Steam gasification of biomass – Typical gas quality and operational strategies derived from industrial-scale plants

Larsson, Anton; Kuba, Matthias; Vilches, Teresa Berdugo; Seemann, Martin; Hofbauer, Hermann; Thunman, Henrik

doi:10.1016/j.fuproc.2020.106609

Cited by 82 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“… 8 , 9 The DFB process has been studied on a large scale for biomass gasification with a capacity of 5 to more than 100 MW. 10 It has the disadvantage that the heat required for gasification reactions is generated by burning char in the combustion reactor; therefore, the process generates significant CO 2 emissions into the atmosphere.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

et al. 2021

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Biomass chemical looping gasification (BCLG) uses lattice oxygen from an oxygen carrier instead of gaseous oxygen for high-quality syngas production without CO 2 emissions. In this work, the effect of the main operating variables, such as oxygen/biomass ratio (λ), gasification temperature, and steam/biomass ratio (S/B), was investigated using two low-cost materials: a Fe ore and a Mn ore. Oxygen fed to the air reactor for oxidation was used as an effective method for controlling the amount of lattice oxygen used for syngas production. The main variable that affected the process performance and the syngas quality was λ, while the fuel reactor temperature and the S/B ratio had a minor effect. Small performance differences found between the ores can be attributed to different degrees of CH 4 and light hydrocarbons reforming in the process. The CO 2 content in the syngas was high (40 −43%) under autothermal conditions because the gasification reactions required the heat to be generated by combustion. CH 4 contents of around 10% were found in syngas, coming from the unburned or unreformed volatiles. Syngas yields around 0.60 Nm 3 /kg of dry biomass were found for both ores. Additionally, high biomass conversions ( X b > 94%) and carbon conversion efficiencies (η cc > 95%) were obtained in all cases, showing the capability of the process of avoiding CO 2 emissions to the atmosphere. No agglomeration was found in the bed during the BCLG process, although attrition rates were high, leading to lifetimes of 160 and 300 h for the manganese and iron ores, respectively. Migration of Fe or Mn to the external part of the particle, generating a metal concentrated shell, was observed. Its detachment was responsible for the decrease in the oxygen transport capacity ( R OC ) of the material with the operating time and the reduced lifetime. The results obtained here allowed the iron ore to be considered as an oxygen carrier suitable for the BCLG process.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

et al. 2021

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“…It is beneficial to remark here that, in almost the totality of the studies reported on SCWG of industrial feedstock, it is very seldom mentioned that processes had to be interrupted because of clogging of the reactor, stress-related issues, or the reactor leaking [32]. Demonstration scale tests had to be stopped since the fluid flow demonstrated very different behavior from what was expected for the experiments [33].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implications on Feedstock Processing and Safety Issues for Semi-Batch Operations in Supercritical Water Gasification of Biomass

Blasio

Salierno

Magnano³

2021

Energies

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Biomass with a large amount of moisture is well-suited to be processed by supercritical water gasification, SCWG. The precipitation of inorganics, together with char formation and re-polymerization, can cause reactor plugging and stop the process operations. When plugging occurs, sudden injections of relatively large mass quantities take place, influencing the mass flow dynamics significantly in the process. Reactor plugging is a phenomenon very well observed during SCWG of industrial feedstock, which hinders scale-up initiatives, and it is seldom studied with precision in the literature. The present study provides an accurate evaluation of continuous tubular reactor dynamics in the event of sudden injections of water. An interpretation of the results regarding water properties at supercritical conditions contributes to comprehending mass and heat transfer when plugging occurs. Experiments are then compared to SCWG of a biomass sample aiming to give key insights into heat transfer and fluid dynamics mechanisms that could help develop operational and control strategies to increase the reliability of SCWG. In addition, a simplified model is presented to assess the effect of material integrity on burst-event likelihood, which states that SCWG is safe to operate, at 250 bar and 610 °C, in tubular reactors made of 0.22 wall thickness-to-diameter ratio Inconel-625 with superficial microfractures smaller than 30 µm. We also suggest improvement opportunities for the safety of SCWG in continuous operation mode.

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“…In the DRI-EAF route, the reduction agent can be produced through steam gasification of biomass to produce a gas that is rich in H 2 and CO. The only biomass steam gasification technology that has been demonstrated at industrial-scale is the dual fluidized bed (DFB) gasification technology [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Production of Negative-Emissions Steel Using a Reducing Gas Derived from DFB Gasification

et al. 2021

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A dual fluidized bed (DFB) gasification process is proposed to produce sustainable reducing gas for the direct reduction (DR) of iron ore. This novel steelmaking route is compared with the established process for DR, which is based on natural gas, and with the emerging DR technology using electrolysis-generated hydrogen as the reducing gas. The DFB-DR route is found to produce reducing gas that meets the requirement of the DR reactor, based on existing MIDREX plants, and which is produced with an energetic efficiency comparable with the natural gas route. The DFB-DR path is the only route considered that allows negative CO2 emissions, enabling a 145% decrease in emissions relative to the traditional blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace (BF–BOF) route. A reducing gas cost between 45–60 EUR/MWh is obtained, which makes it competitive with the hydrogen route, but not the natural gas route. The cost estimation for liquid steel production shows that, in Sweden, the DFB-DR route cannot compete with the natural gas and BF–BOF routes without a cost associated with carbon emissions and a revenue attributed to negative emissions. When the cost and revenue are set as equal, the DFB-DR route becomes the most competitive for a carbon price >60 EUR/tCO2.

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Steam gasification of biomass – Typical gas quality and operational strategies derived from industrial-scale plants

Cited by 82 publications

References 44 publications

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

Implications on Feedstock Processing and Safety Issues for Semi-Batch Operations in Supercritical Water Gasification of Biomass

Production of Negative-Emissions Steel Using a Reducing Gas Derived from DFB Gasification

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Steam gasification of biomass – Typical gas quality and operational strategies derived from industrial-scale plants

Cited by 82 publications

References 44 publications

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kWth Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kWth Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

Implications on Feedstock Processing and Safety Issues for Semi-Batch Operations in Supercritical Water Gasification of Biomass

Production of Negative-Emissions Steel Using a Reducing Gas Derived from DFB Gasification

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Product

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Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kW_th Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier