biomass boilers

Benefits of Biomass Boilers

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Biomass is a form of stored solar energy and is available in a number of different forms, such as wood, straw, energy crops, sewage sludge, waste organic materials and animal litter. This energy is released by burning or fermentation and distillation.

Of all possible renewable heating solutions, biomass has the potential to deliver some of the most significant and cost-effective carbon savings, particularly for commercial and industrial applications.

It can also stimulate local economic activity by creating fuel chains and make use of resources that would otherwise be treated as water and sent to landfill.

Biomass fuels are typically delivered as woodchips or wood pellets. These are available from The Engineering Support Partnership Ltd or uk-biomass that provide assistance with setting up competitive fuel supply contracts from third party distributors.

The benefits of using biomass boilers are that wood fuel can be characterised as carbon- neutral, these boilers provide a sustainable, efficient energy solution. The biomass boiler is the heart of the biomass heating system, and there are many different types, they are;

– Log boilers – some log-fired boilers are basic, but others are highly efficient and sophisticated systems. - Pellet boilers – wood pellets burn evenly as they do not contain much moisture. - Wood chip boilers – these are most suitable for medium and large scale installations.

The choice of boiler type is determined, in the first instance, by the fuel that is intended to be used, and then the level of automation required; this is a trade-off between convenience and cost.

A biomass heating system can be used for space heating of buildings, hot water production, steam production, or any combination of these and it primarily uses biomass as a fuel, some systems can also dual-fire with a fossil fuel to meet peak demands for back-up.

They can be used at almost any scale, from domestic through to ‘light’ commercial, to industrial or district heating systems.

The key elements of a whole biomass heating solution are:

• Fuel delivery • Fuel reception, storage, and extraction from storage to the boiler unit. • A specialised biomass boiler unit. • Ancillary equipment: flue (chimney), ash extraction mechanism, heat storage, connecting pipe work, expansion tank, fire dousing system, controls systems and possibly an integrated fossil fuel system.

From an operational perspective, one of the most notable differences between a biomass heating system and a conventional fossil fuel heating system is that the biomass boiler is best suited to being operated relatively continuously (between c.30% and 100% of its rated output). This method of operation will generate the greatest cost savings; this is because biomass fuels are cheaper than many fossil fuels. Cheaper fuel means cheaper running costs.

A biomass heating plant will be considerably larger in volume than an equivalently rated fossil-fuel plant due, to the inherent combustion characteristics of solid, organic materials.

The additional equipment such as the flue/chimney and ash handling is mostly determined by the type and size of the boiler, whilst the need for thermal stores for example, hot water cylinder and fossil fuel stand-by is determined by the site heat load and reaction times required.

To summarise; biomass heating systems can generate significant cost savings versus conventional heating. The degree of saving will vary depending on the particular system chosen. Furthermore the environmental benefits are a significant reduction in carbon emissions.

Modern biomass heating systems

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If you are considering installing a biomass boiler system there are many important things you must consider for successful project. Perhaps the three most important points are:

1. Know which fuel is suitable for your project Logs, wood chips or wood pellets.

2. Use proven technology Your project should not try to do anything that hasnt been done before!

3. Ensure you use good quality wood fuel Most problems encountered with wood heating projects tend to be caused by poor quality or incorrect wood fuel rather than the system installed.

By the end of this guide you should be able to go some way towards addressing each of these points, and with the help of the Wood Fuel South West Advice Service, we hope to ensure you have access to a reliable heat supply.

This guide is principally concerned with wood fuelled boiler systems, not room stoves (although we do provide basic information on stoves).

Typically the boilers will be fed with either wood chip or wood pellets, however smaller systems for domestic buildings may also use logs. We will refer to wood fuel boilers as biomass boilers in this guide. Biomass boiler technology is proven, reliable, clean and efficient. Modern biomass boilers are very common across Europe, particularly in Austria, Sweden and Finland. Austria has approximately 100,000 biomass boilers installed, with a reliable local wood fuel supply network in place.

Biomass boilers can operate at 92% efficiency levels, comparable with modern gas condensing boilers. Within this information pack we have included a list of suppliers and installers who are able to undertake projects in the South West. Many of these companies use technology from Austria, Sweden, Germany and other countries who have been working with biomass boilers extensively over the last 20 years. This has been demonstrated time and time again internationally.

Even with a specific form of fuel, such as wood chips, there can be major differences in characteristics. This means that while it is all eminently usable, one batch will allow a particular piece of equipment to operate according to specification, but another may cause blockages in the fuel feed line, inefficient operation, emissions, condensation in the flue, or automatic shut down of the equipment as it moves outside its design operating regime.

In different equipment, however, the second batch of fuel may be perfectly acceptable. Clear technical specifications are needed which can be incorporated into supply contracts. The European Union has developed specifications and standards CEN/TC 335 for solid biofuels. CEN/TC 335 is the technical committee developing the draft standard to describe all forms of solid biofuels within Europe, including wood chips, wood pellets and briquettes, logs, sawdust and straw bales.

james is a freelance writer who often writes on best chaise lounge chair