Transcript Progress Report on Micro-Gasifier Stoves and Heaters

Micro-Gasification for
Clean Combustion in
Cookstoves
Paul S. Anderson, PhD
[email protected]
Thomas B. Reed, PhD [email protected]
Biomass Energy Foundation, Golden, Colorado
(A presentation at the PCIA 2007 Conference,
20 – 24 March 2007, Bangalore, India)
Defining Micro-Gasification
• Gasifiers use dry biomass to produce
combustible gases separate in both time
and space from where those gases are
combusted.
– Result: Cleaner emissions
• True gasifiers, quasi-gasifiers, & others
• Micro-gasifier devices are size-appropriate
and intended for residential and
institutional cooking and/or heating.
Two Different Technologies for
Micro-Gasification
1. “Top-Lit UpDraft” (TLUD)
2. “Another Variation UpDraft” (AVUD)
Others might be possible, but they are
not yet seen in functional cookstoves.
Both TLUD and AVUD Micro-Gasifiers
can use a wide variety of biomass fuels in
chips, pellets, briquettes, chunks, and
some small particle sizes.
Fuels for Micro-Gasifiers
• Woody Biomass
–
–
–
–
Wood Pellets
Wood Chips
Wood Stems
Mesquite
• Seeds and Shells
–
–
–
–
–
–
• Pellets and Briquettes
–
–
–
–
–
–
Switch Grass
Leaves
Agro Wastes
Miscanthus
Paper Shreds
Sawdust
Coconut Shells
• Special Conditions
Cherry Pits
Peanut Shells
– Rice Husks
Pine Cones
– Coconut Husks
Corn
– Raw Sawdust
Bean Pods
**Some fuels require special features.
Additional fuels are being researched.**
What is Top-Lit UpDraft
(TLUD) gasification?
• A distinctly new form of controlled combustion
conceptualized in 1985 by Dr. Thomas B. Reed and
marketed since 2003.
• Highly efficient burning of dry biomass such as
woodchips, corn cobs, and small briquettes in
cookstoves appropriate for Third-World situations.
• Flaming pyrolysis at the top of a column of
chunky dry biomass is starved of oxygen, resulting
in pyrolytic gases (“smoke”) moving upward to
where fresh secondary air enters, resulting in clean
combustion of the gases.
Table 1: Comparative data on emissions from
TLUDs and some other cookstoves.
CO = carbon monoxide. PM = particulate matter. See
discussion in text of next issue of BoilingPoint.
Stove test
CO to boil
g/liter
PM to boil
mg/liter
TLUD 2005 #1 - “Champion”
0.33
6.5
TLUD 2005 #2 - “Champion”
0.19
7.4
TLUD 2007 - Andreatta
0.06
1.9
Average of above 3 TLUDs
0.19
5.3
Rocket stove 2005 – Ken Goyer
0.69
15.0
Reed Woodgas Campstove used as 0.82
a fan-jet stove (Philips stove)
3.8
Others (various)
Over 100 is
common
Over 2.0 is
common
TLUD (Top-Lit UpDraft) Gasifiers
• Production & costs of TLUD units:
– Reed “Woodgas Campstove”
• 500 made in Mexico
• Now manufactured in India
• Retail American price: $55
– “Champion Stove” natural draft TLUDs
• Less than 100 in India at ARTI (some not used as TLUDs)
• Indian production: $25 - $35 (includes stove body)
– “Juntos B+” forced-air TLUDs
• Only six prototypes in Cambodia
• Approx. US$20 (without stove structure)
Left:
Cambodian
Juntos B+ with
variable primary
and secondary
air.
Below:
Belonio’s Rice
Husk TLUD
gasifier.
Above: Reed’s
WoodGas
CampStove.
Right: A variation
of Anderson’s
Champion stove
AVUD (Another Variation
UpDraft) Gasifiers
• Accomplished in 2004 by Paul S.
Anderson. Products developed in 2006 by
Chip Energy of Goodfield, Illinois
• Advantages include:
– Continuous operation
– Easy fuel handling
– Control of heat levels
– Options for numerous convenience features
• Size Variations for different applications
Basic AVUD Gasifier Structure
How AVUD
Micro-Gasification Works
Chimney
Hot Water
Out
Flash
Boiler
Fuel
Hopper
Water In
Up to 200,000 BTU per unit =
211 megajoules = 50 kilocalories =
60 kilowattsth-hr
Combustion
Fuel Feed
Auger
Gasifier
Steam
Pipe
Ash Auger
Ash
Drawer
Biomass Furnace
for Residential
Heating
Circulation
Pump
For process-heat gasifiers for
cottage industry, the variations
are in the applications, not in
the gasifier. The differences
are mainly above the level of
incoming secondary air.
Wide range of size options.
Automated temperature and fuelfeeding options
Biomass Stove/Grills
and Space Heaters
• Basic-featured units for
low-income users
• Full-featured units for
affluent societies
• Basic units US$150 and
$300 in America
• Many optional features to
increase lifespan and
user convenience
Chip Energy is freely sharing the
updraft gasification technology
to accomplish the international
goals for clean indoor air.
For projects involving
commercialization and/or grants,
we would appreciate the
opportunity to work with you.
Bibliography/References:
• Anderson, Paul S. and Thomas B. Reed (2004). “Biomass
Gasification: Clean Residential Stoves, Commercial Power
Generation, and Global Impacts” Presented to the
LAMNET Project International Workshop on “Bioenergy for
a Sustainable Development,” 8-10 Nov 2004, Viña del Mar,
Chile. On the Internet at:
http://bioenergylists.org/stovesdoc/Anderson/GasifierLAMN
ET.pdf
• Andreatta, Dale (2007). “A Report on Some Experiments
with the Top-Lit Up Draft (TLUD) Stove.” Presented at the
ETHOS 2007 Conference, Kirkland, Washington, January
27, 2007. On the Internet at:
http://bioenergylists.org/stovesdoc/Andreatta/TLUD_Report
.pdf