BIOMASS

We as humans create a huge amount of byproducts including human waste, general waste, animal waste, and much more. Biomass energy technologies now takes advantage of these by burning byproducts to create electricity instead of further polluting the atmosphere.

Many waste treatment facilities and landfill sites are moving to biomass energy to create power and to make their towns and cities cleaner.

Process to obtain energy from biomass and waste

The most used method today is combustion, where all the carbon in the fuel is totally transformed into carbon dioxid and where the only product is heat. The heat from the combustion process can be used directly or for power production.  Gasification is a process where the fuel is partially oxidised and the product is a fuel gas consisting of CO, CO2, H2, CH4, H2O and N2. This fuel gas can be utilized in an engine, gas turbine or boiler for heat and power production. A third option for thermochemical conversion of biomass or waste is pyrolysis. Pyrolysis means to heat up the fuel in the absence of oxygen. The product from this process is charcoal, pyrolysis oil and a fuel gas. The charcoal can be used for barbeque or in the metallurgical industry. The pyrolysis oil can be utilized as a fuel for vehicles or for power production via engine or gas turbines. The combustible fuel gas can be utilized in an engine, gas turbine or in a boiler for power and heat production. Pyrolysis gives in other words more flexibility both in terms of storage and transportation and usage of the products compared to ordinary combustion. The figure below shows an overview of the different process and utilization of products.