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Biomass Gasification

Biomass gasification is a mature technology that utilizes a regulated process including heat, steam, and oxygen to convert biomass to hydrogen and other products without burning. Due to the fact that growing biomass removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, this strategy may result in minimal net carbon emissions, particularly when paired with long-term carbon collection, usage, and storage. The construction and operation of gasification facilities for biofuels may give best practices and lessons learned for hydrogen generation. The U.S. Department of Energy expects the deployment of biomass gasification in the near future.

WHAT CONSTITUTES BIOMASS?

Biomass is a renewable organic resource that consists of agricultural crop leftovers (such as maize stover or wheat straw), forest residues, energy-specific crops (such as switchgrass or willow trees), organic municipal solid trash, and animal wastes. This renewable resource may be gasified to yield hydrogen as well as other byproducts.

HOW DOES BIOGASIFICATION OPERATE?

Gasification is a process that transforms organic or fossil-based carbonaceous materials to carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide at high temperatures (>700°C), without combustion, using a regulated quantity of oxygen and/or steam. Carbon monoxide then combines with water through a water-gas shift reaction to generate carbon dioxide and more hydrogen. Hydrogen may be extracted from this gas stream using absorbers or membranes.

Example of a simplified reaction
C6H12O6 + H2O = CO + CO2 + H2 + additional species

Note: The procedure described above substitutes glucose for cellulose. The actual content and complexity of biomass is very diverse, with cellulose being a prominent component.

Water-gas transformation

CO and H2O are converted into CO2 and H2 together with a tiny quantity of heat.

Pyrolysis is the lack of oxygen gasification of biomass. In general, biomass is more difficult to gasify than coal, and it creates additional hydrocarbon molecules in the gas mixture entering the gasifier, particularly in the absence of oxygen. Consequently, an additional step is often required to reform these hydrocarbons using a catalyst in order to produce a clean syngas mixture consisting of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. The carbon monoxide is converted to carbon dioxide by a shift reaction with steam, same as in the gasification process for the creation of hydrogen. The created hydrogen is subsequently purified and segregated.

Why Is This Option Under Consideration?

Biomass is a plentiful natural resource.
South Africa has more accessible biomass than is necessary for food and animal feed. With predicted advances in agricultural techniques and plant breeding, a recent analysis estimates that up to 1 billion dry tons of biomass might be accessible for energy usage yearly.

Biomass “recycles” carbon dioxide.
As part of their natural development process, plants absorb carbon dioxide from the environment as they produce biomass, offsetting the carbon dioxide emitted by creating hydrogen via biomass gasification and resulting in minimal net greenhouse gas emissions.

The focus of research is overcoming obstacles.
Reducing the costs associated with capital equipment and biomass feedstocks are key obstacles to hydrogen generation through biomass gasification.

Research to reduce capital expenditures:

  • New membrane technology will replace the present cryogenic technique used to isolate oxygen from air when oxygen is needed in the gasifier.
  • Developing innovative membrane technologies to improve the separation and purification of hydrogen from the generated gas stream
  • Accelerating the procedure


Research to reduce the cost of biomass feedstock:

  • Low and steady feedstock costs should arise from improved agriculture techniques and breeding initiatives.
  • As biomass gasification is an established technology, its viability as a feasible route for cost-competitive hydrogen generation will be determined by feedstock prices and lessons gained through commercial demonstrations.