Comparison of co–gasification efficiencies of coal,lignocellulosic biomass and biomass hydrolysate for high yield hydrogen production

The diversity in the chemical composition of lignocellulosic feedstocks can affect the conversion technologies employed for hydrogen production. Gasification and co–gasification activities of lignocellulosic biomass, biomass hydrolysate, and coal were evaluated for hydrogen rich gas production. The hydrolysates of biomass materials showed the best performance for gasification. The results indicated that biomass hydrolysates obtained from lignocellulosic biomass were more sensitive to degradation and therefore, produced more hydrogen and gaseous products than that of lignocellulosic biomass. The effects of feed (kenaf and sorghum hydrolysate), flow rate (0.3–2.0 mL/min) and temperature (700–900 °C) on hydrogen production and gasification yields were investigated. It was observed that 0.5 mL/min the optimum feed flow rate for the maximum total gas and hydrogen production. Synergism effects were observed for co–gasification of coal/biomass and coal/biomass hydrolysate. In all co–gasification processes, the main component of the gas mixture was hydrogen (≥70%).     

Co-gasification of biomass and coal for methanol synthesis

In recent years, a growing interest has been observed in the application of methanol as an alternative liquid fuel, which can be used directly for powering Otto engines or fuel cells achieving high thermodynamic efficiencies and relatively low environmental impacts. Biomass and coal can be considered as a potential fuel for gasification and further syn-gas production and methanol synthesis. In the near future, the economy of methanol production through coal and biomass gasifications can be achieved by their linking with modern gas-steam power systems. The essence of linking is the full utilisation of the capacity of coal/biomass gasification installations. The up-to-date experience of coal and biomass gasification, including gas processing towards syn-gas and methanol production, is described and discussed. A conceptual flow diagram of pressurized and oxygen feeded co-gasification of biomass and coal integrated with combined cycle and parallel methanol production is evaluated. The effect of methanol production rate on the economy of power production is assessed.     

Some aspects of the formation of nitric oxide during the combustion of biomass fuels in a laboratory furnace

The influence of bed-region stoichiometric ratio and fuel nitrogen content on the formation of gaseous species formed during grate combustion of biomass fuels is reported based on gas measurements made within the fuel bed. Three fuels were studied: two mixtures of pelletized bark and wood chips and one of pelletized straw. Experiments were performed in a vertical, cylindrical, laboratory-scale grate-furnace with 0.245 m i.d. and 1.8 m height. Primary air was supplied through a grate consisting of a steel plate with 340 holes of 3.7 mm diameter. Secondary air was supplied 0.66 m above the grate. Gas analysis was performed for O₂, CO₂, CO, H₂ and NO. Results were compared with values calculated using a computer program for thermochemical equilibrium conditions. The measured contents of O₂, CO₂, CO and H₂ show good agreement with calculated equilibrium conditions at all bed region stoichiometries. A higher formation of NO was found for the straw fuel (0.58% fuel nitrogen) than for the bark/wood chip fuels (≈0.25% fuel nitrogen). This is not in accordance with the thermochemical equilibrium calculations indicating that the formation of nitric oxide does not attain thermochemical equilibrium and that the nitrogen content of the fuel has an influence on the amount of NO that is formed. The fuel nitrogen conversion to NO ranged from 3 to 20% at reducing conditions and from 20 to 40% at bed region stoichiometries between 1.00 and 1.25.     

Evaluation of raw coals as fuels for direct carbon fuel cells

As a promising high-temperature fuel cell, the direct carbon fuel cell (DCFC) has a much higher efficiency and lower emissions compared with conventional coal-fired power plants. In the present DCFC system, four Australian coals from Central Queensland are successfully tested at 600-800 °C. The electrochemical performances of these coals are highly dependent on their intrinsic properties, such as chemical composition, surface area, concentrations of oxygen-containing surface functional groups and the nature of mineral matter in their ashes. Impurities such as Al₂O₃ and SiO₂ lead to an inhibitive effect during the anodic reaction in the DCFC, while CaO, MgO and Fe₂O₃ exhibit a catalytic effect on the electrochemical oxidation of carbon.     

A comprehensive mathematical model of a serial composite process for biomass and coal Co-gasification

A comprehensive mathematical model to simulate a serial composite process for biomass and coal co-gasification has been built. The process is divided into combustion stage and gasification stage in the same gasifier, it is a new process for the co-gasification of biomass and coal. The model is based on reaction kinetic, hydrodynamics, mass and energy balances, it is a one-dimensional, K-L three-phase, unsteady state model. The model is divided into two sub-models, one is the combustion sub-model, the other is the coal-biomass serial gasification sub-model. Combustion sub-model includes coal pyrolysis, dense phase combustion, and dilute phase combustion model. Gasification sub-model includes biomass pyrolysis, dense phase coal gasification, dense phase biomass gasification, and dilute phase gasification model. The model studies the effects of key parameters on gasification properties, including gasification temperature, S/B, B/C, and predicts the composition of product gas and gas calorific value along the reactor's axis at different time. The model predictions agree well with experimental results and can be used to study and optimize the operation of the process.     

A cold model experimental study on the flow characteristics of bed material in a fluidized bed bottom ash cooler in a CFB boiler

IntroductionA fluidized bed bottom ash cooler is often used totreat high temperature bottom ash to reclaim heat andfine particles from the ash, and to have the ash easilytransported. Among the large CFB boilers in operation inthe world, there are many ash coolers that often workabnormally['-','].There are six fluidized bed bottom ash coolers in theimported 410im CFB boiler that was built and operatedin Gaoba power plant, Sichuan province, China in 1996N].High temperature slag-bond and jam …     

Technology for conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to ethanol

Current trends in production of fuel ethanol from lignocellulosic materials are reviewed. Particular emphasis has been laid on the microbial synthesis of cellulases, enzymatic hydrolysis, pretreatment of lignocellulosics, and their simultaneous saccharification and fermentation to ethyl alcohol. Some pilot-scale plants producing alcohol from biomass are also presented.     

Main routes for the thermo-conversion of biomass into fuels and chemicals. Part 2: Gasification systems

Gasification as a thermo-chemical process is defined and limited to combustion and pyrolysis. The gasification of biomass is a thermal treatment, which results in a high production of gaseous products and small quantities of char and ash. The solid phase usually presents a carbon content higher than 76%, which makes it possible to use it directly for industrial purposes. The gaseous products can be burned to generate heat or electricity, or they can potentially be used in the synthesis of liquid transportation fuels, H₂, or chemicals. On the other hand, the liquid phase can be used as fuel in boilers, gas turbines or diesel engines, both for heat or electric power generation. However, the main purpose of biomass gasification is the production of low- or medium heating value gas which can be used as fuel gas in an internal combustion engine for power production. In addition to limiting applications and often compounding environmental problems, these technologies are an inefficient source of usable energy.     

An investigation into the effect of fast heating on fluidity development and coke quality for blends of coal and biomass

The addition of biomass to coking coals can reduce operational costs and carbon emissions but also reduces fluidity development. The use of heating rates up to 20 °C min⁻¹ in the softening stage of coal has been investigated using high-temperature small-amplitude oscillatory-shear (SAOS) rheometry to improve the fluid characteristics of binary blends of two coking coals with Scots pine. The effects of biomass concentration and particle size, biomass torrefaction, pellet mass and thermal pre-treatment of the blend on fluidity development and semicoke strength have also been studied. Fluidity increased with an increase in heating rate and an increase in the final temperature for fast heating. Relationships were found between the minimum complex viscosity of the blend, the heating rate and the concentration of biomass, which have been used to propose an equation to calculate the heating rate necessary to achieve optimum fluidity for a particular blend with biomass. The fluid characteristics of the blend were not affected to a great extent by the particle sizes of the biomass studied (<500 μm and >500 μm) or the torrefaction of the biomass (250 °C for 1 h in N₂), were increased by an increase in pellet mass, and were destroyed by blend pre-heating. The semicoke strength of the blend with a mass fraction of 10% Scots pine and fast heating (10 °C min⁻¹) proved to be higher than that of the coal alone with slow heating (3 °C min⁻¹) and resulted in a 3% reduction in non-renewable carbon emissions.     

A new process for the production of medium quality fuels from coal washing plant coarse tailings

Turkey’s proven bituminous coal reserve is very low, and it is about 1.3 billion tons. The annual bituminous coal production is 2 million tons, and the annual import amount is 30 million tons. Turkey is a foreign-dependent country in its bituminous coal requirement. In this respect, the highest recycling of coarse and fine plant tailings is important in respect of the efficient use of limited natural resources. In this study, a novel process was developed for medium quality fuel production from coarse plant tailings. By the developed process, from coarse plant tailings with an ash content of 78.21%, medium quality fuel was produced which has ash content between 29.20 and 44.38% and which has economic value in the current market. The upper calorific values of these fuels change between 5620 and 4350 kcal/kg. The developed process basically includes the stages of micronized grinding and then froth flotation applied to the obtained powder tailing material.     

Systematic analysis of biomass derived fuels for fuel cells

As the demand for energy continuously increases, alternatives to fossil resources must be found to both prevent fossil source depletion and decrease overall environmental impact. One solution is increasing contributions from renewable, biological feedstock, and from wastes. This paper presents an analysis of the current methods of biomass conversion, to extract biofuels and biologically produced gases to then be used in fuel cells. Pathways for converting biomass feedstock into fuel cell fuels selected here were anaerobic digestion, metabolic processing, fermentation, gasification, and supercritical water gasification, which were compared to natural gas and fossil hydrogen reference cases. These thermochemical and biological conversion pathways can also make use of residues from agriculture, forestry, or some household and industry wastes, producing hydrogen and hydrogen-rich gases. Solid oxide fuel cells were also found to be the preferred technology for such bio-derived fuel gases, due to their wide range of fuel options, wide scalability from single kW to multi 100 kW, and high efficiency.     

Main routes for the thermo-conversion of biomass into fuels and chemicals. Part 1: Pyrolysis systems

Since the energy crises of the 1970s, many countries have become interest in biomass as a fuel source to expand the development of domestic and renewable energy sources and reduce the environmental impacts of energy production. Biomass is used to meet a variety of energy needs, including generating electricity, heating homes, fueling vehicles and providing process heat for industrial facilities. The methods available for energy production from biomass can be divided into two main categories: thermo-chemical and biological conversion routes. There are several thermo-chemical routes for biomass-based energy production, such as direct combustion, liquefaction, pyrolysis, supercritical water extraction, gasification, air–steam gasification and so on. The pyrolysis is thermal degradation of biomass by heat in the absence of oxygen, which results in the production of charcoal (solid), bio-oil (liquid), and fuel gas products. Pyrolysis liquid is referred to in the literature by terms such as pyrolysis oil, bio-oil, bio-crude oil, bio-fuel oil, wood liquid, wood oil, liquid smoke, wood distillates, pyroligneous tar, and pyroligneous acid. Bio-oil can be used as a fuel in boilers, diesel engines or gas turbines for heat and electricity generation.     

Industrial processes for biomass drying and their effects on the quality properties of wood pellets

This paper contributes to the discussion of how different kinds of industrial scale dryers for biomass influence the quality properties of wood pellets. It also discusses how the drying technique can affect the environment. The most common biomass drying processes in use, i.e., convection dryers are discussed. The discussion of drying techniques is based on advantages and disadvantages with a focus on the drying medium, temperature and residence time. The choice of drying technique is particularly important if the end-user’s choice of pellets is made due to the specific requirements for the heating system used. Some specific parameters were tested in order to investigate how the choice of drying technique affects the pellet quality. The parameters tested were moisture content and the emissions of volatile hydrocarbons. Pellets available on the market were chosen for the tests. The amount of volatile hydrocarbons left in sawdust after drying vary with drying technique, as emissions of terpenes are larger in dryers with long residence times. Low emissions of volatile hydrocarbons would improve the energy content of the sawdust, and by decreasing air pollution improve the work environment and the environment in the surroundings of the dryers.     

The performance of nickel-loaded lignite residue for steam reforming of toluene as the model compound of biomass gasification tar

Tars should be removed from biomass gasification systems so as not to damage or clog downstream pipes or equipment. In this paper, lignite insoluble residue (LIR) after extraction of humic acids was used as the support to prepare a nickel-loaded LIR (Ni/LIR) catalyst. This novel catalyst Ni/LIR was tested in steam reforming of toluene as a model compound of biomass tar conducted in a laboratory-scale fixed bed reactor. When compared to the reactions without catalyst or with Ni/Al₂O_3, Ni/LIR was confirmed as an active catalyst for toluene conversion at a relatively low temperature of 900 K. The investigated reforming parameters during the experiments in this research were selected as reaction temperature at a range of 850–950 K, steam/carbon molar ratio at a range of 2–5 mol/mol, and a space velocity from 1696 to 3387 h^?1. It was concluded that, under optimum conditions, significant amount of syngas yields, acceptable Ni/LIR consumption and more than 95% of toluene conversion can be obtained from the biomass Ni/LIR catalytic gasification system.     

Comparative analysis of biomass and coal based co-gasification processes with and without CO2 capture for HT-PEMFCs

With the seasonal availability and low energy density of biomass and the high environmental impact of coal, the co-gasification of biomass and coal is an alternative approach facilitating a trade-off between renewable and non-renewable resources. The aim of this study was to investigate hydrogen production from the co-gasification of biomass and coal integrated by means of the sorption-enhanced water gas shift reactor (G-SEWGS) for a high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC). The effects of the gasifier temperature, the steam to fuel ratio (S/F ratio), and the equivalence ratio (ER) on the hydrogen production performance and environmental impact of the G-SEWGS were theoretically analysed and compared with the conventional gasifier integrated with the water gas shift reactor (G-WGS) and the sorption-enhanced gasifier integrated with the water gas shift reactor (SEG-WGS). As compared to the conventional water gas shift reactor, the addition of a CaO sorbent in the modified water gas shift reactor not only reduces the amount of the CO₂ emission but also leads to an increase in the hydrogen concentration and hydrogen content. The G-SEWGS provides better performance in terms of its fuel processor efficiency and CO₂ emission than the G-WGS and the SEG-WGS. Also, the problem of sulphur compound in the hydrogen-rich gas can be reduced by using of the sorption-enhanced water gas shift reactor (SEWGS). The best system exergy efficiency, which was around 22% for the power generation, was determined from the HT-PEMFC integrated with the G-SEWGS. The main exergy destruction of around 70% of the total loss was caused by hydrogen production processes.     

Preparation of high-activity coal char-based catalysts from high metals containing coal gangue and lignite for catalytic decomposition of biomass tar

The potential of using high metals containing coal gangue and lignite to prepare high-activity coal char-based catalysts is investigated for effective biomass tar decomposition. Loose structure and rough surface are formed for these char-based catalysts with heterogeneous distribution of a large number of inorganic particles. In the biomass tar decomposition, the performance of the coal char-based catalysts is significantly influenced by the content of the metals in the raw materials and coal gangue char (GC) with the ash content as high as 50.80% exhibits the highest activity in this work. A high biomass tar conversion efficiency of 93.5% is achieved at 800 °C along with a significant increase in the fuel gas product. During the five-time consecutive tests, the catalytic performance of GC increases a little at the second or third times reuse and remains relatively stable, showing the remarkable stability of the catalyst in biomass tar decomposition applications.     

Evaluation of various carbon materials supported Pt catalyts for aqueous-phase reforming of lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysate

Currently, under huge pressure from energy demands and environmental problems, much attention is being paid to produce fuel and chemicals from lignocellulosic biomass. In this matter, development of active and also recyclable catalysts are essential. In the present study, various types of carbon supported Pt reforming catalysts were prepared for use in gasification of wheat straw biomass hydrolysate by aqueous-phase reforming. The supports tested were various carbon materials having different surface and structures that were activated carbon (AC), single- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT and MWCNT), superdarco carbon (SDC) and graphene oxide (GO). The catalysts prepared using these supports were evaluated based on gasification yield, carbon amount consumed in the process, sugar alcohols formation and breaking down of organic compounds in the hydrolysate.     

Sustainable nickel catalyst for the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to H2-rich gas

The objective of this paper was to design sustainable nickel catalysts supported on selected fly ash based zeolites to thermal processing of lignocellulosic feedstock towards hydrogen-rich gas. Moreover, in order to increase its catalytic performance in the studied process the catalyst supported on the most promising fly ash based zeolite was modified by selected rare-earth and transition metals (La, Pr, Ce, Y, Gd, Zr). The performed measurements exhibited that incorporation of nickel into the structure of zeolite A modified by lanthanum resulted in the most effective production of H₂. The characterization of its physicochemical properties (XRD, TPR, SEM-EDS, TPD-NH₃, BET and TGA-DTA) suggested that large pore size, moderate acidity, increased reducibility of an active phase and higher resistance to coke formation are the main factors responsible for increased activity of this catalyst.