Bio energy geeks needed

[cornish wood burner]

As part of the research look at

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/03/uea-abandons-ambitious-biomass-scheme

 

Which shows even geeks get is spectacularly wrong, I was shown round this plant by a young lady whilst it was being built and told her it would be problematic as it was a simple scaled up Imbert gasifier, she has never spoken to me since.

 

Wood is a good energy source, it isn't a good fuel in its unrefined state.

 

My old boss was involved in a CHP scheme running an internal combustion engine on pellets and there are a couple with making ny hours of continuous working but I haven't heard from him recently either.

 

We ran a gas turbine briefly on the offgas from a char kiln but the extra capital cost over just getting heat out was prohibitive.

Thanks Andrew

Wonder if it was the same young lady that thought we could run a boiler producing 1.5 MW 24/7 through the summer and use all the heat in the glasshouses.

The only sales people to give us honest advice have almost shot themselves in the foot regarding payback. We are favouring wood chip gasifier at present due our much cheaper chip cost and not being held to ransome by pellet prices if they rise. However a pellet system would come containerised so cheaper than a chip system needing a building, dryer and sieve.

Either way the figures are making us nervous and we are yet to see a working system, which we will do IF we decide the figures are worth the risk.

As for the OPs customer getting into pellet production, he needs to consider whether he will see the end of the golden years in the next decade. Government subsidies are a big driver in increasing pellet demand but will they continue? We have heard that the ROCs payments will replaced( read reduced?) which will slow market growth. Will the exit from the EU affect the market. Could the big pellet mills start a price war once their investment is repaid?

Hopefully a good advisor will know all the answers.

Maybe.

[ArthurBottlesworth]

Friends sister was married to a judge ( lots of £ to spend )

She put fancy heating system into her house, ground source , solar panels the lot -- cost absolute fortune

 

After several years messing about she ripped the lot out except the wood burning stove with boiler and the accumulator tank -- works just fine now

 

She has business and employs Polish carpenters and produces a lot of saw dust, she found out the poles were taking the sawdust home to run their wood burners - they were using sawdust and putting vent holes through and apparently getting no problems .....

 

I suspect we have a lot to learn about burning wood from eastern Europe .....

[Goaty]

Friends sister was married to a judge ( lots of £ to spend )

She put fancy heating system into her house, ground source , solar panels the lot -- cost absolute fortune

 

After several years messing about she ripped the lot out except the wood burning stove with boiler and the accumulator tank -- works just fine now

 

She has business and employs Polish carpenters and produces a lot of saw dust, she found out the poles were taking the sawdust home to run their wood burners - they were using sawdust and putting vent holes through and apparently getting no problems .....

 

I suspect we have a lot to learn about burning wood from eastern Europe .....

 

 

That just about sums up this green energy lark.

[Mike Dempsey]

I have been burning sawdust and shavings as well as offcuts and lumps of wood for years in the workshop. Saves having to take it to the recycling centre and the hassle of storing a few big bags until its worth a trip. The only time I would take it to the tip is in the warmer months when the stove isnt lit.

[Goaty]

If you was on the RHI you could light it last thing at night when you've finished and get paid for it in summer!