Conversion of Condensable Hydrocarbons in a Dual Fluidized Bed Biomass Gasifier

Journal article, 2015

Biomass gasification is a primary process in the thermochemical conversion of biomass into biofuels, chemicals, and electricity. The produced raw gas consists of permanent gas species, such as hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO), with variable amounts of heavier/larger species, depending on the gasification technique and process conditions employed. These heavier species are often referred to as tar, which is herein defined as all species with boiling points that lie between the boiling points of benzene and coronene. In this work, experiments were conducted in the Chalmers 2-4-MW dual fluidized bed gasifier utilizing equipment that allows for simultaneous quantification of the cold gas and the tar species, together with the total raw gas yields of C, H, O, and N. The obtained results are used to describe the effects of temperature, steam-to-fuel ratio, residence time, and active materials on both the gas composition and the carbon balance of the system. Furthermore, as the carbon balance is fulfilled, the char conversion, oxygen transport, and amounts of carbon in unidentified condensable species can be determined. The unidentified condensable species comprise a group of compounds that are not measured as part of the other groups [cold gas and SPA tar, measured using the solid phase adsorption (SPA) method]. In addition, this group is shown to be readily converted into SPA tar, and cold gas as the severity of the gasifier, in terms of temperature and residence time, was increased.