Gasification

What is Biomass Gasification?
Biomass can be described as “stored solar energy”. AES has secured proven biomass technology that harnesses the stored power in biomass materials using a process called gasification. Gasification is the cleanest combustion method available, and is at the core of each AES biomass technology offering.

The term "gasification" has, confusingly, taken on multiple definitions depending on the entity using the term. AES subscribes to the predominant meaning. Wikipedia defines gasification as follows:

Gasification is a process that converts carbonaceous materials such as coal, petroleum, petroleum coke or biomass, into carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. In the gasifier, the carbonaceous material undergo three processes:

1. The pyrolysis (or devolatilization) process occurs as the carbonaceous particle heats up. Volatiles are released and char is produced, resulting in up to 70% weight loss for coal. The process is dependent on the properties of the carbonaceous material and determines the structure and composition of the char, which will then undergo gasification reactions.

2. The combustion process occurs as the volatile products and some of the char reacts with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, which provides heat for the subsequent gasification reactions. Pyrolysis and combustion are very rapid processes.

3. The gasification process occurs as the char reacts with carbon dioxide and steam to produce carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The resulting gas is called producer gas or syngas (or wood gas when fueled by wood) and may be more efficiently converted to energy such as electricity than would be possible by direct combustion of the fuel, as the fuel is first combusted in a gas turbine and the heat is used to produce steam to drive a steam turbine.

Also, corrosive ash elements such as chloride and potassium may be refined out by the gasification process, allowing high temperature combustion of the gas from otherwise problematic fuels.
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source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasification

No Slurry. No Sludge. Just Saleable Ash
Not to be confused with a digester which extracts methane from wet biomass to then be combusted, the gasifier uses a high heat, oxygen depleted environment to produce syngas which is then mixed with air and creates the heat to produce hot water, hot air or steam. Biomass fuel is supplied directly into the combustion chamber, which can accept completely dry biomass or quite wet biomass- up to 120% moisture on a dry basis.

We leave no pollutants to be pumped out and disposed of. Saleable ash is the only byproduct of our process, which can represent a new revenue stream. The ash produced by the gasifier can be used as a construction filler in asphalt and soil cement as well as a soil amendment for growers or as a coating used by seed producers.