Technological Background

Contents

General Need............................................................................................................2
Background...............................................................................................................2
Biomass and Residue Conversion Processes...............................................................3
Combustion...............................................................................................................5
Gasification...............................................................................................................7
Fluidized Bed Technology..........................................................................................9

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General Need
Fossil fuels continue to be the indispensable mainstay of our energy supply, a situation
unlikely to change in the near term. Forecasts based on anticipated population growth
and the economic catching-up process in developing and threshold countries project
that global demand for energy will have risen 40% to 60% by 2020. Given the growing
scarcity of resources and unabated pollution, this is an extremely problematic
development as fossil fuels provide 90% of the energy consumed worldwide.

One promising approach to defusing these two problems is the recovery of energy from
biomass and residues originating in agriculture (culm products, husks, coconut shells,
palm oil fruit cakes), forestry (timber), industry (plastics, composites) and municipalities
(sewage sludge, residential waste). The recovery of energy simultaneously eliminates any
landfilling or disposal of residual materials and thus such problems as groundwater
contamination or the development of noxious gases.

The wide variety of sources is reflected in its varying material composition. Its high
degree of heterogeneity and potentially high water content as well as the potential
presence of varying contaminants raise the requirements on the technological imple-
mentation of thermo-chemical conversion processes to generate power, heat and cold.

Given the distinctive characteristics of waste, biomass and residues, fluidized bed
technology appears to be the best option to achieve the goal of maximizing the energy
recovered while minimizing the emission of noxious gases. Fluidized bed technology has
significant advantages over widespread conventional grate firing. Its optimal capacity
range virtually predestines it for decentralized small and medium sized plants (stationary
fluidized beds fired with wood and producing 1-20 MW) – a factor that particularly
facilitates development in rural regions and encourages companies and plants to develop
internal power supplies.

Background
Fundamental research and industrial applications of the fluidiszed bed technology has a
long tradition in Germany. Since its first invention by Winkler in 1922, the technology
has evolved and has been applied in various fields of process engineering, starting from
coal gasification, catalytic cracking of mineral oils or drying processes.

In recent years the fluidized bed technology is applied more and more in power plant
engineering. State of the art applications are now able to utilise high varieties of fuels
e.g. sewage sludge, different biomasses, wood, plastic or rubber residues and many oth-
ers. The advancement in science and engineering in recent years, e.g. ORC process
(Organic-Rankine-Cycle to turn small sources of thermal energy efficiently into electrical
energy) lead to possibilities of highly efficient industrial applications (combined heat and
power, ) which can be commercially applied even on small scales up to 10 MW.

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The Fraunhofer Institute for Factory Operation and Automation IFF in Magdeburg’s and
its research partners have long been developing methods to recover energy from
biomass and residues and implementing their findings in the engineering of distributed
industrial-scale plants of small and medium capacity. Applications of fluidized bed
technology are a primary focus of its work. With an eye on the competition and demand
for energy resources and the resultant global economic and ecological impacts, the aim
of the proposed program is to make the expertise on the fluidized bed technology
available in SE Asia. Its significant advantages under specific application conditions in
terms of scale, efficiency, possible fuels and emission avoidance makes it an suitable
technology to support sustainable development on an economic scale.

Biomass and Residue Conversion Processes

Biomass and residues of different provenances can be utilized as renewable energy
sources in a variety of ways (see Fig. B1). Different conversion processes are employed
depending on the product desired.

Figure B1: Energy sources, conversion processes and products

While extraction and distillation are chiefly employed to physiochemically convert fruits
of oil plants (palm oil, rape) into fuels and bioproducts, fermentation is used to
biochemically convert culmiferous biomass and animal excrement into heat, power and
fuel. Neither process fully converts the source material into the desired product. A
considerable share of the source material accumulates as converted or unconverted
residue, often with high energy content (e.g. 67 mass % of rape fruit is processed into

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rapeseed cake). By contrast, thermochemical conversion processes nearly fully process
the source material to produce heat, power and fuel.

Consequently, the two conversion processes of combustion and gasification are primarily
utilized to recover energy thermochemically from biomass and residues. Figure B2
presents different methods of generating power and heat.

Biomass/Residues

combustion gasification

grate fluidized bed dust special process fixed bed fluidized bed entrained flow special process
firing combustion firing (cycloid, rotary kiln) gasification gasification gasification (slag tap gasifier)

flue gas fuel gas

direct indirect indirect direct

Stirling combustion gas treatment

boiler
engine chamber

ORC steam steam gas gas pilot injection reforming

process engine turbine turbine engine engine
IGCC process
fuel cell
generator

Electricity + Heat

Figure B2: Methods for recovering power and heat from biomass and residues

Combustion fully converts a solid into hot flue gas. When transferred into a cycle, the
thermal heat can power steam turbines and thus generators to generate electricity.

Gasification on the other hand converts fuel partially. As a result, the fuel gas produced
contains a large proportion of volatiles, which downstream engines (gas turbines, gas
engines, fuel cells) can ultimately convert into power, heat and cold.

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Combustion
Firing is the oldest and easiest way to recover energy from biomass and residues. In
order to ensure combustion is complete and emissions are low as well as to allow for ash
content and the composition, shape and particle size of solids, different types of firing
have been developed for plants of a wide variety of sizes (see Figure B3). The basic
difference between them is the type of solids processing and charging and the type of
combustion chamber. In addition, solids and plant parameters influence the way gas is
utilized to generate power and heat.

Figure B3: Combustion process chain

Figure B4 depicts the combustion process in a cogeneration plant with fluidized bed
firing and an ORC module together with the dominant material and gas flows.1

Fluidized bed Boiler Module Flue Gas

Combustion Module Cleaning Module
Flue Gas

Additives

Thermo Oil Sorbent

Biomass

Air Fly Ash

Ash
ORC Module

Heat Power
(80/60°C)

Figure B4: The combustion process

1
The Organic Rankine Cycle employs organic oil instead of water, thus making it possible to increase the
efficiency of small and medium-sized power plants from 11% to 16%. It is typically an element f a CHP.

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The Fraunhofer IFF applied this principle to design and engineer a distributed biomass
combustion plant with a thermal firing capacity of 3.7 MW that generates power (500
kWel) and heat (2.4 MWth). It also provided support during the official approval process
and coordinated the construction work. At present, the Fraunhofer IFF is commissioning
the plant before handing it over to the operator. The successful initial operation and the
hand over of the turn key plant to the customer were accomplished by the end of 2007.

Figure B5: A biomass combustion plant in plan and reality (during construction)

The Fraunhofer IFF developed and integrated technical innovations – fuel charger, air
baffle, compact fluidized bed plant, cyclone and ash discharge system – for this
particular plant.

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Gasification
Just as in a combustion plant, the solids parameters (ash content, composition, shape,
particle size) and plant parameters (logistic, output, distributed/centralized) as well as the
objective of maximizing the yield of solids while minimizing pollution provide the basis
for selecting the individual components of a gasification plant.

Figure B6: Gasification process chain

The main advantages of gasification combined with combustion engines are:

• Higher electric efficiency than conventional steam power processes,
• Lower investments in a small performance range than steam power processes,
• Lower operating costs in small performance range than steam power processes,
• More cost effective fuel gas treatment than in pure combustion plants because of
smaller gas volumetric flows and
• Higher degree of biomass utilization than fermentation plants.

Chiefly small and medium-sized distributed gasification plants convert biomass into fuel
gas to ultimately produce power and heat. Such plants are predestined for integration in
the wood processing industry or operation in agricultural, waste disposal and municipal
sectors. Gasification plants have a rated thermal output of 1 to 5 MW. Classic energy
conversion processes and newer developments are instrumental in the uncoupling of
electrical energy and decentralized energy supplies. As fuel gas is being optimized,
secondary treatment processes are also being developed. Energy conversion in gas
engines requires corresponding frontend gas treatment. The fuel gas generated can also
be used in small gas turbines to convert energy. Furthermore, it is possible to use the gas
in a combustion chamber with a downstream waste heat boiler to generate steam and
thus operate small turbines or steam engines (e.g. Spilling engines). The latter concept
has the advantage of a lower volumetric flow of fuel gas, which can be treated in a
compact system preceding the combustion chamber. The fuel gas can be subsequently
fed to a motor. Figure B7 depicts a simplified gasification process together with the
material and heat flows.

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Figure B7: The gasification process

The Fraunhofer IFF applied this principle to design and engineer a distributed biomass
gasification plant with a thermal firing capacity of 1 MW that generates power and heat.
It also provided support during the official approval process and coordinated the
construction work. At present, the Fraunhofer IFF is commissioning the plant before
handing it over to the operator.

Figure B8: A biomass gasification plant in plan and reality (during construction)

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Fluidized Bed Technology
Grate firing and solid bed gasification systems are used for mechanically transported
resting solids. Fluidized bed combustion and gasification systems employ moving, i.e.
fluidized solids. In dust firing or entrained-flow gasification, the gas velocity in the
system is greater than the solid particles’ sedimentation velocity (see Table C1).

Packed Bed Fluidized Bed Flue Dust

Reactor Type
Above bed Through-bed Stationary Circulating
flow flow
Typical Muffle, Vertical kiln, Fluidized bed Circulating Flash drier,
reactor multiple Moving grate roaster, fluidized bed, melting
elements hearth multiple Venturi cyclone,
roaster, fluidized bed fluidized bed burner
rotary kiln,
belt drier
Solids motion Mechanical Gravity Gravity Gravity
Mechanical Gas flow Gas flow
Particle size Small – Medium – Medium Very small – Very small
very large very large small
Solids Hours – days Hours Minutes Seconds -
residence millisec.
time
Gas residence Seconds Seconds Milliseconds
time
Heat & mass Very low Low – average High Very high Very high
transfers
Temperature Average – Poor – average Good Very good Average –
control good good
Space-time Very low – Average Average – High Very high
efficiency average high
Suitable solids Fine – coarse material, Pulverized solids, Dust,
even with high ash content extremely variable moisture, shavings
ash content and calorific value
Table C1: Reactor types categorized according to motion state of the solid [Dreyh]

Their easy availability and advanced development have made combustion grates a
widespread technology in plants fired with coal, waste and biomass. However, grate
firing has certain disadvantages: moving mechanical parts in high temperature
combustion chambers, the relatively irregular loading of the grate and the resultant

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uneven airflow above the grate cross section. This results in relatively uneven combustion
and the appearance of layers of uncombusted carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons.
Fluidized bed technology has significant advantages over grate firing:

• A wide range of fuel types and lumpiness can be utilized,

• Fuel moisture content may vary widely,
• In-situ and secondary optimizations directly benefit the process.
• Processes can be actively optimized,
• Process parameters can be adjusted quickly
• Conditions for mass and heat transfer are typically excellent,
• Solids are intensively mixed radially and axially and
• Solids and temperature are uniformly distributed.

Given the distinctive characteristics of biomass and residues, fluidized bed technology
appears to be the best option to achieve the goal of maximizing the energy recovered
while minimizing the emission of noxious gases.

Fritz Winkler invented the fluidized bed in 1921 to convert lignite into fuel gas (coal
gasification) [Wink22]. The stationary fluidized bed reactor operating at atmospheric
pressure was followed by developments leading to reactors with circulating atmospheric
and stationary pressure-charged fluidized beds (see Table C1 and C2).

Stationary Circulating Stationary pressure-

atmospheric FBF atmospheric FBF charged FBF
Velocity 1 to 3 m/s 5 to 8 m/s 1 to 2.5 m/s
Inert material grading 2 to 3 mm 0.1 to 0.3 mm 2 to 3 mm
Cross-sectional loading 1 to 2 MW/m² 4 to 12 MW/m² 1 to 20 MW/m²
Part load performance 100% to 50% 100% to 30% 100% to 30%
Combustion efficiency 90% to 95% 95% to 99% 90% to 99%
NOx emissions 300 to 600 mg/m³ 50 to 300 mg/m³ 200 to 400 mg/m³
Applications Industry, cogene- Industry, cogene- (heat and) power
ration plants (CHP) ration plants (CHP) plant
Power range – coal 0.5 to 200 MW 30 to 500 MW up to 1000 MW
Power range – wood 1 to 20 MW 10 to 100 MW –
Table C2: Technical characteristics of fluidized bed firing [Dreyh]

Different developments of their hydrodynamic, thermodynamic and energy

characteristics place special demands on the solids being converted and require varying
optimal plant sizes.

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Its capacity range (1-20 MW for stationary fluidized bed firing) virtually predestines
fluidized bed technology for distributed small and medium-sized plants – a factor that
particularly facilitates development in rural regions and encourages companies and
plants to develop internal power supplies.

Apart from its original use in thermochemical plants, fluidized bed technology is also
utilized in many other domains of processing. Applications range from drying and
coating with any fluidizable material up through the production of pills in the
pharmaceutical industry.

Literature

Winkl: Winkler, F.: Verfahren zur Herstellung von Wassergas.

Patern number: 437970, 1922
Dreyh: Dreyhaupt, Franz-Joseph: VDI-Lexikon Umwelttechnik, Duesseldorf, VDI-Verlag,
1994

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