Biomass Gasification – Potential and Opportunity

National Seminar on Renewable Energy

at PMI, Noida 15-16 March 2012

Sunil Dhingra
Biomass Energy Technology Applications
Energy-Environment Technology Division
TERI
 Structure of the presentation

• Biomass Gasification – Technology

details
• Overview of biomass activities at TERI
• Focus areas/sectors
• Highlights- current TSP
• Proposed Program – Main Activities
 Context
• Biomass is an important energy source,
contributing 14% of the world energy and almost
40% of primary energy requirement of India,
more than 70% of energy needs of rural India.
• Demand for power and exhaustible fossil fuels
increasing.
• Problems in meeting even minimum energy
needs for cooking and lighting in many areas.
• About 80 million homes with 400 million
people still without electricity
• Need to reduce in GHG emissions
 Overview of bio-energy in India
• Large biomass resource base
– Biomass production – 840 million tons
(Firewood 220 million tons)
(Agro residues 620 million tons)
• Modern biomass energy technologies focus
– Gaseous fuels (producer gas, bio gas)
– Electricity (small-scale using gasification, large-scale
using steam route)
– Liquid fuels (ethanol, bio-diesel)
• Social benefits
– Employment in rural areas
– Modern energy services to rural population
– Potential to “green” waste lands
 Biomass gasification
What is biomass?
• Biomass is organic matter of plant origin such as
- woody biomass (stems, branches, twigs)
- non-woody biomass (stalks, leaves,grass)
- agriculture residues( rice husk, coconut shell,
ground nut shell etc)

What is gasification?
• Incomplete/partial combustion
• Converts solid fuel into gaseous form
• Producer gas: mixture of CO, H2, CH4,CO2, N2
• Gas production: 1 kg biomass=> 2.6 Nm3 gas
• Gas calorific value: 1000-1200 kcal/Nm3
 Biomass gasification
Advantages

• Better conversion (solid to gas)

efficiency (>80%)
• Better control on burning
• Gasifier give advantage of fossil fuel at
much lower cost
• Biomass is CO2 neutral fuel
• Organized biomass feedstock supply
can contribute to rural livelihood and
uplift of rural economy
 Biomass gasification (contd.)

Types of gasifier

Figure 11: Different types of bio mass gasifiers

• Up-draft gasifier: Efficient but gives comparatively

dirty gas, good for thermal applications
• Down-draft: Comparatively clean gas, good
for power generation
• Cross draft: in between above two.
 Market Segments for Biomass
Gasifier
• Distributed generation of electricity and
heat
– Rural
– Industrial,
– Institutional, commercial and
community
• Grid-connected Electricity
• Bio-fuels for transportation
 Potential bio-energy market in India
Thermal Applications in HHs and Industries
• Rural HHs cooking needs
• In industries for meeting the process heat requirements: ~ 5.4
million MSME units having 10 to 100 kWth heat demand
Off- grid power applications
• Captive Industrial Power Generation (replacement of diesel fuel)
– 200 MWe (< 50 kWe capacity range)
– 5000 MWe (> 50 kWe capacity range)
Rural electrification (under different MNRE, MoP and NTPC
schemes)
– Irrigation Pump sets (40000 diesel pump sets sold annually) < 10
hp or 7.5 kWe
– Village Common Services (street lighting and water pumping) ~
50 kWe/Panchayat
Grid embedded application
Target for the 12th five year plan - ~2000 plants up to 2 MWe/plant
 Use of Producer Gas
Thermal Applications
• Dryers: Drying applications in farm products, food
and spices industry like rubber, arecanut, namkeen,
and cardamom (Temp. requirement 110 – 130oC).
• Kilns: Baking of tiles, potteries, PoP etc
(Temperature requirement – 800 – 1000oC).
• Furnaces:For melting metals and alloys in non-
ferrous (Temperature requirement ~650-1000oC).
• Boilers: Process industries, which require steam
or hot water like silk reeling, dyeing, cooking etc.
Uses of producer gas (contd.)

Power
• Electric power generation from few kW to MW,
either for local consumption or for grid power
• To operate diesel engine on dual fuel mode with
80-85% diesel replacement
• To operate gas engine on 100% mode
• To operate water pumps for irrigation purpose
 The Drivers

• Small and micro enterprises show interest in

biomass energy as a cheaper energy solution
• Increasing GoI focus on rural electrification
– Biomass based decentralized systems for
power generation has become key
component of these programs
Gasifier applications in MSME
 Gasifier system for rubber
drying units
•Block rubber units use electricity
or diesel for drying the rubber

•Gasifier system of 100 kg/h

capacity intervention has been
able to save conventional fuel
(diesel) of the order of 30 l/h.

•Economic benefit: with an initial

investment of Rs 10 lakhs, the
industry has been able to saves Rs
4000 per day which translate into
payback of just only 250 days.
Annual CO2 savings (million tonnes)
100

Annual CO2 savings (million 90

80

70
91
tonnes)

60

50

40

30

20

16
10
0.02 1 1.22 2
1.3 6
0

Plaster of Paris Pulp & Paper Rubber

Ceramic tile & pottery Tobacco Steel-rerolling
Textile Food Processing
 Biomass Gasifier – Power Gasifier
• A large number of
unelectrified remote villages
to be electrified through
renewables
• Biomass Gasifier best suited to
provide energy access and
security in a sustainable and
environment friendly manner The biomass gasifier system

• Potential to alleviate poverty,

improve health, reduce
drudgery, raise agricultural
productivity, provide value
addition, create employment,
generate incomes and reduce
migration
 Key Challenge (Technology related)
• Improve energy and environmental
standard of existing gasifier technology

• Reliable and continuous operation

• Multi-fuel capability (type and quality)

• Grid compatibility