The new Chalmers research-gasifier

Paper in proceeding, 2009

A cost-effective production of second generation biofuels require highly efficient gasification processes. For Substitute Natural Gas (SNG) to compete with natural gas, a cold gas efficiency of over 80 % related to the biomass dedicated for the gas production is required. Furthermore, as much “instant” methane as possible should be produced already during gasification. To optimize the gasification process towards a distinct product is a challenging task. The Chalmers gasifier provides unique possibilities to investigate the important parameters for this optimization by in-situ measurements in an industrial sized installation. It also demonstrates an innovative possibility to retrofit existing heat or heat and power plants for gas production. The gasifier is designated to research and, therefore, equipped with a multitude of sampling ports spread out over the front of the reactor. By means of different probes, sampling of gas and bed material is possible to acquire information of the progress of the fuel-conversion. A first set of measurement data from sampling of gas and bed material was successfully achieved during the firing season 08/09 and results from these measurements are presented in this paper.