EP3658652A1 - Biomass fuel pellets incorporating wax compositions - Google Patents
Biomass fuel pellets incorporating wax compositionsInfo
- Publication number
- EP3658652A1 EP3658652A1 EP18749706.0A EP18749706A EP3658652A1 EP 3658652 A1 EP3658652 A1 EP 3658652A1 EP 18749706 A EP18749706 A EP 18749706A EP 3658652 A1 EP3658652 A1 EP 3658652A1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- wax
- biomass
- composition
- pellet
- less
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 320
- 239000008188 pellet Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 311
- 239000002028 Biomass Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 240
- 239000000446 fuel Substances 0.000 title abstract description 27
- 239000002023 wood Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 93
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 11
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims description 27
- XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N water Substances O XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 23
- 238000003825 pressing Methods 0.000 claims description 16
- 239000002245 particle Substances 0.000 claims description 15
- 239000010893 paper waste Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 abstract description 42
- 239000001993 wax Substances 0.000 description 284
- 239000012188 paraffin wax Substances 0.000 description 49
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 19
- 125000004432 carbon atom Chemical group C* 0.000 description 11
- 230000000875 corresponding effect Effects 0.000 description 10
- 239000000654 additive Substances 0.000 description 8
- 239000007789 gas Substances 0.000 description 8
- 239000000523 sample Substances 0.000 description 8
- 230000008901 benefit Effects 0.000 description 7
- 238000012360 testing method Methods 0.000 description 7
- 238000005259 measurement Methods 0.000 description 6
- 239000004200 microcrystalline wax Substances 0.000 description 6
- 235000019808 microcrystalline wax Nutrition 0.000 description 5
- -1 polyethylene Polymers 0.000 description 5
- 239000004698 Polyethylene Substances 0.000 description 4
- 230000000996 additive effect Effects 0.000 description 4
- 230000009286 beneficial effect Effects 0.000 description 4
- 239000000155 melt Substances 0.000 description 4
- 235000019809 paraffin wax Nutrition 0.000 description 4
- 235000019271 petrolatum Nutrition 0.000 description 4
- 229920000573 polyethylene Polymers 0.000 description 4
- 238000005507 spraying Methods 0.000 description 4
- 229920002522 Wood fibre Polymers 0.000 description 3
- 238000010521 absorption reaction Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000008859 change Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000000839 emulsion Substances 0.000 description 3
- 238000001125 extrusion Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000012184 mineral wax Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000003921 oil Substances 0.000 description 3
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 3
- 239000000047 product Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000007921 spray Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000002025 wood fiber Substances 0.000 description 3
- 241000935974 Paralichthys dentatus Species 0.000 description 2
- 239000002202 Polyethylene glycol Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000004458 analytical method Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000015556 catabolic process Effects 0.000 description 2
- 150000001875 compounds Chemical class 0.000 description 2
- 230000002596 correlated effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000010438 heat treatment Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000006872 improvement Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000010348 incorporation Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000002844 melting Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000008018 melting Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000012169 petroleum derived wax Substances 0.000 description 2
- 235000019381 petroleum wax Nutrition 0.000 description 2
- 238000011020 pilot scale process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 229920001223 polyethylene glycol Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 230000009467 reduction Effects 0.000 description 2
- 230000000717 retained effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000010902 straw Substances 0.000 description 2
- 241000609240 Ambelania acida Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000017060 Arachis glabrata Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 244000105624 Arachis hypogaea Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000010777 Arachis hypogaea Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000018262 Arachis monticola Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000017166 Bambusa arundinacea Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000017491 Bambusa tulda Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Carbon Chemical compound [C] OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 244000060011 Cocos nucifera Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000013162 Cocos nucifera Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 241000196324 Embryophyta Species 0.000 description 1
- 240000005979 Hordeum vulgare Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000007340 Hordeum vulgare Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 241001465754 Metazoa Species 0.000 description 1
- 240000003433 Miscanthus floridulus Species 0.000 description 1
- 241001520808 Panicum virgatum Species 0.000 description 1
- 244000082204 Phyllostachys viridis Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000015334 Phyllostachys viridis Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000005018 Pinus echinata Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 241001236219 Pinus echinata Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000011334 Pinus elliottii Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000017339 Pinus palustris Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000008566 Pinus taeda Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 241000209504 Poaceae Species 0.000 description 1
- 239000004743 Polypropylene Substances 0.000 description 1
- 244000299461 Theobroma cacao Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000009470 Theobroma cacao Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000021307 Triticum Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 244000098338 Triticum aestivum Species 0.000 description 1
- 240000008042 Zea mays Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000005824 Zea mays ssp. parviglumis Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 235000002017 Zea mays subsp mays Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N aluminium Chemical compound [Al] XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052782 aluminium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 238000013459 approach Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000010905 bagasse Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000011425 bamboo Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000006227 byproduct Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052799 carbon Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 238000012512 characterization method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000006243 chemical reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000011248 coating agent Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000576 coating method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000013068 control sample Substances 0.000 description 1
- 235000005822 corn Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 239000010779 crude oil Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000835 fiber Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000010419 fine particle Substances 0.000 description 1
- 210000002683 foot Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 238000004817 gas chromatography Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000002156 mixing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 235000020232 peanut Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 229920000642 polymer Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229920001155 polypropylene Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 238000012545 processing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229920006395 saturated elastomer Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229930195734 saturated hydrocarbon Natural products 0.000 description 1
- 238000012216 screening Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000001179 sorption measurement Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000012180 soy wax Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000010907 stover Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000003760 tallow Substances 0.000 description 1
- 235000013311 vegetables Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 239000004711 α-olefin Substances 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L5/00—Solid fuels
- C10L5/40—Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin
- C10L5/44—Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin on vegetable substances
- C10L5/442—Wood or forestry waste
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L10/00—Use of additives to fuels or fires for particular purposes
- C10L10/02—Use of additives to fuels or fires for particular purposes for reducing smoke development
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L5/00—Solid fuels
- C10L5/02—Solid fuels such as briquettes consisting mainly of carbonaceous materials of mineral or non-mineral origin
- C10L5/06—Methods of shaping, e.g. pelletizing or briquetting
- C10L5/10—Methods of shaping, e.g. pelletizing or briquetting with the aid of binders, e.g. pretreated binders
- C10L5/14—Methods of shaping, e.g. pelletizing or briquetting with the aid of binders, e.g. pretreated binders with organic binders
- C10L5/146—Methods of shaping, e.g. pelletizing or briquetting with the aid of binders, e.g. pretreated binders with organic binders with wax, e.g. paraffin wax
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L5/00—Solid fuels
- C10L5/02—Solid fuels such as briquettes consisting mainly of carbonaceous materials of mineral or non-mineral origin
- C10L5/34—Other details of the shaped fuels, e.g. briquettes
- C10L5/36—Shape
- C10L5/363—Pellets or granulates
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L5/00—Solid fuels
- C10L5/40—Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin
- C10L5/44—Solid fuels essentially based on materials of non-mineral origin on vegetable substances
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2200/00—Components of fuel compositions
- C10L2200/04—Organic compounds
- C10L2200/0461—Fractions defined by their origin
- C10L2200/0469—Renewables or materials of biological origin
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/08—Drying or removing water
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/14—Injection, e.g. in a reactor or a fuel stream during fuel production
- C10L2290/141—Injection, e.g. in a reactor or a fuel stream during fuel production of additive or catalyst
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/18—Spraying or sprinkling
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/22—Impregnation or immersion of a fuel component or a fuel as a whole
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/24—Mixing, stirring of fuel components
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/28—Cutting, disintegrating, shredding or grinding
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/30—Pressing, compressing or compacting
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C10—PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT
- C10L—FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G, C10K; LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS; ADDING MATERIALS TO FUELS OR FIRES TO REDUCE SMOKE OR UNDESIRABLE DEPOSITS OR TO FACILITATE SOOT REMOVAL; FIRELIGHTERS
- C10L2290/00—Fuel preparation or upgrading, processes or apparatus therefore, comprising specific process steps or apparatus units
- C10L2290/60—Measuring or analysing fractions, components or impurities or process conditions during preparation or upgrading of a fuel
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02E50/00—Technologies for the production of fuel of non-fossil origin
- Y02E50/10—Biofuels, e.g. bio-diesel
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02E50/00—Technologies for the production of fuel of non-fossil origin
- Y02E50/30—Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel
Definitions
- Wooden fuel pellets and other biomass fuel pellets containing wax compositions, and corresponding methods of making such fuel pellets, are provided.
- Wood based fuels are becoming an increasingly significant source of fuel for both industrial and individual consumer use.
- Wood pellets can be formed by extruding woody biomass (such as wood particles) under pressure through a die of an appropriate size. The pressure during extrusion can result in heating of the extruded mass, which is believed to assist with maintaining the integrity of the extruded mass after it cools to form a wood pellet.
- U.S. Patent 4,612,017 discloses formation of wood pellets where a wax emulsion and/or iignosulfonate are incorporated during the process of forming the pellet.
- the amount of wax and/or lignosulfate solids in the pellet corresponds to 0.25 wt% to 2.5 wt% of the pellet.
- Pellets were formed with various woody biomass types both with and without wax additive. In the examples, formation of some types of pellets showed an improvement in durability with little or no change in power consumption during pellet formation. Other examples of pellet formation showed a reduction in power consumption during pellet formation but also a reduced pellet durability.
- woody biomass have a lower suitability for formation of wood pellets with desired properties. Desirable properties for wood pellets can include high pellet durability and low moisture uptake during storage. It would be beneficial to identify ways to modify the composition of the woody biomass used for pellet formation and/or modify the method of pellet formation in order to improve the resulting properties of the wood pellet. For example, such modifications could potentially expand the types of woody biomass that are suitable for pellet formation. More generally, it would be beneficial to identify ways to modify the composition of various types of biomass that are potentially suitable for fuel pellet formation in order to improve the resulting properties of the biomass pellet.
- a pressed biomass pellet composition includes 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of a wax composition relative to a weight of the biomass pellet composition according to an embodiment of the invention.
- the wax composition includes n-paraffins and oil-in-wax according to an embodiment of the invention.
- a weight of the n-paraffins is greater than a weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.10 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass pellet composition, such as by at least 0.15 wt%, or at least 0.20 wt%, or at least 0.25 wt% according to various embodiments of the invention.
- a pressed biomass pellet composition is formed from a biomass composition that corresponds to a mixture of biomass, less than 25 wt% water, and 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of a wax composition (or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%) relative to a weight of the biomass composition, according to embodiments of the invention.
- a method of forming a biomass pellet includes pressing a mixture comprising biomass and a wax composition through a die to form a pressed wood pellet comprising 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of the wax composition (or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%).
- the wax composition can include n-paraffins and oil-in-wax.
- a weight of the n-paraffins can be greater than a weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.10 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass pellet composition, such as by at least 0.15 wt%, or at least 0.20 wt%, or at least 0.25 wt%.
- pressing the mixture to form a pressed biomass pellet can include a power consumption of less than 2500 amps 2 /g.
- pressing the mixture to form a pressed biomass pellet can include a power consumption corresponding to less than 60% of a power consumption for pressing a reference mixture comprising less than 0.01 wt% of the wax composition.
- a biomass composition or mixture for forming a biomass pellet composition can include 20 wt% or less of water.
- the wax composition can have a particle size of at least 4.0 ⁇ , or at least 6.0 ⁇ , or at least 8.0 ⁇ . Additionally or alternately, the wax composition can include at least 1.0 wt% oil-in-wax relative to a weight of the wax composition, or at least 5.0 wt%, or at least 10 wt%, or at least 15 wt%.
- a biomass pellet composition can include a surface wax concentration that differs from an interior wax concentration by less than 60 wt%, or less than 50 wt%, or less than 40 wt% relative to the surface wax concentration. Additionally or alternately, a biomass pellet composition can have a pellet durability index of at least 97.0 wt%, or at least 97.5 wt%, or at least 98.0 wt%. Additionally or alternately, a biomass pellet composition comprises a reduced tendency to adsorb water relative to a reference biomass pellet composition that contains less than 0.01 wt% of the wax composition, and optionally wherein the wood pellet composition comprises a reduced tendency to produce CO as an off-gas during storage relative to the reference biomass pellet composition.
- the biomass incorporated into a biomass pellet composition, a biomass composition, and/or a mixture can correspond to woody biomass, grassy biomass, residual agricultural biomass, industrial paper waste biomass, or a combination thereof.
- the biomass can correspond to woody biomass.
- FIG. 1 shows pellet durability versus wax content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 2 shows pellet durability versus the difference between n-paraffin and oil-in-wax content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 3 shows pellet durability versus n-paraffin content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 4 shows pellet durability versus oil-in-wax content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 5 shows pellet durability versus total paraffin content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 6 shows power consumption during pellet formation versus wax content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 7 shows power consumption during pellet formation versus the difference between n-paraffin and oil-in-wax content for wood pellets made from woody biomass mixtures containing a variety of wax compositions.
- FIG. 8 shows moisture uptake versus wax content for wood pellets made from various woody biomass mixtures.
- FIG. 9 shows moisture uptake versus wax content for wood pellets made from various woody biomass mixtures.
- a wax composition can be incorporated into a woody biomass mixture for formation of pellets, such as wooden fuel pellets. It has been unexpectedly discovered that addition of wax compositions with suitable amounts of n-paraffins relative to the amount of oil-in-wax can result in wood pellets with improved properties.
- addition of a suitable wax composition to a woody biomass mixture (i.e., a mixture that comprises woody biomass) prior to pellet formation can allow for formation of wood pellets with improved durability and reduced tendency to uptake moisture during storage. Addition of a suitable wax composition can also allow for formation of wood pellets with improved properties while also reducing or minimizing the power requirements during pellet formation. This combination of improved pellet durability and reduced power consumption during pellet formation is unexpected, as conventionally it would be expected that an additive that improves pellet durability would require increased power consumption during pellet formation.
- a suitable wax composition can also be beneficial for fuel pellets formed from other types of biomass, including other types of biomass alone or in combination, as is contemplated by the present invention in various embodiments.
- suitable types of biomass contemplated by the present invention include, but are not limited to, woody biomass (including wood derived from trees, bushes, and/or shrubs); grassy biomass (including biomass derived from grasses such as miscanthus, switchgrass, wheat straw, barley straw, and bamboo); residual agricultural biomass (including biomass derived from corn stover, palm kernel, coconut shells, bagasse, peanut hulls, and cocoa hulls); and biomass derived from industrial paper waste; and any combination of the foregoing.
- Wood pellets are a potential fuel source that can be made from woody biomass, such as wood particles, that would otherwise have a low economic value.
- wood particles are defined to be a type of woody biomass.
- Sawdust and other wood residues from commercial or industrial wood processing are examples of suitable sources of woody biomass for pellet formation.
- Burners for wood pellets can also have relatively high efficiency of conversion of fuel to heat, which can make wood pellets an attractive fuel source in various applications, such as residential heating.
- biomass fuel pellets are a potential fuel source that can be made from various suitable types of biomass (as noted above) that would otherwise have a relatively low economic value.
- biomass pellets (such as wood pellets) can have a biomass content of at least 80 wt%, or at least 85 wt%, or at least 88 wt%, or at least 90 wt%, such as up to 96 wt% biomass or possibly still higher. Additionally or alternately, biomass pellets can have a water content of 10 wt% or less, or 9.0 wt% or less, or 8.0 wt% or less, or 7.0 wt% or less, such as down to 2.0 wt% or less or possibly still lower.
- the pellets can then be introduced into a mechanical tumbler for a specified period of time, such as 10 minutes in the tumbler at 50 revolutions per minute.
- the contents of the mechanical tumbler can then be passed through the screen again, so that any fine particles created during the tumbling are allowed to pass through.
- the remaining particles are then weighed again to determine the amount of weight retained in the sample of particles after tumbling.
- the durability can be expressed as the percentage of weight retained in the sample of particles after tumbling. Unless otherwise specified, measurements of durability herein correspond to measurements made in accordance with ISO 17831-1.
- Table 1 shows ISO pellet fuel quality standards for production of fuel pellets for various classes of fuel pellets. In addition to durability and total moisture content, Table 1 also shows a range of desired average sizes, desired maximum fines content, and desired maximum additives contents for fuel pellets in the United States.
- the amount of wax composition added to the woody biomass mixture can correspond to 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of the woody biomass mixture and/or of the resulting wood pellet, or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%, or 0.25 wt% to 5.0 wt%, or 0.25 wt% to 2.5 wt% of the woody biomass mixture and/or resulting wood pellet. It has further been discovered that selection of the correct type and amount of the wax composition can depend on multiple factors.
- the benefits of improved durability and/or reduced moisture uptake can be achieved by adding a wax composition that has an n-paraffin content that is sufficiently greater than the oil-in-wax content.
- the benefits of improved durability and/or reduced moisture uptake are not correlated with either the n-paraffin content or the oil-in-wax content of a wax composition as separate quantities.
- the n-paraffin content can be greater than the oil-in-wax content by at least 0.10 wt%, or at least 0.15 wt%, or at least 0.20 wt%, or at least 0.25 wt%, such as up to 2.5 wt% or 5.0 wt% or possibly still higher.
- pellets having reduced moisture uptake can also provide a benefit by having reduced production of off-gases during pellet storage.
- Wood pellets (and other biomass pellets) can produce off-gases including CO, CO2, and/or CH 4 during storage of the pellets prior to use. Production of such off-gases is believed to be related to uptake of moisture, which then can facilitate breakdown of wood fibers (or other biomass fibers) in a fuel pellet.
- the rate of breakdown of wood fibers can be reduced or minimized, which would result in a correspondingly lower rate of production of off-gases (CO, CO2, and/or CH 4 ) from pellets during storage.
- the reduced rate of moisture adsorption and/or the reduced rate of off-gas production can correspond to a reduced rate relative to a reference wood pellet.
- a reference wood pellet can have substantially the same composition, with the exception that the reference wood pellet can contain 0.01 wt% or less of the wax composition in the wood pellet.
- Wood pellets are typically formed by extruding a woody biomass mixture through a die at elevated pressure to press the mixture into a desired pellet shape.
- additives which are beneficial for increasing durability of a wood pellet are believed to also require increased power when forming the wood pellet.
- addition of a wax composition as described herein to wood particles or pulp prior to pellet formation can substantially reduce the power required for pellet formation while increasing the durability of the pellet.
- pressing a mixture that includes a wax composition to form a pressed biomass pellet can have a power consumption corresponding to less than 60% of a power consumption, or less than 50%, or less than 40%, for pressing a reference mixture comprising less than 0.01 wt% of the wax composition.
- the power consumption can be defined, for example, based on the square of the amps used to power the pellet press per gram of biomass pellet that is produced.
- a biomass pellet corresponds to a biomass composition that contains compressed biomass or compacted biomass, such as a biomass composition that is formed by applying pressure to biomass to form a desired shape, such as applying pressure to biomass during and/or after extrusion through a die.
- Biomass pellets as described herein can be formed using any suitable method such as any type of pellet mill and/or pellet press.
- Wax Compositions N-Paraffin Content and Oil-in-Wax
- a wax composition can be incorporated into a (woody) biomass mixture for formation of biomass pellets, such as wooden fuel pellets.
- the wax in the wax composition can be a mineral wax such as paraffin wax or microwax (microcrystalline wax); vegetable derived bio-wax such as soy wax; animal derived bio-wax such as tallow; synthetic wax such as Fischer- Tropsch wax or polyethylene wax; semi-crystalline waxes; or combinations of two or more waxes and/or two or more types of waxes.
- Mineral waxes can correspond to mineral waxes from any convenient crude oil source and/or from any convenient refinery feedstock and/or from any convenient refinery product stream or intermediate stream.
- the amount of synthetic wax and/or Fischer-Tropsch wax in the wax composition can correspond to 25 wt% or less of the wax composition, or 10 wt% or less.
- n-paraffins can correspond to 10 wt% to 70 wt% of the wax composition, or 10 wt% to 50 wt%, or 20 wt% to 50 wt%, or 10 wt% to 40 wt%.
- the amount of n-paraffins in a wax sample can be characterized by any suitable nonionizing method, such as gas chromatography. Such characterization of n-paraffin content using non-ionizing methods is conventional for those of skill in the art.
- oil-in-wax can correspond to 0.5 wt% to 30 wt% of the wax composition (according to ASTM D721), or 0.5 wt% to 25 wt%, or 1.0 wt% to 30 wt%, or 5.0 wt% to 30 wt%, or 1.0 wt% to 20 wt%.
- the amount of oil-in-wax can correspond to at least 1.0 wt% of the wax composition, which can (optionally) correspond to a wax composition that is at least partially composed of non-synthetic wax and/or non-Fischer- Tropsch wax.
- the amount of oil-in-wax can correspond to at least 5.0 wt% of the wax composition, or at least 10 wt%, or at least 15 wt%, which can represent an unrefined or only partially refined wax composition such as a slack wax.
- the wax composition can have a melting point, according to ASTM D87, of 100°C or less, or 80°C or less, or 70°C or less, such as down to 25°C or possibly still lower.
- suitable wax compositions can have an average number of carbon atoms per paraffin for all paraffins in the wax of 20 to 50, or 25 to 50.
- the width of the distribution required to include 95 wt% of the paraffins in the wax composition can be 15 carbon atoms to 40 carbon atoms, or 15 carbon atoms to 35 carbon atoms, or 20 carbon atoms to 40 carbon atoms.
- suitable wax compositions can have an average number of carbon atoms for n-paraffin compounds in the wax composition of 20 to 50, or 20 to 25.
- polymer waxes can include polyethylene waxes, polypropylene waxes, Fischer- Tropsch waxes, polymerized alpha-olefins waxes, polyethylene-block-polyethylene glycol waxes, and polyethylene mono-alcohol waxes.
- Microcrystalline waxes typically comprise isoparaffinic, naphthenic and n-alkane saturated hydrocarbons. Microcrystalline waxes can have a melt point from about 54°C to about 99°C and a melt viscosity at 99°C of about 8 to about 25 centipoise. Microcrystalline waxes can have an oil content from about 0.5 wt % to about 12 wt %.
- Paraffin waxes can include from about 30 wt % to about 100 wt % n-alkane straight chain saturated C20- to C6o-hydrocarbons.
- the paraffin waxes can have a melt point typically from about 35°C to about 85°C, a melt viscosity at 99°C commonly of about 2 centipoise to about 15 centipoise, and typically contain less than about 25 wt % oil.
- semi-crystalline waxes include without limitation, polyethylene-block-polyethylene glycol waxes, polyethylene monoalcohol waxes, and mixtures thereof.
- Petroleum waxes are yet another type of wax. Petroleum waxes comprise a mixture of paraffin and microcrystalline waxes.
- a woody biomass mixture can be prepared that include a wax composition.
- the woody biomass mixture can have a water content of 10 wt% to 25 wt% relative to a weight of the wood particle or pulp mixture.
- the water content can be 22 wt% or less, or 20 wt% or less, or 18 wt% or less, or 16 wt% or less.
- a wax composition can be introduced into the woody biomass mixture by any convenient method that allow for introduction as a wax, as opposed to introducing the wax as a water-based emulsion.
- the water content of the wax composition can be 10 wt% or less, or 5 wt% or less, such as down to having substantially no water content (a water content of 0 - 0.1 wt%).
- Such a wax composition can be introduced into a woody biomass mixture, for example, by spraying molten wax into the mixture using a heated spray gun to form wax droplets. The spraying of the molten wax can be performed in a tumbler or other vessel that allows for mixing of the wax droplets into the mixture prior to extrusion for pellet formation.
- the spraying can be performed to form wax droplets of a convenient size, such as wax droplets having an average diameter of 3.0 ⁇ to 25 ⁇ , or 5.0 ⁇ to 25 ⁇ , or 10 ⁇ to 25 ⁇ . This is in contrast to the typical wax droplet size for waxes in an emulsion, where the average diameter of the wax droplets can be about 0.5 to 2.0 ⁇ .
- the amount of wax composition added to the woody biomass mixture can correspond to 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of the mixture in an embodiment of the invention, or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt% in another embodiment of the invention, or 0.2 wt% to 5.0 wt% in another embodiment of the invention, or 0.2 wt% to 2.5 wt% in another embodiment of the invention, or 0.2 to 0.8 wt% in another embodiment of the invention or 0.25 wt% to 0.75 wt% in another embodiment of the invention.
- the wax composition can be fed to a device for pellet formation and pressed to form wood pellets.
- the wood pellets can be formed in a conventional manner, such as by using conventional pellet press.
- An example of a pellet press is a ring-type pilot-scale pellet press available from the Dieffenbacher company of Eppingen, Germany.
- the wood pellets can be formed by extruding the woody biomass mixture under roller pressure through a die of a desired size to from a pressed pellet having a target pellet size. The pressed pellet can then be cooled to room temperature.
- One significant cost of production of wood pellets from a biomass mixture is for the high amount of energy required by the pellet press equipment needed to compress the biomass into the desired wood pellet.
- a biomass mixture that can be compressed to proper density at reduced energy will permit manufacturing at a lower cost of production while still maintaining constant production rates.
- fuel pellet formation can be increased if production is supported by other plant processes and resources.
- a woody biomass mixture that also includes a wax composition can be formed into wood pellets while consuming an unexpectedly low amount of power during pellet formation.
- the unexpected nature of the power consumption was accompanied by an unexpected corresponding increase in durability with certain wax compositions.
- additives to a biomass mixture that increase pellet durability are believed to also result in increased power consumption during pellet formation.
- the durability of the pellets can be increased while also reducing the power required to form the wood pellets.
- the n-paraffin content can be greater than the oil-in- wax content by at least 0.10 wt% in an embodiment of the invention, or at least 0.15 wt%, or at least 0.20 wt% in another embodiment, or at least 0.25 wt% in another embodiment, or at least 0.30 wt% in another embodiment or at least 0.40 wt% in another embodiment or at least 0.50 wt% in another embodiment.
- the wax composition can be incorporated roughly evenly throughout the woody biomass mixture and/or the wood pellet. This is in contrast to a wood pellet formed without additional wax that is subsequently coated with a wax composition.
- the wax content of the coated pellet at the pellet surface will be substantially different from the wax content in the interior of the pellet.
- the wax content or concentration at the surface of the wood pellet can differ from the wax content at the geometric center of the pellet by less than 60 wt% (relative to the surface wax concentration), or less than 50 wt%, or less than 40 wt%.
- wood pellets were formed from woody biomass mixtures that included either no additional wax or that included one of the wax compositions shown in Table 2.
- the wax compositions in Table 2 are examples of typical commercially available wax compositions, with a variety of n-paraffin and oil-in-wax contents.
- the average number of carbon atoms per paraffin molecule is provided both for the total paraffins in the wax composition and for just the n-paraffins in the wax composition.
- the "95% spread” refers to the width (in number of carbon atoms) that is required for a symmetric distribution around the average number of carbon atoms to include 95 wt% of the total paraffins in the wax composition.
- the percentage of n-paraffins refers to the weight percentage of n-paraffins relative to the total weight of the wax composition. It is noted that wax compositions with still higher weight percentages of n-paraffins could also be used as part of a woody biomass mixture (or other biomass mixture).
- wax compositions A and C represent by-products from refinery processes to form other higher value products. Thus, it would be desirable to find additional end uses for wax compositions similar to wax compositions A and C. However, as shown below, it appears that wax composition A (150 N foots oil) is not suitable for addition to a woody biomass mixture for wood pellet formation, even though wax composition A has a relatively high n-paraffin content.
- Wax composition B scale wax
- Wax composition D corresponds to a fully refined wax.
- Wax composition E represents a combination of wax compositions B and C.
- Pellet fuel used in this study was manufactured in a Dieffenbacher custom made flat die type pilot-scale pellet press.
- the type wood fiber used for forming the woody biomass mixture was Southern Yellow Pine. Unless otherwise specified, the woody biomass mixtures used for pellet formation had an initial moisture content of 17%.
- the pellet press die was sized to produce 6 mm pellets. Wax was incorporated into the biomass by spraying molten wax through a DeVilbiss heated spray gun to spray molten wax into a 5 cubic foot tumbler of woody biomass before feeding the resulting mix into the pellet press. After exiting through the press, the pellets were cut from the die, collected, and allowed to cool to ambient conditions before doing durability and moisture absorption testing.
- the pellet press was powered by a 3.7 kW electric motor. Power consumption readings were taken directly from the Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) connected to the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) on the pellet press. Real-time readings of all the power being consumed in pellet production were recorded. Power consumption readings were confirmed by a Fluke Clamp Meter model 434 Power Quality Analyzer placed directly around the power line of the pellet press, also providing real-time power readings. Readings from the Fluke meter confirmed results recorded by the PLC. The amount of sample made during each run was weighed and the power consumption was calculated based on the power consumed divided by mass of the pellets produced and reported as amps 2 /gram pellet.
- VFD Variable Frequency Drive
- PLC Programmable Logic Controller
- Moisture absorption was conducted using a humidity cabinet. Weighed samples of each individual batch were placed onto an aluminum tray and weighed. Pellet fuel samples were then placed in the cabinet at 40°C and 92% relative humidity. For the data shown in FIG. 8, each tray was removed from the cabinet for a short period and the increase in moisture content was measured and recorded (g H2O/ g pellet). It is noted that the scale used for measurement of the moisture content was inside a moisture and temperature controlled testing room. The samples were then placed back in the humidity cabinet. For the data shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the total excursion time for the samples outside of the moisture cabinet during a single measurement event was 2 minutes or less. This was done every hour for the first six hours and at 24 and 48 hours. In the comparison of the various wax types in FIG. 9, moisture content readings were made periodically for only the first 8 hours.
- wood pellets were formed from a woody biomass compositions containing 1.0 wt% of a slack wax (Wax C from Table 2) at various moisture concentrations for the woody biomass composition.
- wood pellets were also formed from a woody biomass composition having a moisture content of 17 wt% that did not include a wax composition.
- Table 3 provides an example of the results observed for pellets formed from woody biomass mixtures including 1.0 wt% of Wax C at moisture contents of 17 wt% and 20 wt%.
- FIG. 1 shows the durability results for the various woody biomass mixtures containing a wax composition, and a control set of pellets that did not contain additional wax.
- addition of wax at either 0.25 wt% or 0.5 wt% actually resulted in a decrease in pellet durability for waxes A, B, and E.
- addition of 0.25 wt% of wax also led to a decrease in pellet durability, while addition of 0.5 wt% resulted in an increase in pellet durability.
- Wax D either wax concentration resulted in an increase in pellet durability.
- the results in FIG. 1 can initially appear to contain conflicting results.
- many types of waxes are not suitable for improving pellet durability, as introduction of small amounts of wax resulted in lowering of particle durability, and the maximum amount of "additives" that is permitted when attempting to comply with some industry standards is limited to only a few weight percent.
- the data in FIG. 1 also show that increasing the amount of wax to 0.5 wt% resulted in an increase in durability relative to the pellets containing 0.25 wt% wax. This is further illustrated when the durability results from Table 3 are considered, where addition of 1.0 wt% of Wax C resulted in improved durability relative to the control wood pellets (no wax addition).
- FIG. 3 provides a plot of the durability data shown in FIG. 1 versus the n-paraffin content of the woody biomass mixture due to addition of either 0.25 wt% or 0.5 wt% of the various waxes.
- the data points shown as circles correspond to data points with durability values below the durability of the control sample, while the square data points correspond to higher durability values.
- the data points to not appear to have strong or meaningful correlation with the amount of n-paraffin in the woody biomass mixture due to the wax additive.
- a potential linear fit to the data is also shown in FIG. 3, but the proposed linear fit is clearly not representative of the data in a meaningful way.
- FIG. 4 shows a plot similar to FIG. 3, but with a comparison of pellet durability with the oil-in-wax in the woody biomass composition due to the added wax.
- FIG. 4 similarly shows little or no obvious correlation between the durability and the oil-in-wax content.
- two of the data points with increased durability have low oil-in-wax, it is noted that one of the highest oil-in-wax values in the data set also resulted in increased durability.
- FIG. 5 shows another plot similar to FIG. 3, but with a comparison of pellet durability with the total paraffin in the woody biomass composition due to the added wax. Again, the data points appear to largely correspond to a random scatter.
- FIG. 2 shows a plot of the durability versus the compound variable "n-paraffin minus oil-in-wax”. As shown in FIG. 2, a logarithmic relationship can be observed between the durability values and the variable "n-paraffin minus oil-in-wax”. A functional form was roughly fit to the data points, with fit values corresponding to Equation (1).
- Pellet Durability Index 112.98 + 7.2847*ln[(wt% n-paraffin) - (wt% oil-in-wax)]
- n-paraffin content, oil-in-wax content, and total paraffin content of a wax composition all correspond to values that are routinely characterized, it was unexpected to find that a difference between n-paraffin content and oil-in-wax content would correspond to a meaningful variable.
- This unusual dependence on both n-paraffin content and oil-in-wax content also helps to explain the behavior of the pellets formed using the various waxes.
- having an n-paraffin minus oil-in-wax content of greater than roughly 0.1 wt% in a wood pellet results in an increased pellet durability.
- Wax A the n-paraffin content and oil-in-wax content are relatively similar in the wax composition.
- Wax B has a large difference between the n-paraffin content and the oil-in-wax content, but the absolute value of the n-paraffin content is relatively low, so it is also difficult to achieve the needed threshold difference.
- Wax D has both a high n- paraffin content and a low oil-in-wax content.
- Wax C presents an intermediate situation.
- Wax E corresponds to a 30 / 70 blend of Wax B and Wax C.
- Wax E has a lower oil-in-wax content, it also has a lower n-paraffin content.
- addition of 0.5 wt% of Wax E is still not sufficient to achieve the threshold value. It is believed that addition of larger amounts of Wax E, such as 0.75 wt% or more, would result in a wood pellet with increased durability.
- FIGS. 1 - 5 are based on incorporation of wax into the woody biomass mixture prior to pellet formation. Additional tests were performed where wood pellets were formed from a woody biomass mixture without addition of wax, followed by attempts to coat the resulting wood pellets with a wax composition. It was observed that attempting to coat the pellets with wax after pellet formation did not produce a benefit with regard to either pellet durability or moisture uptake. Of course, attempts to add wax to pellets after pellet formation (such as by coating) also did not impact the power required to form pellets.
- the data shown in FIGS. 1 - 5 is also summarized in Table 4.
- the scale wax (Wax B) corresponds to a high melt scale wax with an oil-in-wax content of 1.5 wt% - 5.0 wt% relative to weight of the wax.
- the slack wax (Wax C) corresponds to a high melt slack wax with an oil-in-wax content of 8 wt% to 15 wt% relative to a weight of the wax.
- the refined wax (Wax D) corresponds to a high melt fully refined wax with less than 0.5 wt% oil-in-wax.
- the blend (Wax E) corresponds to a blend of 30 wt% Wax B and 70 wt% Wax C. Either 0.25 wt% or 0.50 wt% of a wax was added to the woody biomass prior to pellet formation.
- the "fraction” column corresponds to the weight fraction of each wax that corresponds to n-paraffin and oil-in-wax.
- the "pellet content” column corresponds to the resulting weight percent of n-paraffin, oil-in-wax, and (n-paraffin - oil-in-wax) in a wood pellet produced from the corresponding woody biomass mixture.
- the power consumption corresponds to the power required to form a gram of wood pellets using the corresponding woody biomass mixture.
- the data in Table 4 include the power consumption during manufacture of the various pellets.
- the power consumption is represented as the square of the amount of current per gram of pellet produced.
- FIG. 6 provides a plot of the power consumption values in Table 4. As shown in FIG. 6, Waxes B - E show reduced power consumption during pellet manufacture, while Wax A resulted in increased power consumption.
- FIG. 7 shows the power consumption data plotted against the difference in n-paraffin content and oil-in-wax content. Similar to FIG. 2, the power consumption data appears to asymptotically approach a limiting value in power consumption during pellet manufacture, with a minimum threshold difference being needed before a reduced power consumption is observed. Based on FIG. 7, it appears that a threshold value of at least 0.05 wt% difference between the n-paraffin content and the oil-in-wax content is needed to provide reduced power consumption during pellet manufacture.
- FIG. 8 shows results for moisture uptake for wood pellets containing from 0.25 wt% to 2.0 wt% of Wax C, along with the control wood pellets that contain no additional wax.
- FIG. 8 shows that the change in moisture uptake with respect to additional wax varies depending on the amount of wax added.
- 0.25 wt% of Wax C addition of the wax composition results in an increase in moisture uptake during exposure of wood pellets to moisture in a humidity cabinet. This increase is observed at all of the times shown in FIG. 8.
- FIG. 9 shows a plot similar to FIG. 8 for addition of 0.25 wt% or 0.5 wt% of Wax D to the wood pellets. As shown in FIG. 9, addition of 0.25 wt% of Wax D results in an increase in moisture uptake by the resulting wood pellets. This is in contrast to the durability results, where addition of 0.25 wt% of Wax D was sufficient to achieve an increase in pellet durability.
- Embodiment 1 A biomass pellet composition comprising 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of a wax composition (or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%) relative to a weight of the biomass pellet composition, the wax composition comprising n-paraffins and oil-in-wax, a weight of the n-paraffins being greater than a weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.10 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass pellet composition, the biomass pellet composition optionally comprising a pressed biomass pellet composition.
- Embodiment 2 The biomass pellet composition of Embodiment 1, wherein the weight of the n-paraffins is greater than the weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.15 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass pellet composition, or at least 0.20 wt%, or at least 0.25 wt%.
- Embodiment s A biomass composition comprising woody biomass, less than 25 wt% water, and 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of a wax composition (or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%) relative to a weight of the biomass composition, the wax composition comprising n-paraffins and oil-in-wax, a weight of the n-paraffins being greater than a weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.10 wt% relative to the weight of the woody biomass composition.
- Embodiment 4 A method of forming a biomass pellet, comprising: pressing a mixture comprising biomass and a wax composition through a die to form a biomass pellet comprising 0.15 wt% to 5.0 wt% of the wax composition (or 0.15 wt% to 2.5 wt%), the wax composition comprising n-paraffins and oil-in-wax, a weight of the n-paraffins being greater than a weight of the oil-in- wax by at least 0.10 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass pellet.
- Embodiment 5 The method of Embodiment 4, wherein pressing the mixture to form a biomass pellet comprises a power consumption of less than 2500 amps 2 /g, or less than 2000 amps 2 /g, or less than 1500 amps 2 /g; or wherein pressing the mixture to form a biomass pellet comprises a power consumption corresponding to less than 60% of a power consumption (or less than 50%), or less than 40%>) for pressing a reference mixture comprising less than 0.01 wt%> of the wax composition; or a combination thereof.
- Embodiment 6 The biomass composition or method of any of Embodiments 3 - 5, wherein the biomass composition or the mixture comprises 20 wt%> or less of water, or 18 wt%> or less.
- Embodiment 7 The biomass composition or method of any of Embodiments 3 - 6, wherein the weight of the n-paraffins is greater than the weight of the oil-in-wax by at least 0.15 wt% relative to the weight of the biomass composition or the mixture, or at least 0.20 wt%, or at least 0.25 wt%.
- Embodiment 8 The biomass pellet composition, biomass composition, or method of any of the above embodiments, wherein the wax composition comprises a particle size of at least 4.0 ⁇ , or at least 6.0 ⁇ , or at least 8.0 ⁇ .
- Embodiment 9 The biomass pellet composition, biomass composition, or method of any of the above embodiments, wherein the wax composition comprises at least 1.0 wt% oil-in- wax relative to a weight of the wax composition, or at least 5.0 wt%, or at least 10 wt%, or at least 15 wt%, the wax composition optionally comprising 25 wt% or less of Fischer-Tropsch wax, or 10 wt% or less.
- Embodiment 10 A biomass pellet composition made from the biomass composition of any of Embodiments 3 or 6 to 9 or made according to the method of any of Embodiments 4 to 9.
- Embodiment 11 The biomass pellet composition of any of Embodiments 1, 2, or 10, wherein the biomass pellet composition comprises a surface wax concentration that differs from an interior wax concentration by less than 60 wt%, or less than 50 wt%, or less than 40 wt% relative to the surface wax concentration.
- Embodiment 12 The biomass pellet composition of any of Embodiments 1, 2, 10, or
- biomass pellet composition comprises a pellet durability index of at least 97.0 wt%, or at least 97.5 wt%, or at least 98.0 wt%.
- Embodiment 13 The biomass pellet composition of any of Embodiments 1, 2, 10, 11, or 12, wherein the biomass pellet composition comprises a reduced tendency to adsorb water relative to a reference biomass pellet composition that contains less than 0.01 wt% of the wax composition, and optionally wherein the wood pellet composition comprises a reduced tendency to produce CO as an off-gas during storage relative to the reference biomass pellet composition.
- Embodiment 14 The biomass pellet composition, biomass composition, or method of any of the above embodiments, wherein the biomass comprises woody biomass, grassy biomass, residual agricultural biomass, industrial paper waste biomass, or a combination thereof; or wherein the biomass comprises woody biomass.
- Embodiment 15 The biomass pellet composition of any of embodiments 1, 2, 10, 11,
- the biomass pellet composition comprises at least 80 wt% biomass, or at least 85 wt%, or at least 88 wt%, or at least 90 wt%; or wherein the biomass pellet composition comprises 10 wt% or less of water, or 9.0 wt% or less, or 8.0 wt% or less, or 7.0 wt% or less; or a combination thereof.
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US4612017A (en) | 1981-02-18 | 1986-09-16 | Georgia-Pacific Corporation | Pelletizing wood |
US5910454A (en) * | 1998-05-29 | 1999-06-08 | Sprules; Rodney K. | Coffee-based solid fuel composition |
US7960325B2 (en) * | 2008-02-15 | 2011-06-14 | Renewable Densified Fuels, Llc | Densified fuel pellets |
DE102008011163A1 (en) * | 2008-02-26 | 2009-08-27 | Sasol Wax Gmbh | Wood material composition containing olefins and use of olefins for the hydrophobization of wood-based raw materials and processes for the production of wood-based materials |
-
2018
- 2018-07-17 SG SG11201912435RA patent/SG11201912435RA/en unknown
- 2018-07-17 EP EP18749706.0A patent/EP3658652A1/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2018-07-17 WO PCT/US2018/042401 patent/WO2019022994A1/en active Application Filing
- 2018-07-17 CA CA3069535A patent/CA3069535A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2018-07-17 US US16/037,284 patent/US20190031972A1/en not_active Abandoned
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
WO2019022994A8 (en) | 2019-11-21 |
CA3069535A1 (en) | 2019-01-31 |
US20190031972A1 (en) | 2019-01-31 |
SG11201912435RA (en) | 2020-02-27 |
WO2019022994A1 (en) | 2019-01-31 |
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