to adjust one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit (710); and receiving the treated biomass from the HTL converter via the conduit at the biomass processing station (712).

[0075] Elements or steps of different described embodiments may be combined to form other embodiments not specifically described above. The omission of elements or steps from the systems or processes described above does not adversely affect their operation or the operation of the system generally. Furthermore, various individual elements or steps may be combined into one or more individual elements or steps to perform the functions described herein.

[0076] Other embodiments not specifically described herein are within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. 1. A system for converting biomass to biofuel, comprising: a biomass processing station configured to receive the biomass from a biomass harvester, output the biomass to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, and receive treated biomass from the HTL converter; a conduit configured to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station to the HTL converter and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter to the biomass processing station; the HTL converter including a heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from a geothermal heat source to the biomass and convert the biomass to the treated biomass; and A controller configured to monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit and adjust the operation of one or more components along the conduit, thereby adjusting the one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit.

2. 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising one or more sensors disposed in one or more sections of the conduit, wherein the controller monitors the one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data associated with the one or more conditions of the biomass from the one or more sensors.

3. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the biomass comprises algae and the treated biomass comprises bio-oil, and wherein converting the biomass comprises depolymerizing the biomass into bio-oil.

4. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to coordinate the operation of the one or more components to optimize the one or more conditions of the biomass to optimize the yield of the treated biomass.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more components include at least one of a pump and a flow control valve.

6. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more conditions of the biomass include at least one of temperature, pressure, flow rate, catalyst concentration, and residence time within the HTL converter.

7. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the geothermal heat source comprises at least one of a volcano, a volcanic vent, and a hydrothermal vent.

8. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the HTL converter is located within a body of water.

9. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein a substantial portion of the conduit is surrounded by a body of water.

10. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the biomass processing station and the biomass harvester are located near each other within a body of water.

11. 1. A method for converting biomass into biofuel, comprising: receiving the biomass from the biomass harvester at a biomass processing station; transporting the biomass from the biomass processing station via a conduit to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, wherein the HTL converter is located remote from the biomass processing station and near a geothermal heat source; transferring thermal energy from the geothermal heat source to the biomass and converting the biomass into processed biomass; monitoring one or more conditions of the biomass at one or more locations along the conduit; adjusting operation of one or more components along the conduit to adjust the one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the conduit; and The biomass processing station receives the treated biomass from the HTL converter via the conduit.

12. 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising providing one or more sensors disposed in one or more sections of the conduit, wherein the controller monitors the one or more conditions of the biomass by receiving sensor data associated with the one or more conditions of the biomass from the one or more sensors.

13. 12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the biomass comprises algae and the treated biomass comprises bio-oil, and converting the biomass comprises depolymerizing the biomass into bio-oil.

14. 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising adjusting the operation of the one or more components to optimize the one or more conditions of the biomass, thereby optimizing a production yield of the treated biomass.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the one or more components include at least one of a pump and a flow control valve.

16. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more conditions of the biomass include at least one of temperature, pressure, flow rate, catalyst concentration, and residence time within the HTL converter.

17. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the geothermal heat source comprises at least one of a volcano, a volcanic vent, and a hydrothermal vent.

18. 12. The method of claim 11, comprising placing the HTL converter in a body of water.

19. 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising placing a substantial portion of the conduit within a body of water.

20. 1. A system for converting biomass to biofuel, comprising: a biomass processing station configured to receive the biomass from a biomass harvester, output the biomass to a hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) converter, and receive treated biomass from the HTL converter; a first conduit configured to transport the biomass from the biomass processing station to the HTL converter and to transport the treated biomass from the HTL converter to the biomass processing station; wherein the HTL converter includes a first heat exchanger configured to transfer thermal energy from a superheated fluid to the biomass to convert the biomass to the treated biomass; a second conduit configured to transport the superheated fluid from a second heat exchanger located near a geothermal heat source to the HTL converter; wherein the second heat exchanger is configured to transfer thermal energy from the geothermal heat source to the superheated fluid; and A controller configured to perform at least one of the following: i) monitor one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the first conduit and adjust operation of one or more components along the first conduit, thereby adjusting the one or more conditions of the biomass at the one or more locations along the first conduit; and ii) monitor one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at one or more locations along the second conduit and adjust operation of one or more components along the second conduit, thereby adjusting the one or more conditions of the superheated fluid at the one or more locations along the second conduit.

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