Effect of process parameters on the performance of an air-blown entrained flow cyclone gasifier

Entrained flow gasification of biomass in a cyclone reactor combined by a gas engine has been applied in Nordic countries as one of the preferred methods for generating combined heat and power in small scales. The purpose of the current study was to optimise the gasification plant efficiency and understanding the influence of operating conditions. The experiments were carried out in a 2.4 MW(th) commercial gasification power plant. The gasifier was operated in optimum at a rather low lambda around 0.27 and a temperature of 950°C. The lower heating value of the clean product gas at this lambda was 5.95 MJ/Nm3. The experimental results also were compared with the predicted values from thermodynamic equilibrium calculations by Factsage 7.0. The performance of five different types of biofuels including torrefied spruce, peat, rice husk, bark and stemwood were assessed and compared with each other using thermodynamic equilibrium and available experimental data.