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An autothermal fluidized bed reactor was used to research the influence of pressure (0–2 barg) on the gasification process of different types of biomasses. The tested feedstocks were bark and lignin while softwood pellet was used as a reference fuel. A mixture of O2/CO2/H2O was used as a gasification agent. The impact of the application of CO2 on the yield of H2 in product gas was determined. Resulting product gas was characterized by a high content of CO which makes its use for applications based on chemical synthesis very difficult without extensive upgrading or supply of H2 from external sources. CO2 proved to improve carbon conversion efficiency (CCE) of the gasification process and to be an option for its chemical sequestration (negative carbon footprint). A slight modification of conventional indices used to evaluate efficiencies of gasification systems (CCE and water/carbon ratio) was proposed, to take into account the impact of the additional source of carbon fed into the reactor. The increase of system pressure led to changes in the composition of the product gas in line with predictions of Le Chatelier’s principle. The influence was predominantly visible in higher yields of CH4 and lower overall production of product gas. For higher hydrocarbons (CxHy), the trend was unclear. A set of stable gasification parameters were achieved for each pressure level and a standard gasification temperature of 850 °C, except for gasification of lignin performed at 2 barg. A proposed explanation for the problem is the combined effect of the increasing concentration of ash in the fluidized bed and its low characteristic melting temperatures. Due to the obtained experimental findings, a new ash agglomeration index was formulated.

Gasification of solid fuels is an alternative process for energy production using conventional and renewable fuels. Apart from desired compounds, i.e. carbon oxide, hydrogen and methane, the produced gas contains complex organic (tars) and inorganic (carbonizate, ammonia) contaminants. Those substances, together with water vapor, condensate during cooling of the process gas, what results in the formation of aqueoustar condensate, which requires proper methods of utilization. The management of this stream is crucial for commercialization and application of the gasification technology. In the paper the treatment of aqueous-tar condensates formed during biomass gasification process is discussed. The removal of tars from the stream was based on their spontaneous separation. The aqueous stream was subjected to ultrafiltration operated at different pressures. Such a treatment configuration enabled to obtain highly concentrated retentate, which could be recycled to the gasifier, and filtrate, which could be subjected to further treatment.

Removal of zinc and cadmium from highly saline solutions by hydroxide precipitation is discussed. Experimental solubilities of zinc and cadmium in highly saline solutions were compared to modeled results obtained using Pitzer's approach. An amphoteric character of zinc and cadmium and an influence of chloride ion on the concentration of dissolved metals were investigated. In order to avoid errors linked to pH measurements in concentrated aqueous solutions, the method of calibration of glass pH electrodes was developed and evaluated. The method uses easily prepared buffers whose pHs were determined with the Pitzer ion-interaction approach. The presented investigations address two issues of high significance in industrial wastewater treatment, namely: precise pH measurements and rigorous modeling of highly saline wastewaters. The results can be implemented in the treatment of hydrometallurgical wastewaters such as zinc refinery wastewater. Additionally, an implementation of the presented investigations is not limited to wastewater treatment but can easily be extended to other high-chloride metallurgical processes wherein the pH measurements in highly saline streams are required.