This thesis deals with the analysis of the local market in terms of biomass and Less Energy. There is examined the potential of logging residues from the selected area is examined further traffic limit for supplying chips. There are used Porter model analysis.

Thesis (MTech (Chemical Engineering))--Cape Technikon, 2000. / The large quantities of wood chips produced at mines from damaged underground timber contain gold that cannot be completely recovered by cyanidation. A fungus that can degrade a portion of the wood matrix will allow the gold that was previously locked up, to come into contact with the cyanide solution during beneficiation, thereby improving recoveries. The fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium produces enzymes that use the organic compounds found in lignin as substrate. Consequently, the fungus is able to selectively break down lignin, which is one of the major components of wood. Chips sampled from Vaal Reef Mine contained between 2 and 5 mg/kg gold. The main source of gold in the chips was determined to be impregnated gold-bearing ore and discrete gold particles. Direct cyanidation resulted in around 60 per cent recovery prior to biological treatment. Despite relatively high weight losses caused to the chips as a result of treatment with Phanerochaete chrysosporium gold recovery only increased 10 per cent after 4 weeks treatment compared to direct recovery without treatment.

Reactive Black 5 and Procion Red MX 5B, an azo and anthraquinone dye repectively were decoulorized by mean of microorganisms growing on wood chips. The process consisted of three reactors, two anaerobic reactors and one aerobic reactor. The anaerobic process was used in order to make it possible to break the nitrogen bond of the azo group, (-N=N-) and the aerobic one to increase the possibility for the degradation of possible intermediates. After pumping wastewater through the system it was shown that mixtures or Reactive Black 5 and Procion Red MX 5B were efficiently decolourised at 50 mg/l as well as 200 mg/l of each of the dyes.

This thesis describes the design of hot air boilers for burning wood chips for the production of process air at 500 ° C and a given flow rate 2 Nm3 / s. The work deals with general combustion and fuel economy of biomass boilers.

This master´s thesis is dealing with thermal-oil boiler fired with wood chips. In the first part is the conception of the boiler, created on the base of the search of thermal-oil boilers producers and defined fuel. In the next section is the heat-transfer, aerodynamic and hydraulic calculation. In the last part is the design of the boiler technologies. In the appendix is the projection drawing which includes all important information for the construction draft.

This thesis examines the possibility of creating composite mainly from waste materials. The matrix of this composite was prepared from fly ash type F, which was activated by sodium water glass. Wood chips were used as a filler. This thesis includes theoretical and experimental parts. The theoretical part deals with the most important issues of wood composites with an inorganic matrix as well as basic components of investigated composite, ie alkaline activated fly ash and wood. In the experimental part, the fly ash pastes were prepared, from which the most suitable mixture was chosen for the composite preparation. Properties of wood composite with alkali activated fly ash matrix were investigated depending on the dose of wood chips.

5 pp. / Eight different landscape mulches were tested for their flammability using a propane torch, charcoal briquette, and a cigarette at two different times of the year. Three randomized compete blocks with eight one square meter plots were tested at three locations; Tucson, Prescott, and Flagstaff, Arizona. Each of the mulches was subjected to the heat of a handheld propane torch (15 seconds), a glowing charcoal briquette (five minutes), and a lit cigarette (until burned out). We found that the least dense mulches (pine needles and straw) burned rapidly when subjected to the torch and ignited after the briquette was removed. The medium density mulches (pine bark nuggets and wood chips) had low flame lengths and smoldered. Heavy density mulches (garden compost and shredded bark) only smoldered. The decomposed granite and sod did not ignite or smolder.

The usage of biofuel as well as wood fuel has increased in Sweden and all of Europe during recent decades, and there are several reasons to believe that this increase will continue. An important reason for this increase is that the environmental and climate problems caused by fossil fuels are becoming even more evident. By replacing fossil fuel with biofuel, the problem of emissions from, among others carbon dioxide and sulphur compounds can be alleviated. However, substitution requires in many cases high quality processed biofuel. An early stage in the processing of biofuel is drying. Previous work treats the possibility of drying wood fuel in an efficient and environmentally sustainable manner. This thesis studies the bed drying technique, conducted both experimentally and through modeling of the drying process. The experimental work is based on continuous temperature measurements in the fuel bed and provides characteristics of the drying zone that develops in the bed during drying. The character of the drying zone is affected by both the qualities of the fuel and the operating parameters, and is decisive regarding the possibility of making the drying more efficient, i.e. optimize the usage of energy and produce a fuel with low and homogeneous moisture content. A mathematical simulation model has been developed to increase the understanding of bed drying. The model is based on fundamental physical principles and is made up of five differential equations that describe vapor flow, air flow, the fuel’s moisture content, and the bed’s pressure and temperature. The modeling work complements the experimental work and a simulation of the temperature distribution, pressure and the drying zone’s dispersion is in agreement with the experimental result. The drying of wood can signify an environmental and human health risk, since volatile organic compounds (VOC) are emitted during drying. The thesis studies these emissions with regards to type and quantity. The measurements show that the majority of the emitted compounds from Norway spruce and Scots pine are volatile monoterpenes, but also that other compounds are emitted, especially higher terpenes. Further, major differences between how the compounds are emitted and the quantities of the emitted compounds from heartwood and sapwood are shown. There are also large differences between types of wood, i.e. spruce and pine. It can be stated that both emission rate and total amount of emitted compounds increase with an increase in temperature. To reduce VOC emissions, the drying temperature should be maintained low. To develop an efficient bed drying process for wood biofuels, additional parameters must be analyzed further and weighed against each other. Based on the experimental method and the simulation model presented here, the drying can be optimized towards a more efficient use of thermal energy and a low and even moisture content in the dried biofuel.

Med rådande klimathot i form av ökande koldioxidhalter i vår jords atmosfär krävs stora gemensamma insatser för att minska utsläppen. Genom att välja bort fossila bränslen och istället använda miljövänliga energikällor skapar vi tillsammans en hållbar framtid. Träpellets är ett biobränsle tillverkat på biomassa i form av träflis och dess förbränning kan i princip ses som koldioxidneutral. Tillverkningen av bränslepellets är emellertid en energikrävande process där termisk torkning av råvaran står för en majoritet av energianvändningen under pelletstillverkningen, där träflisen torkas från 55–10% fukthalt genom kondensering. I och med den ökande efterfrågan av pellets kommer även större möjligheter till effektivisering, där torksteget i produktionen har stort fokus. Syftet med denna studie har varit att undersöka energi- och miljöeffekter av en ny tvåstegsteknik bestående av mekanisk avvattning som försteg till termisk torkning av träflis i en pelletsproduktion. Den mekanisk avvattningsteknik som undersökts är Drinor CDP - Continuous Dewatering Press. Det primära målet med arbetet har varit att undersöka Drinors CDP som försteg till en bandtork och pneumatisk tork för att slutligen svara på vilken av kombinationerna som ger lägst energianvändning och miljöpåverkan i form av utsläpp. Som referens kommer torkprocessen hos Stora Enso Timber Gruvön användas, där en bandtork i dag används som torksteg. Som delmål kommer två olika partikelstorlekar undersökas vid pneumatisk torkning bestående av spån och flis, detta för att utreda partikelstorlekars påverkan på pneumatisk torkning och om det ens är möjligt att pneumatiskt transportera större flis. Resultaten visar att mekanisk avvattning är en bra lösning för pelletsindustrin. Fallet med CDP i kombination med bandtork ledde till en energireducering med ca 50% och 35% minskade utsläpp som en följd, jämfört med referensfallet bestående av endast bandtork. Resultaten visade även att stora träflispartiklar kunde transporteras pneumatiskt vid en lufthastighet på drygt 23 m/s. Pneumatisk torkning bidrog till en hög användning av el på grund av höga temperaturer, vilket i sin tur leder till stora mängder koldioxidutsläpp. / With the occurring climate threats in the form of increasing levels of carbon dioxide in our Earth's atmosphere, major joint efforts are needed to reduce our emissions. By opting out of fossil fuels and instead using environmentally friendly energy sources, we help create a sustainable future. Wood pellets are a biofuel made from biomass in the form of woodchips and its combustion can in principle be seen as neutral. However, the production of wood pellets is an energy-consuming process where thermal drying of the wet wood chips accounts for a majority of the total energy use during pellet production, where wood chips are typically dried from 55 – 10% moisture by condensation. With an increasing demand for pellets, there will also be more opportunities for efficiency, where the drying stage in production has a large focus. The purpose of this study has been to investigate the energy and environmental effects of a new two-stage technique consisting of mechanical dewatering as a prestage to thermal drying of woodchips in a pellet production. The mechanical dewatering technology studied is the Drinor CDP - Continuous Dewatering Press. The primary goal of the work has been to investigate the Drinors CDP as a pre-stage to a packed moving bed and a pneumatic dryer to finally answer to which of the combinations provides the lowest energy use and environmental impact in terms of emissions. As a reference, the drying process of Stora Enso Timber Gruvön is used, where a packed moving bed is used as a single-stage dryer. As a secondary goal, two different particle sizes will be examined for pneumatic drying consisting of saw dust and wood chips, to investigate the impact of particle sizes on pneumatic drying, and whether it is even possible to pneumatically transport larger wood chips. The results show that mechanical dewatering is a good solution for the pellet industry. The case with a CDP in combination with a packed moving bed led to an energy reduction of about 50% and 35% reduced emissions as a result, compared to the reference case consisting only of a packed moving bed. The results also showed that large wood chip particles could be transported pneumatically at an air velocity of just over 23 m/s. Pneumatic drying contributed to a high use of electricity due to high temperatures, which in turn leads to large quantities of emissions.

The dissertation analyzes the work technology in the processing of fast growing poplar trees and similar trees. In the experimental section were described two different methods of processing the lines of fast-growing poplar trees. It was further verified by the performance and suitability of use Doppstadt AK 450 shredder processing fast-growing poplars and similar trees.