Chinese Chemists report Syn Gas from radio wave pyrolysis of biomass.

[NNadir]

From the abstract:

"A radio-frequency (RF) plasma pyrolysis reactor was presented in this paper. Application of this reactor to the pyrolysis treatment of biomass at different operating pressures (3000-8000
Pa), with various input powers (1600-2000 W), was investigated. Interest was focused on the effect of the pyrolysis conditions on the yield of gas and char, the gas composition, and the quality
of the char. On average, the gas yield can reach 66 wt % of the biomass feed at an input power of 1800 W and an operating pressure of 5000 Pa. The total content of CO and H2 in the gas product reached 76 vol % on a nitrogen-free basis, which can be used as syngas components. The obtained solid product has a large Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area and high pore volume, with a significant prevalence of micropores, and may have potential use as an activated carbon."

From the upcoming issue of Energy and Fuels.

Synthesis gas, as I frequently mention here, is usable for the preparation of many products now obtained from oil and natural gas. Most notably is a useful intermediate for the preparation of the fantastic fuel, DME.

[burythehatchet]

1. I've had a bit of exposure to the biomass energy industry

Its curious that there aren't many more community based biomass projects than currently exist.

[NNadir]

2. I'll be visiting such a plant next week.

[sellitman]

3. Here is a good site for DME basic knowledge info

This looks promising. Until bushies oil friends fuck it up somehow.

http://www.jfe-holdings.co.jp/en/dme/01-tokucyo.html

[burythehatchet]

4. I believe that one reason it's not being developed more may be

the fact that the energy production process is scalable. i.e., a municipality could take over a large portion of its own energy demands, thereby cutting out the big utilities.

[NNadir]

6. No. Biomass can only take over a fraction of the world energy demand.

The reason it has not been highly developed is that oil is hugely subsidized in the form of war and pollution. This is not a conspiracy of some sort however. We are all involved.

Biomass is becoming competitive with oil only because the price of oil is rising rapidly. His fuel prices are good things, since they encourage alternatives to fossil fuels.

[burythehatchet]

7. It has nothing to do with conspiracies, its economics

with trillions invested in real assets the large utilities cannot afford to retire those assets. Its not dissimilar to the decline of the American steel industry and the auto industry decline in the 70's and 80's. As you point out, the cost of producing fossil fuel based energy products is going to continue to increase (peak oil), so options to develop off-grid energy that is scalable is a major threat to the utilities. Georgia Power has made some forays into partnering on biomass plants in a pilot projects. There may be others.

[NNadir]

9. There will be no "retiring of assets" from biologically derived fuels.

An attempt to do so would be in fact environmentally catastrophic.

Biofuels are palliatives for the fuel crisis; they can ameliorate the crisis and make it the deeper consequences of petroleum depletion come slightly slower but they cannot even touch the surface of demand. They are thus no economic threat to large utilities whatsoever.

Think how many bags of fries they make at a typical Burger King from a few kilos of oil. Even if 100% of this oil were recovered as fuel, the fact is that only a few 50 gallon drums a month are recovered from Burger kings. Now imagine you had to fuel even 1/100th of the machines in your town (including of course automobiles) with this much fuel.

[burythehatchet]

11. I stead of thinking in the scale of a burger king

think rather about the amount of biomass recoverable from chicken shit and meat rending plants.

[NNadir]

5. Bush's friends are not involved. This industrialization will take place

in first class first world countries, not in primitive theocracies put in place by a poorly educated and indolent populace.

Bush can carp all he wants, but history is done with him (and us) and the United States. The future is passing him (and us) by. When the world tires of him, they will simply pull his credit card (and ours) and send him to his room, if not to the Hague.

[papau]

8. Thanks for posting the link :-)

:-)

[Selteri]

10. That isn't too new

That method is already partially developed in a different line.

http://www.magnegas.com/

PS - Biomass reactions can really be a lot more than we are told, it just isn't the only answer by itself.

[NNadir]

12. Interesting. I didn't know this. Thanks.

I'll look at the references in the E&F paper more closely when I have a chance to read it in detail and compare it with this technology.

[Selteri]

13. I know of about 5 companies in america that.

I'll try to post links when I find them.