Combining coal and biomass in co-gasification
Via DOE Pulse. A longer description of the research is available in a press release.
Researchers at DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory are studying the co-gasification process in which various types of coal and biomass are combined and converted into synthesis gas for use in producing electricity, hydrogen, chemicals and liquid transportation fuels. The biomass includes energy crops such as wheat straw, corn stover, switchgrass, mixed hardwood and distillers’ dried grains with corn fiber, and even algae. Using coal in co-gasification provides a steady supply that can be supplemented by biomass whenever available. The researchers are examining how best to couple the coals and biomasses that makes sense geographically. They are using a small-scale gasification system to evaluate various products.
We have a site (a china clay pit) that produces 20K tonnes/year of lignite (33% Lignite/33% water/33% clay. We are interested in co-firing this with biomass in a gasifier. Do you think this is possible/is the technology available?
Regards
Comment by adam — August 15, 2008 @ 6:52 amAdam Carr
MD Renergy Ltd.
Many prominent politicians and a variety of experts worldwide have stated that climate change is the globe’s largest environmental challenge. Some have stated that it constitutes a more powerful global threat than international terrorism. There is wide, but not universal, agreement from scientists. It is conceivable that warming temperatures could take the globe into uncharted territory; however, no scientist is able to predict how rapidly temperatures will rise and who will be most affected. It should be kept in mind that all life on earth exists only because of the natural greenhouse effect which is the capability of the atmosphere to retain the balanced quantum of heat for species to thrive.
Comment by megreenyou — December 26, 2008 @ 9:07 amA comprehensive analysis of global warming may be found at http://www.onebiosphere.com
Many scientists have studied this global phenomenon. For example, Dr. Michael Mann is known for the “hockey stick graph,” a plot of the past millennium’s temperature that shows the drastic influence of humans in the 20th century. Specifically, temperature remains essentially flat until about 1900, then rises dramatically like the upturned blade of a hockey stick. The work was also the first to add error bars to the historical temperatures and allow for regional reconstructions of temperature.