JP2009001826A - Gasification method of biomass - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gasification method of biomass, which is possible even in a small scale, for obtaining a highly calorific clean fuel gas suited for a power generation gas engine in a high yield from biomass resources. <P>SOLUTION: The gasification method of biomass comprises as follows. A biomass fine powder which consists of grass plants or woody plants is supplied into a gasification space intercepted by an external heating space and a dividing wall. Heating is performed through the dividing wall from the external heating space, thereby the gasification reaction between a high temperature steam blown into the gasification space and biomass is generated in the gasification space by an endothermic reaction. In addition, in the molecular formula of CmH<SB>2</SB>On of the biomass, when m is 1.3 and n is 0.9, the molar ratio of the water vapor/biomass is established as 0.3-15. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to effective use of biomass, and more particularly to a method for producing clean high calorie gas from biomass. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method for producing clean, high calorie gas that can be used for a gas engine of a power supply system or a combined heat and power system with high system power generation efficiency that cannot be obtained by a conventional form of biomass energy utilization.

  Among conventional biomass energy utilization forms, the utilization form performed by converting into electric energy or thermoelectric energy directly burns biomass as boiler fuel, generates high-pressure steam, and rotates the power generation turbine. It has been. Therefore, since the scale of the facility is increased to at least 5000 to 10,000 kW, it is necessary to generate a large amount of biomass resources or to collect a large amount of biomass resources. In addition, it requires a large amount of invested capital. Above all, since the power generation efficiency is in the range of 10% in the case of the 5000 kW scale, a small and highly efficient use form of biomass resources is desired.

  On the other hand, since power generation using a gas engine can achieve high power generation efficiency even on a small scale, there is a high need for biomass gasification technology in a society and natural environment where biomass resources are generated in a distributed manner as in Japan.

  With regard to biomass gasification technology, in a conventional fixed bed and fluidized bed type gasification furnace, oxygen or air is the main gasifying agent, and gasification space, which is an endothermic reaction, and heat generation space due to combustion are made into a common space. The so-called internal combustion type that has been set has been researched and developed, but tar and soot are by-produced and the quality is not suitable for gas engines. In addition, when air is used, nitrogen remains in the product gas, and the calorific value of the unit product gas is reduced. In the case of using oxygen, an air separation step is separately required, and energy required for operation and capital investment are factors for lowering energy efficiency and cost push.

  In addition, gasification research using critical-pressure hot water has been conducted, but it has not reached the range of practical use due to problems with ultra-high temperature and high-pressure operation.

  The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems, and is capable of obtaining high-calorie, clean fuel gas in high yield, which is suitable for a power generation gas engine from biomass resources, and can be produced even on a small scale. It aims at providing the gasification method of this. In addition, it will increase the overall energy conversion efficiency of biomass resources and contribute to the spread of use as a third new energy.

The biomass gasification method of the present invention supplies biomass fine powder made of pulverized herbs or trees into a gasification space blocked by an external heating space and a partition wall, and the partition wall is formed from the external heating space. A gasification method of biomass that causes a gasification reaction of high-temperature steam and biomass that is blown into the gasification space by an endothermic reaction, the molecular formula CmH ₂ On of the biomass The feature is that the molar ratio of water vapor / biomass is set to 0.3 to 15 when m = 1.3 and n = 0.9.

In addition to supplying the heat necessary for the decomposition of the biomass with a separately prepared heat source by radiation from the reaction tube wall that does not chemically affect the gasification space, the steam for the biomass, that is, CmH ₂ On, that is, H It is indispensable to react ₂ O in a molar ratio (water vapor / biomass) in the range of 0.3 to 15 in order to produce a gas having a high energy density with no free carbon, that is, a composition free of tar and soot. is there. Preferably, the water vapor / biomass molar ratio is 0.35-5. Further, when the oxidation reaction with oxygen proceeds in the gasification space, an extreme overheating phenomenon may occur locally in a microscopic view, and thus undesirable side reactions such as the formation of free carbon occur. Therefore, indirect heating through a partition is preferable. It is preferable that the oxygen concentration is substantially 2% or less.

In the molecular formula CmH ₂ On of biomass, the above-mentioned molar ratio may be set assuming that m = 1.3 and n = 0.9 on average in herbs and woods that are usually obtained. As a separately prepared heat source, a hot gas obtained by burning biomass can be used. As the heat source biomass, biomass having a lower quality than the raw material for gas decomposition can be used.

  Furthermore, the biomass gasification method of the present invention is characterized in that the amount of heat applied from the outside is 25 Kcal / biomass mole or more, preferably 30 Kcal / biomass mole or more, more preferably 39.7 Kcal / biomass mole or more.

  In the endothermic reaction that produces a clean, high caloric gas, which is the object of the present invention, the stoichiometric amount is 39.7 Kcal / biomass mole, so that the reaction can proceed rapidly without side reactions. A calorific value of at least 25 Kcal / biomass mole is required. The residence time in the gasification reaction zone of the gasifier requires a range of about 0.1 to 10 seconds, and when the temperature in the reaction zone is about 850 to 1000 ° C., the residence time is 0.1 seconds and about 800. It is preferable that the residence time is 0.2 to 0.5 seconds at C, and 10 seconds at about 750C.

  Furthermore, the biomass gasification method according to the present invention includes the heat amount of water vapor in the gasification space and the partition wall so that the amount of heat applied to the biomass in the gasification space from outside through the partition wall does not generate soot or tar after the gasification reaction. The feature is to adjust the amount of external heat from the supply.

  In addition to the cracking gas generation reaction in the gasification space, it is also necessary that the hydrocarbon in the generated gas is dehydrogenated and free carbon is not generated. It is necessary to adjust the amount of heat appropriately.

Further, in the biomass gasification method of the present invention, the water vapor / biomass molar ratio, the external heating calorie from the external heating space, and the reducing atmosphere of the gasification space are set so as to satisfy the following formula (1). Is a feature.
C _1.3 H ₂ O _0.9 + p ₁ H ₂ O
→ q ₁ H ₂ + q ₂ CO + q ₃ CH ₄ + q ₄ CO ₂ (1)
An example of the formula (1) is shown below.
C _1.3 H ₂ O _0.9 +0.4 H ₂ O
→ 0.8H ₂ + 0.7CO + 0.3CH ₄ + 0.3CO ₂

  In other words, the equation (1) is a reaction equation aimed at by the present invention, and is a reaction equation that is possible by setting the steam / biomass molar ratio, the externally heated calories and the reducing atmosphere (oxygen-deficient atmosphere) of the gasification space. I found out.

  Furthermore, the biomass gasification method of the present invention is characterized in that the in-furnace gasification temperature is 800 to 1000 ° C., and the gasification atmosphere is a reducing atmosphere using no catalyst under normal pressure. The temperature range for gasification is preferably a temperature range that is not accompanied by side reactions and is sufficient to rapidly promote the target reaction, and it is not particularly necessary to increase the pressure. The temperature is related to the speed at which the fine powder is converted into gas. A conversion speed of up to about 0.2 seconds is required at 850 to 950 ° C., and a conversion speed of up to about 0.5 seconds is required at 800 to 850 ° C. is necessary. Further, when the temperature exceeds about 1000 ° C., it is disadvantageous that it is necessary to select a very expensive heat-resistant material for the device. The reducing atmosphere also includes an atmosphere in which no oxidant is present, whereby gasification proceeds exclusively through a decomposition reaction without a side reaction due to a local high temperature due to oxidation heat. The decomposition of this type of hydrocarbon-oxygen compound with water vapor may be promoted, for example, in the presence of a nickel-based catalyst. However, in the method of the present invention, there is no need for a catalyst and the conditions limited by the present invention are used. If done, it will proceed at a practical rate. Usually, since it is a biomass organic substance, sulfur and chlorine derived from proteins and impurities are slightly mixed in, so that the catalyst is poisoned and has no effect in practice.

  Furthermore, in the method for gasifying biomass according to the present invention, the gasification space in which the gasification reaction is caused by supplying water vapor to the biomass consisting of pulverized herbs or woods via the metal reaction tube constituting the partition wall. It is characterized in that it is cut off from the external heating space, and width radiation heat is applied to the gasification space through the tube wall of the metal reaction tube. In this reaction, in order to advance the target reaction as purely as possible and eliminate harmful side reactions, a hot gas as a heating source is not directly introduced into the gasification space. Heating means that transfers heat from the hot gas to the partition walls, which is a means that can introduce only heat into the gasification space, and uses radiation to radiate the partition walls into the gasification space depending on the temperature. Further, by this method, even if there is some problem in the chemical purity of the hot gas, it does not affect the gasification reaction, so it can serve only as a heating source. Note that, as will be described later, some sulfur and chlorine in the product gas can be removed in the subsequent dehydration step together with the removal of moisture in the product gas.

As described above, according to the features of the present invention, there is no generation of free carbon such as tar and soot, and the waste is only a small amount of ash, and is mainly floating or outside mainly composed of hydrocarbons such as clean H ₂ , CO, and CH _4. Thermal high calorie gas (for example, 20 MJ / NM ³ ) can be obtained, and a system with high total energy efficiency can be obtained by combining with gas engine power generation.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, shapes, materials, relative arrangements, etc. of the products described in the present embodiment are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention only to specific examples unless otherwise specified, but are merely illustrative examples. Absent.

(Example 1) FIG. 1 is a flow chart of a bioenergy utilization system centering on a gasification reaction facility for generating floating / externally heated high calorie gas of the present invention. The gasification reaction equipment 101 includes a reaction tube 306 (see FIGS. 2 and 3), and the reaction tube is configured to receive the reaction water 115 and the biomass fine powder 112 and to be heated by the biomass combustion hot gas 114 from the outside. The pulverization facility 102 has a performance capable of receiving biomass and generating fine powder having an average particle diameter of 3 mm or less, preferably 1 mm or less, and separating fine powder 112 having an average particle diameter of 3 mm or less and coarse powder 113 having an average particle diameter of 3 mm or more. It has a structure that can be discharged. In this example, a crusher and an impact mill were used in combination. The hot gas generation furnace 103 receives the biomass coarse powder 113 and burns the biomass coarse powder 113 with a combustion support agent such as air to generate a high-temperature biomass combustion hot gas 114. The dehydrator 104 has a cooling heat transfer surface inside, and has a structure capable of condensing and removing high-boiling substances such as moisture and sulfur compounds in the gas introduced into the tower. The gas tank 105 is a water-sealed tank and has a structure capable of storing generated gas. The gas engine 106 has the capability of burning the generated gas in this example and operating the generator.

In FIG. 1, the biomass raw material 111 is supplied to the pulverization facility 102 and is divided into fine powder 112 having an average particle diameter of 3 mm or less and coarse powder 113 having an average particle diameter of 3 mm, and the coarse powder 113 is sent to the hot gas generation furnace 103 to be fine powder. 112 is introduced together with the reaction water 115 into the reaction tube 306 in the gasification reaction facility 101. In the hot gas generation furnace 103, the coarse powder 113 is burned at a combustion temperature of 900 to 1200 ° C., and the reaction tube 306 in the gasification reaction facility 101 is heated from the outside with the generated biomass combustion hot gas 114, and the temperature in the tube is set to 800. Keep above ℃. The fine powder 112 introduced into the reaction tube floats in the water vapor stream generated by the introduced reaction water 115 and is gasified almost instantaneously (0.2 seconds or less). The product gas 118 is introduced into the dehydrator 104 to remove moisture, sulfur content (H ₂ S), and chlorine content (HCl), and the product gas 116 is stored in the gas tank 105. The product gas 116 has a calorie of about 20 MJ / m ³ and is suitable as a fuel for the gas engine 106. The total energy efficiency when a biomass throughput of 1 ton / day (50 to 100 kg / h) was processed by this system and converted into electric energy by a 30 kW generator could be 20% or more.

(Example 2) FIG. 2: is a schematic diagram of an example of the details of the gasification reaction equipment 101 and the primary gasification part 302 of this invention. In FIG. 2, the gasification reaction equipment 101 has a reaction tube 306 inside a heating chamber 307, and the heating chamber 307 is provided with an inlet and outlet for the biomass combustion hot gas 114. The reaction tube is a curved tube in which U-shaped, inverted U-shaped and U-shaped tubes are connected, and includes a first vertical portion, a second vertical portion, a third vertical portion, and a fourth vertical portion from the right side. The open end where the reaction water 115 can be introduced from the upper part of the first vertical part at the right end, and the open end where the biomass fine powder 112 can be introduced from the upper part of the second vertical part in the middle connects the second vertical part and the third vertical part in the middle. An opening end for taking out the ash 117 generated by gasification from the bottom of the U-shaped tube is provided, and an opening end for taking out the water-containing product gas 118 generated by the gasification reaction from the fourth vertical portion at the left end, respectively.

The gasification reaction equipment 101 introduces a biomass combustion hot gas 114 generated in a hot gas generator (not shown) from the introduction port of the heating chamber 307, heats the reaction tube 306 from the outside, and sets the internal temperature to 800 ° C. The temperature and flow rate of the biomass combustion hot gas 114 (externally heated gas) are adjusted so as to maintain the above appropriate temperature. The reaction water 115 is heated by an external heating gas in the reaction water evaporation unit 301 in the first vertical part to become water vapor, and gas is introduced while floating the biomass fine powder 112 introduced from the upper part in the primary gasification unit 302 in the second vertical part. Make it. At this time, the input amounts of the reaction water 115 and fine powder 112 are adjusted so that the water vapor / biomass molar ratio is 0.4 or more. The gasified product gas then flows to a secondary gasification section 303 composed of a third vertical section and a fourth vertical section, and decomposes a small amount of by-produced tars and soot. At this part, the solid organic matter and carbon are all decomposed to form a gas body, and the solid becomes only the ash composed of inorganic matter, and the ash 117 is taken out from the ash take-out opening end. The product gas 118 is taken out from the opening end of the left end fourth vertical portion as the water-containing product gas 118 in a state still containing moisture, a small amount of H ₂ S and HCl.

  As shown in detail in the figure, the primary gasification unit 302 is provided with a conical (inverted truncated cone) type rectifying plate 307 having an opening 308 in the center near the lower part of the reaction tube 306, and high-temperature steam is generated from the opening 308. The biomass fine powder 112 injected and introduced from the upper part of the reaction tube 306 is gasified in a suspended state. The primary gasification, that is, the gasification targeted by the present invention, is performed in the primary gasification region 304, and the upper portion of the third vertical portion beyond this region functions as the secondary gasification region 305, as described above. It plays the same role as the secondary gasification unit 303.

(Example 3) FIG. 3: is a schematic diagram of the gasification reaction equipment of this invention, and another example of the details of a primary gasification part. The overall configuration of the gasification reaction facility is the same as that of the second embodiment. The detailed structure of the primary gasification unit 401 is as shown in the figure. That is, in the details of the primary gasification unit 401 on the right side of FIG. 3, the dispersion tube 402 is fed into the reaction tube 306. The dispersion tube is a cylindrical body composed of a curved surface extending from the fine powder feeding tube toward the bottom circumference of the bottom inverted conical, with one end of the inner hollow closed by the inverted conical, and the bottom inverted conical A plurality of jet openings 405 are provided on a curved surface extending toward the bottom circumference.

  When the dispersion tube 402 is inserted into the reaction tube 306, the distance between the vicinity of the reverse conical bottom surface of the dispersion tube 402 and the inner wall of the reaction tube 306 is the narrowest, and a gas such as steam is passed from the bottom of the reaction tube 306. When it is circulated, it becomes the throat portion 403, and the distance between the inner wall of the pipe and the outer wall of the dispersion pipe 42 gradually increases from here to the upper portion, so that it becomes the diffuser portion 404. Therefore, the plurality of jet ports 405 are preferably provided in the vicinity of the throat portion 403.

  Thus, when the biomass fine powder 112 is fed from the fine powder feed pipe of the dispersion pipe 402, the high-temperature steam generated by the evaporation of the reaction water 115 flows from the lower part, becomes high speed at the throat portion 403, and the inside of the dispersion pipe 402 due to the venturi effect. The fine powder 112 is sucked out and dispersed in the diffuser unit 404. The dispersed and suspended fine powder is gasified almost instantaneously.

(Example 4) FIG. 4: is a schematic diagram of the gasification reaction equipment 101 which has the multitubular gasification part of this invention. In the figure, a multi-tubular reaction tube 501 is formed by arranging the curved tubes of Example 2 or 3 in the heating chamber 307 in parallel in five rows in the vertical direction as shown in the AA ′ arrow view on the right side of the drawing. In addition, the biomass fines inlet, the ash outlet, the reaction water inlet, and the hydrated product gas outlet are connected in five rows by headers 502, 503, 504, and 505, respectively. As a result, the processing space capacity is increased, and the capacity can be increased in a compact manner.

(Example 5) FIG. 5: is a graph which shows the relationship between the temperature conditions, gas composition, and calorific value of the gasification reaction which produces | generates the floating and external heating type high calorie gas of this invention. Using the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, the floating / external heat type high calorie gasification test of the present invention is performed at various temperatures with the water vapor / biomass weight ratio fixed at 2, analyzing the composition of the product gas, The calorific value was measured to determine the material balance of the reaction. As a result, the generated gas gave the gas composition shown in the bar graph, and when the calorific value was measured, it was the calorific value of the line graph.

Finding the empirical formula of gasification reaction from the material balance of the reaction obtained above,
C _1.3 H ₂ O _0.9 +0.4 H ₂ O
→ 0.8H ₂ + 0.7CO + 0.3CH ₄ + 0.3CO ₂ +39.7 kcal / mol
I found out that

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, waste is free from the generation of free carbon such as tar and soot, and the waste is mainly composed of hydrocarbons such as clean H ₂ , CO, and CH _{4 with} only a small amount of ash. Floating / externally heated high calorie gas (for example, 20 MJ / NM ³ ) is obtained, and by combining with gas engine power generation, a system with high total energy efficiency can be obtained.

Flow diagram of a method for transporting a bioenergy utilization system to a flow response facility centered on a gasification reaction facility that generates floating / externally heated high calorie gas of the present invention Outline diagram of an example of gasification reaction facility and primary gasification section details of the present invention Schematic diagram of another example of details of gasification reaction facility and primary gasification section of the present invention Outline diagram of gasification reaction equipment and multi-tube gasification section of the present invention It is a graph which shows the relationship between the temperature conditions, gas composition, and calorific value of the gasification reaction which produces | generates the floating and external-heat type high calorie gas of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Gasification reaction equipment 102 ... Grinding equipment 103 ... Hot gas generator 104 ... Dehydration apparatus 105 ... Gas tank 106 ... Gas engine 111 ... Biomass raw material 112 ... Fine powder 113 ... Coarse content 114 ... Biomass combustion hot gas 115 ... Reaction water 116 ... Product gas 211 ... Steam or steam + small amount air 301 ... Reaction water evaporation section 302 ... Primary gasification section 303 ... Secondary gasification section 304 ... Primary gasification section 305 ... Secondary gasification section 306 ... Reaction tube 307 ... Heating chamber 401 ... Primary gasification unit 402 ... Dispersion tube 403 ... Throat unit 404 ... Diffuser unit 501 ... Multi-tube reaction tube 502 ... Header 503 ... Header 504 ... Header 505 ... Header

Claims (6)

The biomass fine powder made of pulverized herb or wood is supplied into the gasification space blocked by the external heating space and the partition wall, and is heated through the partition wall from the external heating space, and gas is absorbed by an endothermic reaction. A biomass gasification method for generating a gasification reaction between biomass and high-temperature steam blown into the gasification space, wherein m = 1.3, n = in the molecular formula CmH ₂ On of the biomass A biomass gasification method characterized in that, when 0.9, the high-temperature steam / biomass molar ratio is set to 0.3 to 15.   2. The biomass gasification method according to claim 1, wherein the amount of heat applied from the external heating space is 25 Kcal / biomass mole or more.   Adjusting and supplying the heat quantity of water vapor in the gasification space and the external heat quantity from the partition walls so that the amount of heat applied to the biomass in the gasification space from the outside through the partition walls does not generate soot or tar after the gasification reaction The biomass gasification method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The biomass gasification method according to claim 1, wherein the steam / biomass molar ratio, the external heating calorie from the external heating space, and the reducing atmosphere of the gasification space are set so as to satisfy the following formula (1). This is a method for gasifying biomass.
C _1.3 H ₂ O _0.9 + p ₁ H ₂ O
→ q ₁ H ₂ + q ₂ CO + q ₃ CH ₄ + q ₄ CO ₂ (1)   The method for gasifying biomass according to claim 1, 3 or 4, wherein the gasification temperature in the furnace is 800 to 1000 ° C, and the gasification atmosphere is a reducing atmosphere that does not use a catalyst under normal pressure.   A gasification space in which water vapor is supplied to the crushed herbaceous or woody biomass to cause a gasification reaction is cut off from an external heating space via a metal reaction tube constituting a partition wall, and the metal reaction tube The biomass gasification method according to claim 1, wherein width radiation heat is applied to the gasification space through the tube wall.

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