Biomass Gasification for Power and Fuel Applications using a Bench-Scale Bubbling Fluidized Bed Gasifier

Today fossil fuels are a major source of energy. Coal is used extensively around the world for power applications, while petroleum products are used to fulfill liquid fuel needs. This extensive use of fossil fuels has led to environmental pollution, including release of greenhouse gases and hazardous impact on human health. These factors combined with the possibility of the extinction of fossil fuels have led to the development of alternate and renewable sources of energy. Renewable resources like wind and solar provide an excellent option for alternative modes of electricity production. However, biomass is the only source which has a potential to fulfill not only our electric power needs but also liquid fuel demands. Lignocellulosic biomass such as agricultural and forest waste are found in abundance in the southeastern U.S. It can be processed into fuel via either a biochemical or thermochemical route. A popular thermochemical process, gasification, yields a gaseous fuel known as synthesis gas or “syngas”, composed primarily of a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, which can be further converted into liquid fuel via Fischer-Tropsch synthesis or fermentation. The syngas composition depends upon several factors such as type of biomass used, type of gasifier selected, type of bed material in the gasifier, gasifying medi