Efficiency and economy of wood-fired biomass energy systems in relation to scale regarding heat and power generation using combustion and gasification technologies

doi:10.1016/S0961-9534(01)00030-7

Biomass and Bioenergy

Volume 21, Issue 2, August 2001, Pages 91-108

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0961-9534(01)00030-7 Get rights and content

Abstract

Policy objectives to increase biomass’ contribution to the energy supply in industrialised countries are quite ambitious, but biomass resources are rather limited and expensive in many situations. Therefore, an optimal utilisation of resources producing a maximum of energy at minimal costs is desirable. A wide variety of biomass conversion options with different performance characteristics exists. Also, the economic and energetic performance depends on many variables, such as costs of logistics, scaling effects and degree of heat utilisation to name a few. Therefore, system analysis is needed to identify optimal systems. In this study, different biomass energy systems are analysed regarding their energetic and economic performance related to fossil primary energy savings. The systems studied contain residual woody biomass, logistics, heat distribution and combustion or gasification units producing heat, power or CHP. The performance of systems is expressed as a function of scale. This is done by applying generic functions to describe plants’ efficiencies and specific investment costs and by expressing costs and energy use of logistic and heat distribution as a function of conversion unit capacities. Scale effects within biomass energy systems are significant. Up-scaling increases the relative primary energy savings of the studied systems within the scale range of 0– $300 MW_{th−input}$ regarded, while costs per unit of primary energy savings decrease or have an optimum at medium scales. The relative primary energy savings lay between 0.53 and $1.13 GJ_{fossil−saved} GJ_{biomass}^{−1}$ . With costs of 4– $20 GJ_{fossil−saved}^{−1}$ systems are not profitable under Dutch conditions with residual wood prices of $3.8 GJ_{LHV}^{−1}$ while firing waste wood with zero costs at the plant gate renders profitable operation possible. Favourable in both economic and energy terms are BIG/CC plants.

Introduction

At present, in many countries key problems regarding the use of available biomass residues for energy production are their often limited availability and high costs compared to fossil fuels. This is particularly true in a densely populated and industrialised country like the Netherlands. Therefore, an optimal utilisation of biomass resources that means a maximum of energy production at minimal costs is desired. But a wide variety of bio-energy chains is possible. The large number of possible combinations of various biomass streams, conversion options, scale ranges, logistics and energy carriers produced, makes it difficult to identify optimal systems. This study presents a comprehensive analysis of those factors and provides an approach to identify optimal bioenergy systems from either a cost or energy point of view.

Several studies compare biomass energy systems using different conversion technologies and fuels, e.g. [1], [2], [3]. But, the potential competition between small scale conversion (with allegedly low biomass transport costs and potentially easier heat utilisation) and large scale conversion (in general, with higher efficiency but also higher transport costs) deserves a comprehensive analysis as well. Former analyses discussing optimal biomass energy systems in relation to scale have been carried out as well, e.g. [4], [5], [6]. However, these do not include important options of biomass energy systems, namely (combined) generation of heat and systems at very small scales. Besides that, the number of conversion technologies considered is rather limited.

This analysis focuses on a variety of thermal conversion systems including different combustion and gasification options in the 0.1– $300 MW_{th-input}$ range. They differ with regard to applicable scale ranges, possible biomass fuels, energetic efficiencies, investment and operational costs and energy carriers produced, namely heat, combined heat and power, or power only. Special attention is paid to scale effects that influence energetic efficiencies and investment costs. Other important parameters considered are scale dependent effects on biomass logistics and heat distribution, as well as the conditions of energy markets in the form of heat and power prices. Different residual biomass streams (‘clean’ wood and waste wood) are exemplary considered in this study.

This system analysis evaluates and compares many bio-energy chains for a wide scale range with respect to energy production and costs. Extensive sensitivity analyses are carried out to investigate uncertainties and the influence of site-specific conditions and parameters. The analysis presented here is carried out for Dutch conditions, but the approach can easily be applied to other regions and countries.

Section snippets

Methodology

The methodology applied contains three main steps: (1) The target parameters that will serve for the comparison of the biomass energy systems are defined and the way they are calculated is presented. (2) The way to include scale effects of logistic and heat distribution into the chain analysis is described. (3) The mode of composing generic ‘trendlines’ to represent scale effects of the plants’ efficiencies and investment costs is discussed.

Biomass energy systems

The parts of bio-energy systems (conversion units, biomass fuels, logistics and heat distribution) and the economic parameters used in the analysis are discussed below.

Results: energetic and economic performances

In this section results of the analysis are described (for abbreviations see Table 1). The main results are related to ‘clean’ wood firing.

Sensitivities

To determine how and to what extent the results are influenced by the input data an extensive sensitivity analysis is carried out. For a first screening, potential maximum and minimum values of input parameters are estimated. Subsequently, the percent changes of costs per unit of primary energy saved and of relative primary energy savings are calculated. ‘Clean’ wood fuelled CHP generation with downdraft gasifiers and atmospheric fluidised bed gasification with combined cycle serve as reference

Methodology

The focus on gasification and combustion in this study leaves out other conversion options that may also be promising for energy production from biomass. These are, e.g. digestion that is more suitable for the conversion of very wet streams than gasification and combustion are, and co-combustion in fossil fired plants that can make the utilisation of biomass possible at low costs.

With respect to the comparison of ‘clean’ and waste wood, some important aspects are not taken into account that

General

•
Scale effects within biomass energy systems are very significant for both their energetic and economic performance. At the scale ranges considered (0.1– $300 MW_{th-input}$ ) the relative primary energy savings, i.e. the primary energy saved per unit of biomass energy input generally improve with increasing scales and the total costs per unit of primary energy saved mostly decrease with increasing scale. In some heat generation and CHP cases curves of total costs per unit of primary energy saved show a

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Efficiency and economy of wood-fired biomass energy systems in relation to scale regarding heat and power generation using combustion and gasification technologies

Abstract

Introduction

Section snippets

Methodology

Biomass energy systems

Results: energetic and economic performances

Sensitivities

Methodology

General

Biomass Bioenergy

Biomass Bioenergy

Biomass Bioenergy

Biomass Bioenergy

Strategic analysis of biomass and waste fuels for electric power generation

Biomass Bioenergy

Gas turbine theory

Biomasse als Energierohstoff: Ein zukunftsträchtiger Energieträger

VGB Kraftwerkstechnik