Professional Documents
Culture Documents
–
An
Introduc1on
TSS
Consultants
• TSS
established
in
1986
–
principal
focus
was
biomass
to
power
• Con1nue
to
assist
project
developers,
government
agencies,
u1li1es,
and
tribal
en11es
with
bioenergy
development
and
projects
–
biopower,
biogas,
biofuels,
and
bioproducts
What
is
Biomass?
3
Benefits of Biomass
• Renewable energy, transportation fuels, and bio-based products
• Domestic source of energy
• Provides baseload electricity
• Healthy forests/reduce wildfire danger
• Turning a waste into a product
• Air quality benefits
• Greenhouse gas reduction
• Rural economic development
• Promoted by federal, state, and even local policy
4
Why
are
healthy
forests
important?
Forest
Thinning
and
Bioenergy
• Wildfire
hazard
is
reduced
by
removing
excess
biomass
fuel
• Power
genera1on
technology
in
small,
distributed
system
has
advanced
• Such
power
plants
provide
a
place
to
take
the
hazardous
fuels
(rather
than
pile/burn)
• However,
with
this
poten1al
opportuni1es
come
the
challenge
of
costs
Posi1ve
Effects
of
Fuel
Treatments
Thinned
Fire
Un-‐thinned
Controlled
Facility
Combus1on
1-‐5
lbs
of
pollutant
released
to
atmosphere
per
ton
of
fuel
Uncontrolled
Open
Combus1on
20-‐200
lbs
of
pollutant
released
to
atmosphere
per
ton
of
fuel
12
Carbon
“Neutral”
(a
simple
approach)
13
Woody
Biomass
U1liza1on
A
variety
of
value-‐added
end
uses
have
evolved
over
1me
–
Some
are
commercially
proven
and
some
are
s1ll
in
the
RD
&
D
Phases
14
Using
Biomass
15
Bioenergy
Power
and
Fuels
16
Technology
Evalua1on
&
Selec1on
• Search
for
most
appropriate
technology
considering
project
loca1on
and
biomass
supply
ü Ability
to
convert
local
supply
into
heat,
power,and/or
transporta1on
fuels
ü Must
meet
local
permigng
specifica1ons
Pellets
Wood
Chips
Gasifica1on
v.
Combus1on
• Gaseous
fuel
more
versa1le
• Small
scale
thermal
use
very
than
solid
fuel
well
commercialized
• Lower
emissions
(air
and
(hundreds
of
vendors)
water)
• However,
the
integra1on
of
• Less
expensive
labor
needed
electricity
genera1on
(via
at
facility
steam
cycle)
is
very
limited
• Produces
bio-‐char,
an
added
on
the
small-‐scale.
value
product
• Higher
air
and
water
• However,
syngas
cleanup
is
emissions,
as
well
as
higher
s1ll
an
issue…
water
supply
needs.
Combus1on
Technology
Chiptec
Advanced
Recycling
AESI
Uniconfort
Biotec
Global
Hurst
Solagen
Gasifica1on
Gasifica1on
converts
biomass
to
a
combus1ble
gas
(a.k.a.
syngas)
Reliable
Renewables
(Biogen)
Phoenix
Energy
(Ankur)
Nexterra
Radian
Bioenergy
West
Biofuels
PHG
All
Power
Labs
More
Energy
Conversion
Technologies
Biomass
Thermal
• Can
be
part
of
biopower
project
–
using
waste
heat
(combinded
heat
and
power)
ü Improve
efficiency
ü Improve
economics
Biomass
Thermal
• Can
be
stand
alone
for
space
and
process
heat
in
lieu
of
more
expensive
fossil
fuels
The
Unique
Role
of
Biomass
in
Transpora1on
Fuels
The growing need for sustainable
electric power can be met by other
renewables, but…
• Drawbacks
ü Low
Volume
enhancement
ü 10%
loss
of
original
energy
content
ü All
ash
components
are
s1ll
present
ü Addi1onal
processing
adds
cost
ü Limited
commercial
opera1ons
in
U.S.
ü Limited
use
in
U.S.
Biochar
• Process
ü Thermochemical
treatment,
developed
through
gasifica1on
ü Separates
water,
VOCs,
&
hemicellulose
in
woody
biomass.
Also
breaks
the
cellulosic
structure
of
the
wood
at
700-‐1000°C
ü Produces
a
carbonaceous
residue
Biochar
can
be
between
75%-‐85%
fixed
carbon
ü Results
yield
7%-‐20%
of
the
original
mass
Biochar
• Benefits
ü High
fixed
carbon
content
makes
it
ideal
for
soil
amendment
Retains
about
50%
of
the
total
carbon
in
15%
of
the
mass
ü Moisture
Content
is
effec1vely
0%.
Makes
biomass
hydrophobic
Lower
transport
costs
Outdoor
storage
ü Negligible
decomposi1on
or
mold
Longer
life
without
fuel
degrada1on
ü Can
be
a
byproduct
of
syngas
produc1on
• Drawbacks
ü When
biochar
is
the
primary
product,
the
yield
per
unit
input
is
very
low,
for
1
ton
of
biochar,
a
gasifier
must
consume
5-‐10
tons
of
wood
feedstock
–
syngas
produced
and
must
be
flared
if
not
used
for
energy
source
ü Expensive
to
process
biochar
into
a
combus1ble
form,
biochar
is
typically
crushed
through
the
gasifica1on
process
(by
screw
augurs)
Three
Major
Components
For
a
Viable
Bioenergy
Project
• Supply
• Market
• Financing
54
Principal
Components
of
Bioenergy
Project
• Resource
Assessment
• Technology Selec1on
• Minor Source
or
• Minor Source
Water
Quality
Permigng
for
Biomass
Power
•
Water
Use
•
Storm
Water
ü
Construc1on
ü Opera1on
•
Transporta1on
•
Biological
Resources
•
Noise
•
Cultural
Resources
•
Visual/Aesthe1cs
Regulatory
Rapport
• Exis1ng
incen1ves
ü Produc1on
Tax
Credits
ü Business
Energy
Tax
Credits
ü Local
incen1ves
–
enterprise
zone
75
TSS
Financial
Analysis
Components
&
Assump1ons
• System
variables
–
amount
of
electricity,
capacity
• Economic
variables
–
heat
sales,
biochar
sales
• Biomass
facility
parameters
–
heat
off
take
• Biomass
feedstock
–
hea1ng
value,
feedstock
cost
(very
important)
• Expenses
–
capex
and
O&M
• Taxes
and
incen1ves
• Financing
–
type
and
cost,
ROI
needed
Financial
analysis
results
in
the
price
of
electricity
needed
The
Challenges
• High
cost
of
feedstock
(collec1on,
processing
and
transport).
• No
ability
to
pass
through
increased
cost
of
labor/diesel
fuel
to
PPA
• Financial
markets
are
hesitant
to
support
early
phase
technologies
(gasifica1on)
• Not
all
stakeholders
(e.g.,
CBD)
are
on
board
• Small
scale
biopower
economies
of
scale
ALL
OF
THE
ABOVE
TRANSLATE
INTO
SIGNIFICANT
COSTS
Biomass
Project
Funding
• Grants
• Low
cost
loans
and
loan
guarantees
• Private
equity
• Various
combina1ons
of
the
above
Frederick
Tornatore
Chief
Technology
Officer
TSS
Consultants
fatoxic
@tssconsultants.com