Biomass gasification is in use in a number of pilot and demonstration plants but only in a few industrial larg- commercial scale and operational units. We present information from last IEA Bioenergy /Task 40) report (September 2013).
Gasification is a process that converts organic or fossil based carbonaceous materials into carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. This is achieved by reacting the material at high temperatures (>700 °C), without combustion, with a controlled amount of oxygen and/or steam.
Finnish power company Vaskiluodon Voima has inaugurated the world’s largest biomass gasification plant in Vaasa.
The National Energy Technology Laboratory in the US published in 2010 a gasification database, where world gasifiers, both coal and biomass using, are listed. In addition to the plant and company information, gasifier location, technology, feedstock, product classification and capacity are available in the list.
In 2001, Spielthoff [69] listed 35 gasification applications, most of them demo- or semi-commercial plants. During this study, 15 operating gasifiers (at least 1 MWth) were found. The annual biomass gasification capacity can be estimated to be around 15 PJ. The largest operating biomass gasifiers found during this study are listed in Table 5-11. The actual biomass use in gasifiers at plant level was not evaluated as the global biomass gasification capacity is negligible. Gasifiers that use waste as feedstock have also been noticed in this list because of the small amount of operating large scale gasifiers. The ten largest gasifiers are all in quite a small area in Europe. Small facilities are in operation around the world, mainly in Europe, but also for example in the US and Japan.
The largest operational gasifiers use mainly wood-based feedstock, like forest residue, bark, waste wood and wood pellets. The status of gasification at country level depends on the background of industry and energy production in the country. In countries where gasification has been most used, there are typically widespread forest or pulp and paper industry and amply indigenous biomass. Gasifiers are currently used for co-firing purposes, for power production using gas engines and for fuel and chemicals production. There are ambitious plans for large scale (more than 100 MWth) facilities for renewable diesel, ethanol and SNG production.
The complete IEA Bioenergy – Task 40 report is available here.
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Emiliano, wonderful information. i would like to add that PRME in USA has installed gasifiers since the 80’s with more than 30 MWt. And Agrest in Argentina, and Uuruguay has installed more than all of the gasifiers combined in the list. When I read that the future is gasifiers I wonder why not looking at the past, since they have being done dince the 40’s, in Paris for example, for cars or district heating or industrial uses. In Southamerica, where there are many different biomass wastes we have being using gasifiers since the 40’s with same CAPEX, OPEX than combustion in scales above 30 MWt. Many of them have being installed in Southern and eastern Europe and still workeing after 20 years, 8000 hours per year.
This is grate news. Please is it not time to also factor (even if little) the impacts Africa have done to this development? The area of their achievements and supports in Biomass to Bioenergy Power Generating ability. All knows we have done at least a bit and are doing more.