М2, Russia

The M2 gas-to-liquid pilot facility is a full-cycle small-scale plant for the production of synthetic crude oil and other components of liquid fuels and oils from carbon-containing gases.

M2 was built and commissioned in 2014 and went through several upgrades since to complete new ambitious goals. The unit processes natural gas or gas mixtures - which simulate biogas, or associated gases - into liquid hydrocarbons. M2 includes for gas desulfurization, steam-carbon dioxide reforming, syngas conditioning, compression and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. The pilot facility is fully automated.

The purpose of M2 pilot facility is two-fold: testing newly developed Fischer-Tropsch catalysts in industrial-sized tubular reactors (from 12 to 25 mm in diameter, and from 2 to 6 meters in height) and full-cycle demonstration of INFRA’s gas-to-liquid technology at the small-scale. Currently, more than ten successful runs up to 4000 hours each were completed; three standard reactor sizes and two new industrial reactors, including those for biogas applications, have been successfully operated.