UNIT – IV BIO-ENERGY

• Bio Resources – Biomass Direct Combustion – Thermochemical Conversion –

Biochemical Conversion - Mechanical Conversion - Biomass Gasifier - Types Of

Biomass Gasifiers – Cogeneration – Carbonisation – Pyrolysis - Biogas Plants –

Digesters – Biodiesel Production – Ethanol Production - Applications.

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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS

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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
▪ Biomass is organic material that reacts with oxygen in combustion and
natural metabolic process to release heat.

▪ Sometimes, it is used as such in its original form but more often it is

transformed into modern energy forms such as liquid and gaseous fuels,
electricity, and process heat to provide energy services needed by rural and
urban populations and also by industry.

▪ The energy obtained from biomass is known as biomass energy. Animals

feed on plants and plants grow through photosynthesis process using solar
energy. Thus, photosynthesis process is primarily responsible for
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generation of biomass energy.

 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
▪ Plant matter created by the process of photosynthesis is called biomass.
Photosynthesis is a natural radiation. In its simplest form, the final reaction of
this process can be represented as follows:

6H2O+6CO2+Solar Light Energy -----→ C6H12O6+6O2

▪ It is seen that in the process, water and carbon dioxide are converted into
organic material.

▪ The term biomass refers to those organic matters that are stored in plant and
trees in the form of carbohydrate (sugar). It is then transferred through food
chains in humans, animals, and other living creatures and their wastes.
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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
Some of the usable forms of Biomass are:
▪ Fuel Wood
▪ Charcoal
▪ Crop residues such as straw, rice husk etc. and waste wood are pressed to form
lumps, known as fuel pellets or briquettes.
▪ Bio-diesel
▪ Bio-ethanol
▪ Biogas
▪ Woody matter such as crop residue, wood chips, bagasse, rice husk, coconut shell,
etc., can be transformed to producer gas (also known as synthesis gas, syn gas, wood
gas, and water gas or blue gas) by a method known as thermal gasification of solid
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fuel.
 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS

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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
Some of the direct resources (methods)
of Biomass are:
▪ Forest wood and wastes
▪ Agricultural crops and residues
▪ Residential food wastes
▪ Industrial wastes
▪ Human and animal wastes
▪ Energy crops

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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
▪ Properly managed forests will always have more trees, agricultural and energy crops
management will always have crops; further, the residual biological matter are taken
from those crops.

▪ Raw biomass has a low energy density based on their physical forms and moisture
contents and their direct use are burning them to produce heat for cooking. The twin
problems of traditional biomass use for cooking and heating are the energy
inefficiency and excessive pollution.

▪ Inefficient way of direct cooking applications, inconvenient and inefficient methods of

raw biomass transportation and storage and high environmental pollution problems
made them unsuitable for efficient and effective use. This necessitated some kind of
pre-processing and conversion technology for enhancing the usefulness of biomass.
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 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
Indirect Methods:

Biomass can also be used indirectly by converting it either into electricity and heat or into
a convenient usable fuel in solid, liquid, or gaseous form. The efficient conversion
processes are as follows:

▪ Thermo-electrical conversion: The direct combustion of biomass material in the boiler

produces steam that is used either to drive a turbine coupled with an electrical
generator to produce electricity or to provide heat for residential and industrial system.

▪ The boiler equipment are very expensive and energy recovery is low. Improved
pollution controls and combustion engineering have advanced to the point that any
emissions from burning biomass in industrial facilities are generally less when
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compared to the emissions produced when using fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil).
 ENERGY FROM BIOMASS
▪ Biomass conversion to fuel: Under present conditions, economic factors seem to
provide the strongest argument of considering biomass conversion to fuel such as
fermentation and gasification.

▪ In many situations, where the price of petroleum fuels is high or where supplies are
unreliable, the biomass gasification can provide an economically viable system,
provided the suitable biomass feedstock is easily available.

▪ Biomass conversion processes can be classified under two main types:

▪ (a) Thermo-chemical conversion includes processes such as destructive distillation,
pyrolysis, and gasification.

▪ (b) Biological conversion includes processes such as fermentation and anaerobic

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digestion.
 BIO GAS CONVERSION PROCESS
There are many different ways of extracting energy from biomass. These energy conversion technologies
may be grouped into four basic types:

(i) Physical method,

(ii) Incineration (direct combustion),

(iii) Bio-chemical method and

(iv) Thermo-chemical method.

(i) PHYSICAL METHOD

The simplest form of physical conversion of biomass is through compression of combustible material. Its
density is increased by reducing the volume using compression through the processes called ‘briquetting’
and ‘pelletization’.

Fuel oils can be extracted from plant products by expelling them. Also light hydrocarbons may be obtained
from certain plants in the same way as production of rubber

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 (I)PHYSICAL METHOD OF BIO GAS CONVERSION PROCESS
(a) Pelletization

▪ Pelletization is a process in which waste wood is pulverized, dried and forced under pressure through an
extrusion device.

▪ The extracted mass is in the form of pellets (rod; 5 to 10-mm dia and 12-mm long), facilitating its use in
steam power plants and gasification system.

▪ Pelletization reduces the moisture to about 7 to 10 percent and increases the heat value of the biomass.

(b) Briquetting

▪ Biomass briquettes are made from woody matter (e.g. agricultural waste, sawdust, etc.).

▪ They serve as replacement for fossil fuels such as oil or coal, and can be used to heat boilers in
manufacturing plants.

▪ Burning a wood briquette is far more efficient than burning firewood. Moisture content of a briquette can be
as low as 4 per cent, whereas in green firewood it may be as high as 65 per cent.

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 ( I) P HYS IC A L M ET HOD OF B IO GAS CON VERS ION P ROC ES S
(b) Briquetting

• Briquetting is brought about by compression and squeezing out moisture and breaking down the elasticity
of the wood and bark.

• If elasticity is not sufficiently removed, the compressed wood will regain its pre-compression volume.

• Densification is carried out by compression under a die at high temperature and pressure.

• It is a process similar to forming a wood pellet but on a larger scale.

• The natural lignin in the wood binds the particles of wood together to form a solid piece.

• Sawdust briquettes have developed over time with two distinct types: those with holes through the centre,
and those which are solid.

• A solid briquette is formed using a piston press, which sandwiches the layers of sawdust together.

• The one with a hole is produced using a screw press. The screw press briquettes are more homogeneous,
have better crushing strength and better storage properties with extraordinary combustion properties

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 ( I) P HYS IC A L M E T HOD OF B IO GAS CON VERS ION P ROC ES S
(c) Expelling Agro Products
• Concentrated vegetable oils may be obtained from certain agro products and may be used as fuel in diesel
engines. However, difficulties arise with direct use of plant oil due to high viscosity and combustion
deposits.
• Therefore, these oils are upgraded by a chemical method known as trans-esterification to overcome these
difficulties. Categories of certain materials with examples are as follows:
Seeds: Sunflower, rapeseed, soya beans, etc. Nuts: oil palm, coconut copra, jojoba nuts, etc.
Fruits: olive, etc. Leaves: eucalyptus, etc.
(d) Fuel Extraction Occasionally, milky latex is obtained from freshly cut plants.
The material is called exudates and is obtained by cutting (tapping) the stems or trunks of the living plants (a
technique similar to that, used in rubber production). Some plants are not amenable to tapping and in such
cases the whole plant (usually a shrub) is crushed to obtain the product. For example, Euphorbia lathyris plant
is crushed to extract hydrocarbons of less molecular weight than rubber. The extract may be used as
petroleum substitute.
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(II) INCINERATION (DIRECT COMBUSTION), OF BIO GAS CONVERSION
PROCESS
Incineration means direct
combustion of biomass for
immediate useful heat. The heat
(usually in the form of steam)
produced are either used to
generate electricity or provide the
heat for industrial process, space
heating, cooking or district
heating.
Furnaces and boilers have been developed for large scale burning of various types of biomass such as wood,
waste wood, black liquid from pulp industry, food industry waste, and MSW. The moisture content in the
biomass and wide range of composition tends to decrease the efficiency of conversion. However the
economic advantage of cogeneration makes it attractive for adoption.

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 (III) BIO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
▪ Biochemical conversion makes use of the enzymes of bacteria and other living organisms to break down
biomass and convert it into liquid and gaseous fuels. It includes anaerobic digestion and fermentation.

Anaerobic Fermentation (Anaerobic Digestion)

▪ This process converts decaying wet biomass and animal wastes into biogas through decomposition process
by the action of anaerobic bacteria (bacteria that live and grow in absence of oxygen).

▪ Carbon present in biomass may be ultimately divided between fully oxidized CO2 and fully reduced CH4.

▪ Thus:

• The biomass material in the form of water slurry is digested by the bacteria anaerobically for several days
in an airtight container.
• The reactions are slightly exothermic and small amount of heat (equivalent to 1.5 MJ per kg dry digestible
material) is also generated that helps in maintaining favorable temperature.
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 (III) BIO -CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Anaerobic Digestion (Cont…)
▪ The most useful biomass materials
appear to be animal manure, algae,
kelp, hyacinth, plant residues and other
organic waste materials with high
moisture content.

▪ This biogas can be directly used in

spark ignition gas engines and gas
turbines and can be upgraded to higher
quality natural gas by removing carbon
dioxide.

▪The overall conversion efficiency of this process is 21%. Waste heat from engines and turbines can be
recovered by using combined heat and power system.
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 ANAEROBIC DIGESTION

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 (III) BIO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION

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 (III)BIO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Fermentation
▪ It is an anaerobic process that breaks down the glucose within organic materials. It is a series of
chemical reactions that convert sugars to ethanol.

▪ The basic fermentation process involves the conversion of a plant’s glucose (or carbohydrate) into
an alcohol or acid. Yeast or bacteria are added to the biomass material, which feed on the sugars to
produce ethanol and carbon dioxide, in acidic conditions (pH value 4 to 5).

▪ Thus,

▪ The products are ethanol and carbon-dioxide. The ethanol is distilled and dehydrated to obtain a
higher concentration of alcohol to achieve the required purity for the use as automotive fuel.

▪ The solid residue from the fermentation process can be used as cattle- feed and in the case of sugar
cane; the bagasse (the dry pulpy residue left after the extraction of juice from sugar cane) can be
used
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as a fuel for boilers or for subsequent gasification.
 (IV)THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
▪ In thermo-chemical conversion, energy is produced by applying heat and chemical processes.

There are four thermo-chemical conversion processes, which are given below.

Combustion
▪ Combustion is an exothermic chemical reaction, in which biomass is burned in the presence of air.
In this process chemical energy which is stored in the biomass is converted into the mechanical
and electrical energies. This process is suitable for dry biomass containing moisture less than 50
%. Biomass is burned at the temperature of 800-1000°C.

▪ This process is used for domestic applications as well as commercially in biomass power plants in
order to produce electricity. The typical efficiencies for standalone biomass combustion power
plants (using wood and forest residue as a fuel) range between 20-50 MW, with the related
electrical
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 (IV)THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
▪ These power plants are suitable where
fuels are available at low costs. In
recent years advanced combustion
technology is being used.

▪ The application of fluid bed system and

advanced gas cleaning allows for
production of electricity from biomass,
on scale of 50-80 MW, with 30-40 %
electrical efficiencies.

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 (IV)THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Pyrolysis
▪ It is the process of conversion of biomass to liquid (bio-oil), solid (charcoal) and gaseous fuel (a
mixture of H2, CO, CO2, CH4 and N2 gases) products by heating in the absence of air at 500°C. Three
types of pyrolysis are as following :

▪ Fast pyrolysis process or High temperature pyrolysis (~1000 °C) has high heating value and heat
transfer rate and completes within seconds and maximizes the gaseous product. The process is
known as gasification.

▪ Low temperature pyrolysis (up to 600 °C) or Conventional pyrolysis maximizes the char output.
The process has been used for centuries for production of charcoal. The process is known as
carbonization. Here carbon (35 %) is left as residue.

▪ Slow pyrolysis takes more time than fast pyrolysis, it also has low temperature and heating values.
Here
2 3 liquid product is obtained through catalytic liquefaction process.

▪
 (IV)THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
▪ Flash pyrolysis is the type of fast
pyrolysis, in which 80 % bio-oil is
obtained at keeping temperature
low. If flash pyrolysis is used for
converting biomass to bio-crude, it
has up to 80 % efficiency.

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 (IV)THERMO - CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Liquefaction
▪ It is the process in which biomass is converted into liquid phase at low temperatures (250-
350°C) and high pressures (100-200 bar), usually with a high hydrogen partial pressure and
catalysts to increase the rate of reaction.

▪ This process is used to get maximum liquid yields with higher quality than from the pyrolysis
process.

▪ The product has higher heating value and lower oxygen content which makes the fuel
chemically stable.

▪ The main purpose of the liquefaction is to obtain high H/C ratio of the product oil.

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THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION -LIQUEFACTION

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 (IV)THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Gascification
▪ In biomass gasification, charcoal, wood chips, energy crops, forestry residues, agricultural waste
and other wastes are transformed into flammable gases at high temperature (800-1000 °C).

▪ In this process fuel (biomass) reacts with a gasifying medium such as oxygen enriched air, pure
oxygen, steam or a combination of both. The product gas composition and energy content
depends upon the gasifying media’s nature and amount of it.

▪ Low Calorific Value (CV) gas obtained by gasification about 4-6 MJ/N m³. The product gas can be
used as a feedstock (syngas) in the production of chemicals like methanol.

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THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION -GASCIFICATION

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 THERMO-CHEMICAL CONVERSION
Gascification

▪ One promising concept is the biomass integrated gasification/ combined cycle (BIG/CC), in
which gas turbines convert the gaseous fuel to electricity with a high overall conversion
efficiency.

▪ The integration of gasification and combustion/ heat recovery ensures 40-50% conversion
efficiency for a 30-60 MW. The syngas can be converted into hydrogen gas, and it may have a
future as fuel for transportation.

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 BIO-GAS PLANTS -BATCH TYPE PLANT
Batch type plant

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 BIO-GAS PLANTS-BATCH TYPE PLANT
Batch type plant
▪ Batch type plant is charged at 50–60 days interval. Once charged, it starts supplying the gas
after 8–10 days and continues to do so for about 40–50 days till the process of digestion is
completed.

▪ Afterwards it is emptied and recharged. A battery of digesters are charged and emptied one
by one in a synchronous manner to maintain regular supply of gas through common
gasholder.

▪ The installation and operation of such plants are capital and labor intensive and are not
economical unless operated on large scale. Such plants are installed in European countries.
These plants do not suit to conditions in Indian rural areas.
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 BIO-GAS PLANTS-CONTINOUS TYPE PLANT
Continuous Type Plant
▪ The plant is fed daily (and not intermittently) with
certain quantity of biomass. The gas produced is
stored in the plant or in a separate gasholder and
remains available for use as required.

▪ The biomass while slowly passing through the

digester is completely digested and the digested
slurry is rejected through an outlet.

▪ The period during which the biomass remains in

the digester is known as retention period, which
depends mainly on the type of biomass and
operating temperature.
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 BIO-GAS PLANTS-CONTINOUS TYPE PLANT
continuous type plant (contd.)

▪ The plant operates continuously and stopped only for maintenance or for removal of sludge
(undigested biomass residue).

▪ A thin dry layer often formed at the top of slurry is known as scum. The scum tends to prevent
the escape of gas from slurry.

▪ The scum layer is broken by slowly stirring the slurry. This also helps in digestion process due to
better mixing.

▪ Such plants are convenient for individual owners as feeding pattern matches with daily waste
generation and do not require its storage.

▪ These types of plants are very popular in India and China.

▪ Its types are Fixed dome type (Constant Volume Type) and Floating Drum Type(Constant
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Pressure Type) gas plants.

 CONTINOUS TYPE BIO GAS PLANTS
Fixed Dome Plant: A fixed-dome plant consists of a digester with a fixed, non-movable gas
holder, which sits on top of the digester.

▪ A fixed-dome plant comprises of a closed, dome-shaped digester with an immovable, rigid gas-
holder and a displacement pit, also named 'compensation tank'. The gas is stored in the upper
part of the digester.

▪ When gas production commences, the slurry is displaced into the compensating tank. Gas
pressure increases with the volume of gas stored, i.e. with the height difference between the two
slurry levels.

▪ When gas production starts, the slurry is displaced into the compensation tank. Gas pressure
increases with the volume of gas stored and the height difference between the slurry level in the
digester and the slurry level in the compensation tank.
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 CONTINOUS TYPE BIO GAS PLANTS
▪ The costs of a fixed-dome biogas plant are relatively low. It is simple as no moving parts exist.
There are also no rusting steel parts and hence a long life of the plant (20 years or more) can
be expected.

▪ The plant is constructed underground, protecting it from physical damage and saving space.
While the underground digester is protected from low temperatures at night and during cold
seasons, sunshine and warm seasons take longer to heat up the digester.

▪ No day/night fluctuations of temperature in the digester positively influence the

bacteriological processes. The construction of fixed dome plants is labor-intensive, thus
creating local employment.

▪ Fixed-dome plants are not easy to build. They should only be built where construction can be
supervised by experienced biogas technicians. Otherwise plants may not be gas-tight (due to
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cracks).
 CONTINOUS TYPE BIO GAS PLANTS
▪ If there is little gas in the
gas-holder, the gas pressure
is low. The digesters of
fixed-dome plants are
usually masonry structures,
structures of cement and
ferro-cement exist.

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 CONTINOUS TYPE BIO GAS PLANTS
Advantages

▪ It has no corrosion trouble

▪ It requires less cost compared to a floating drum type

▪ It does not need maintenance

▪ Heat insulation is better and temperature will be constant.

Disadvantages

▪ It produces variable gas pressure

▪ It requires skilled masons

▪ Gas production of the digester volume is also less.

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 CONTINOUS TYPE BIO GAS PLANTS
Floating Gas Holder Type
▪ In a floating gas holder type digester, the gas holder is separated from the digester. In
this type, gas collector is a cylindrical dome fabricated from mild steel plates.

▪ The floating gas collector dome slides vertically up and down in the main digester in
accordance with the pressure and volume of biogas. Initially the gas holder is at the
lower level.

▪ The biogas is produced in the digester and it rises naturally into the floating dome
collector. The gas pressure in the dome increases and the dome rises to accommodate
the gas volume.

▪3 8As the floating dome rises, the volume of the gas in the floating dome increases.
 Floating Gas Holder Type

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 Floating Gas Holder Type
▪ The gas outlet pipe is connected to the upper most point of the floating dome.

▪ The axis of the fixed digester and the floating dome collector are in one line. A
central guide rod passing through the dome gives a proper alignment.

▪ The seating arrangement and guide arrangement are designed to provide leak proof
and smooth operation.

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 Floating Gas Holder Type
Advantages

▪ It has less trouble because solids are constantly submerged.

▪ It has no problem of gas leakage.

▪ Danger of mixing oxygen with the gas is minimized.

▪ No separate pressure device is needed when the fresh waste is added to the tank.

▪ Constant gas pressure is obtained.

Disadvantages

▪ It has higher cost.

▪ It is not suitable for colder regions because of heat lost through the metal holder.

▪ It requires maintenance in flexible pipe joining area and main gas pipe.
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