JP2010100809A - Biocoke production process and production apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a biocoke production process and an apparatus by which breakage of biocoke caused by occlusion of gas in the biocoke is prevented and the biocoke can be efficiently produced in a short time. <P>SOLUTION: In the biocoke production process including a filling step of filling a reaction vessel 2 with a biomass granule 11 and a reaction step of pressure molding the biomass granule 11 packed in the reaction vessel 2 while heating the crushed biomass in a temperature range and a pressure range in which a semi-carbonized product or a solid product before being semi-carbonized is obtained in a nearly close state, in the reaction step, the biomass granule 11 is pressurized so as to be in the pressure range by a pressurizing body 6 vertically sliding in the reaction vessel and a back pressure of a fluid pressure cylinder 7 driving the pressurizing body 6 is sensed upon the pressurization and when the sensed back pressure is higher than a predetermined tolerance range, the pressurizing body 6 is made to ascend to perform degassing of the crushed biomass 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology for producing bio-coke using biomass as a raw material, and more particularly to a bio-coke production method and a production apparatus for producing bio-coke that can be effectively used as an alternative fuel for coal coke.

In recent years, CO ₂ emission reduction has been promoted from the viewpoint of global warming. In particular, in the steel industry, coal coke, which is a fossil fuel, is used as the main fuel and reducing agent in casting furnaces (cupola furnaces) and blast furnaces. In combustion equipment such as boiler power generation, fossil fuels such as coal and heavy oil are often used as fuel. This fossil fuel causes global warming due to the problem of CO ₂ emission, and its use is being regulated from the viewpoint of global environmental conservation. In addition, from the viewpoint of depletion of fossil fuels, the development and commercialization of alternative energy resources are required.

Therefore, as an alternative to fossil fuels, the use of fuel using biomass that does not affect the amount of CO _{2 in} the atmosphere is being promoted. Biomass is an organic substance resulting from photosynthesis, and includes biomass such as wood, vegetation, agricultural products, and moss based on agricultural products. By converting this biomass into a fuel, it is possible to effectively use the biomass as an energy source or industrial raw material and contribute to global environmental conservation.
As a method of converting biomass into fuel, a method of drying biomass into fuel, a method of pressurizing to form fuel pellets, a method of carbonizing and carbonizing to solidify and liquid fuel, and the like are known. However, simply drying the biomass makes it difficult to transport and store because the porosity is large and the specific gravity is low, so it cannot be said that it is effective as a fuel for long-distance transport or storage.

On the other hand, a method for converting biomass into fuel pellets is disclosed in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Publication No. 61-27435). In this method, the water content of the chopped organic fiber material is adjusted to 16 to 28%, and this is compressed in a die and dried to produce fuel pellets.
Further, a method for carbonizing biomass to produce fuel is disclosed in Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-206490) and the like. This method is a method in which biomass is heated at 200 to 500 ° C., preferably 250 to 400 ° C. in an oxygen-deficient atmosphere to produce a biomass semi-carbonized consolidated fuel precursor.

However, in the method described in Patent Document 1, biomass is made into fuel by performing compression molding. However, since the generated fuel pellet has a large amount of water, it generates a small amount of heat and is not suitable as a fuel.
In addition, as described in Patent Document 2 and the like, the method of converting biomass into fuel by dry distillation has a higher value as a fuel than biomass that is not processed, but it is apparently compared with coal coke. Low specific gravity and low calorific value. Furthermore, since the hardness is lower than that of coal coke, it is insufficient for use as an alternative to coal coke.

In recent years, bio-coke based on Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent No. 4088933) has been studied as an alternative to coal coke.
Bio-coke is produced by holding a biomass raw material under pressure and heating for a certain period of time and then cooling it while maintaining the pressure. The pressurization and heating conditions are as follows: before the semi-carbonization or semi-carbonization of the main components in the biomass fine particles, the lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose are subjected to low temperature reaction while thermally decomposing hemicellulose and retaining the skeleton of cellulose and lignin. Set the pressure range and temperature range to obtain solids. As a result, the following reaction mechanism is established, and high-hardness and high-pressure dense bio-coke can be produced.

  The reaction mechanism is that the reaction is performed under the above-described conditions, so that the hemicellulose, which is the fiber component of the biomass fine particles, is thermally decomposed to develop an adhesive effect, and the free water contained in the biomass fine particles is subjected to this pressurization and heating. The lignin reacts at a low temperature while maintaining its skeleton by the action under the conditions, and acts synergistically with the compaction effect, whereby high-hardness and high-pressure compacted bio-coke can be produced. The thermosetting reaction proceeds when a reactive site is induced between phenolic polymers contained in lignin and the like.

FIG. 10 shows a table comparing the physical properties of bio-coke with other fuels. Note that this table only describes experimentally obtained numerical values, and the present invention is not limited to these numerical values.
As shown in this table, bio-coke is densely packed with an apparent specific gravity of 1.2 to 1.52, and has a maximum compressive strength of 20 to 200 MPa and a physical property value of a calorific value of 18 to 23 MJ / kg, both in hardness and combustibility. It has excellent performance, and its raw woody biomass has an apparent specific gravity of about 0.4 to 0.6, a calorific value of about 17 MJ / kg, and a maximum compressive strength of about 30 MPa. It can be seen that this is far superior. Further, even when compared with physical properties of coal coke, apparent specific gravity of about 1.85, maximum compressive strength of about 15 MPa, and calorific value of about 29 MJ / kg, bio-coke has performance comparable to that of combustibility and hardness. Therefore, bio-coke is an effective fuel as an alternative to coal-coke and has a high utility value as a material material.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 61-27435 JP 2003-206490 A Japanese Patent No. 4088933

However, bio-coke is still in the research stage, and Patent Document 3 does not disclose a specific device configuration such as pressurizing means, heating, cooling means, etc. and its control. No mention was made of technically manufacturing techniques.
In addition, when the biomass raw material contains a lot of moisture, gas is generated from the biomass during pressurization, and the generated gas is encapsulated in the bio-coke, so that the produced bio-coke may be damaged or the quality may be deteriorated. It was.
Therefore, the present invention proposes a bio-coke production method and apparatus that can prevent gas from being included in the bio-coke and breakage, and that can produce the bio-coke in a short time and efficiently.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes a filling step of filling a bottomed cylindrical reaction vessel with biomass fine particles, and semi-carbonizing the biomass fine particles filled into the reaction vessel in a substantially dense state. Alternatively, in a bio-coke production method comprising: a reaction step of pressure molding while heating in a temperature range and a pressure range to obtain a semi-carbonized solid product,
In the reaction step, the biomass fine particles are pressurized so as to be in the pressure range by a pressurizing body that slides up and down in the reaction vessel, and at this pressurization, a fluid pressure cylinder that drives the pressurizing body Back pressure is detected, and when the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, the pressurized body is raised to degas the biomass fine particles.

  In the present invention, when the back pressure generation of the fluid pressure cylinder is detected, and the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, gas is generated in the biomass granule that is pressure-molded. It is determined that the back pressure has increased, and the pressurizing body is raised to perform the degassing process. Thereby, it is possible to prevent gas from being included in the manufactured bio-coke and to break it, and it is possible to manufacture high-quality bio-coke with few cracks.

Further, the rising time of the pressure body is measured, and when the measured time has passed a predetermined set time, the pressure body is lowered again to return the pressure of the pressure body to the pressure range. And
In this manner, by lowering the pressure body after a predetermined set time has elapsed and restarting the normal operation, it is possible to smoothly return to the normal operation after the degassing process.

Further, in the filling step, after the biomass fine particles are charged into the reaction vessel, the pressurized body is lowered from the upper part of the reaction vessel and filled with the biomass fine particles at a pressure lower than the pressure range by the pressurized body. It is characterized by pressurizing.
Biomass is in the form of fine particles and is charged into the reaction vessel, so the bulk density is low. If it is left as it is, the volume of the reaction vessel must be increased. By performing the pressurization at the time of filling, it becomes possible to introduce more biomass fine particles, and the reaction vessel can be miniaturized.

Also, a bottomed cylindrical reaction vessel filled with biomass fine particles, a pressure body that pressurizes the biomass fine particles in the reaction vessel, a heating means that heats the biomass fine particles, and the biomass Cooling the molded body obtained by pressure molding while heating the fine granules in a substantially dense state while heating in the temperature range and pressure range to obtain a semi-carbonized or pre-semi-carbonized solid by the heating means and the pressure body. In a bio-coke production apparatus comprising a cooling means,
A back pressure detecting means for detecting a back pressure of a fluid pressure cylinder for driving the pressurizing body, and a control device for controlling the pressure of the pressurizing body,
When the back pressure detected by the back pressure detecting means is larger than a preset allowable range, the control device performs control to raise the pressurizing body.

Further, the control device includes a timer for measuring the rising time of the pressurizing body, and when the time measured by the timer has passed a predetermined set time, the pressurizing body is lowered again to Control is performed to return the pressure to the pressure range.
And an electromagnetic control valve for controlling supply and discharge of the working fluid of the fluid pressure cylinder, and a check valve disposed in a working fluid passage between the electromagnetic control valve and a back pressure chamber of the pressurizing cylinder. ,
The back pressure detecting means is means for detecting the pressure of the check valve.
Furthermore, the control device is configured to apply a pressure applied to the biomass fine particles at a pressure lower than the pressure range at the time of filling the biomass fine particles at the time of filling and the biomass fine particles pressurized at the time of filling. While controlling the pressure to a second pressure stage that pressurizes the granules in the pressure range,
The heating means is operated at the second pressure stage of the pressurizing body, and control is performed to switch from the heating means to the cooling means after the semi-carbonized or semi-carbonized solid is generated.

The present invention detects the occurrence of back pressure in the fluid pressure cylinder, and if the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, gas is generated in the biomass granules that are pressure-molded. It is determined that the back pressure has increased, and the pressurizing body is raised to perform the degassing process. As a result, it is possible to prevent gas from being included in the manufactured bio-coke and break it, and it is possible to manufacture high-quality bio-coke with few cracks.
Further, when the pressurizing body is raised, the pressurizing body is lowered after a predetermined set time has elapsed and normal operation is resumed, so that it is possible to smoothly return to normal operation after the degassing process is completed.
Furthermore, by performing pressurization at a low pressure with a pressurized body in the filling step, it becomes possible to introduce more biomass fine particles, and the reaction vessel can be miniaturized.

It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the bio-coke manufacturing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a hydraulic circuit diagram of a pressurizing hydraulic mechanism. It is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a cooling medium circuit. It is a flowchart of the reaction process provided with the degassing process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of the degassing process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows all the processes of the bio-coke manufacturing method which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of the filling process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of the reaction process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of the discharge process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a table | surface which compares the physical-property value of bio-coke.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. However, the types of components described in this embodiment, the relative arrangement thereof, and the like are not merely intended to limit the scope of the present invention, but are merely illustrative examples, unless otherwise specified.
In the present embodiment, the biomass that is the raw material for bio-coke is an organic substance resulting from photosynthesis, and is biomass such as wood, plants, crops, and moss. For example, waste wood, thinned wood, pruned branches, etc. , Plants, agricultural waste, and coffee waste such as coffee and tea.
In the present embodiment, biomass fine particles whose water content is adjusted so as to have a predetermined moisture content as required are used as raw materials. The biomass fine granule may be a small particle size biomass such as a teacup or coffee koji, or may be obtained by previously pulverizing a large particle size biomass such as waste wood to a predetermined particle size or less. Also good.

First, with reference to FIG. 1, the whole structure of the bio-coke manufacturing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment is demonstrated.
As shown in FIG. 1, the bio-coke production apparatus 1 has a cylindrical reaction vessel 2 into which biomass fine particles 11 are charged. A funnel-like hopper 3 for receiving the biomass fine particles 11 is provided at the upper part of the reaction vessel 2, and a discharge part 5 for discharging the formed bio-coke is provided at the lower end. The reaction vessel 2 also includes a heating unit that heats the contents to a predetermined temperature and a cooling unit that cools the contents after heating. Furthermore, a pressurizing means for pressurizing the biomass fine particles 11 in the cylinder 2 to a predetermined pressure is provided above the reaction vessel 2. Furthermore, it is preferable that a position sensor 20 for detecting the vertical position of the pressure piston 6 by the amount of extension of the pressure piston 6 is provided.

Next, the detailed configuration of each device and part will be described below.
The hopper 3 provided in the upper part of the reaction vessel 2 includes a raw material supply unit (not shown) for supplying the biomass fine particles 11 to the hopper 3. The raw material supply unit may be a device that measures and measures the biomass fine particles 11 into the hopper 3, or may be a device that continuously charges the biomass fine particles 11 into the hopper 3.
The discharge part 5 of the reaction vessel 2 has an opening having the same diameter as the reaction vessel 2, and a discharge device for opening and closing the discharge part 5 is provided below the opening. The discharge device includes a bottom cover portion 9 that seals the discharge portion 5 and a discharge hydraulic mechanism 10 that controls sealing and opening of the discharge portion 5 by sliding the bottom cover portion 9 in the horizontal direction. The After the reaction process is completed in the reaction vessel 2, the discharge device drives the hydraulic mechanism 10 to slide the bottom cover portion 9 to open the discharge portion 5 to drop the bio-coke in the cylinder 2 and discharge it. It is supposed to be.

  The pressure means provided in the reaction vessel 2 is driven by a fluid pressure cylinder (hereinafter referred to as a pressure cylinder) 7 and a pressure piston (pressure body) 6 that slides up and down on the inner peripheral surface of the reaction vessel 2. And a pressurizing hydraulic mechanism 8 for controlling the supply and discharge of hydraulic oil in the pressurizing cylinder 7 (see FIG. 2). The pressurizing piston 6 and the pressurizing cylinder 7 are arranged coaxially with the reaction vessel 2. The pressurizing piston 6 descends to near the bottom surface of the reaction vessel 2. The pressurizing piston 6 is configured to be able to maintain this pressurized state for a predetermined time.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a hydraulic circuit diagram of the pressurizing hydraulic mechanism. The hydraulic oil supplied to the pressurizing cylinder 7 is pumped up from the tank 76 by the pump 77, and the supply amount is controlled by the electromagnetic valve 78 and supplied to the pressurizing cylinder 7. The opening degree of the electromagnetic valve 78 is controlled by the control device 100, and the pressure value of the pressurizing piston 6 is adjusted based on the opening degree. The pressure stage of the pressurizing piston 6 is a first pressure stage P that pressurizes the biomass granules 11 at the time of filling at a pressure lower than the pressure range in which the biomass granules 11 are reacted to obtain semi-carbonized or semi-carbonized solids. a _first and a second pressure stage P ₂ which is pressurized with the pressure range of biomass granulates 11 pressurized during filling, the at least two stages.
In addition, check valves 71 and 72 are provided in the hydraulic oil passage between the electromagnetic valve 78 and the pressurizing cylinder 7. Among these, the hydraulic oil pressure of the check valve 72 arranged in the hydraulic oil passage between the electromagnetic valve 78 and the back pressure chamber 7 a of the pressurizing cylinder 7 is detected as a back pressure by the pressure detection sensor 75, and is sent to the control device 100. Entered. The back pressure detected here is used for a degassing process to be described later.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the heating means and the cooling means provided in the reaction vessel 2 may be the same temperature adjusting means. In the present embodiment, the temperature adjusting means has a double tube structure in which a jacket is provided in the reaction vessel 2, and a cooling medium passage 4 is provided between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder. A heat medium or a refrigerant (hereinafter referred to as a cold medium) flows through the cold medium passage 4 so that heat energy is transferred to the biomass fine particles 11 filled in the cylinder inner cylinder by heat transfer by the cold medium. It has become. A cooling medium inlet 4 a is provided below the cooling medium passage 4, and a cooling medium outlet 4 b is provided above the cooling medium passage 4. The cooling medium inlet 4a and the cooling medium outlet 4b are connected to a cooling medium circuit described later (see FIG. 3). A mechanism that includes the cooling medium passage 4, the cooling medium inlet 4a, the cooling medium outlet 4b, and a cooling medium circuit and controls the temperature of the reaction vessel 2 by switching the cooling medium is referred to as a cooling medium circulation mechanism.

With reference to FIG. 3, an example of the cooling medium circuit 30 provided in the cooling medium circulation mechanism will be described. By using this cooling / heating medium circuit 30, it is possible to provide a temperature adjusting means with high thermal efficiency and high safety. Of course, a cooling / heating medium circuit having another configuration may be used. In this cooling / heating medium circuit 30, it is preferable to use silicon oil for the refrigerant and the heating medium.
The cooling medium inlet 4a and the outlet 4b of the reaction vessel 2 are connected to a cooling medium circuit 30 shown in FIG. The cooling medium circuit 30 has a configuration in which a refrigerant circuit and a heating medium circuit are combined. The cooling medium outlet 4 b is connected to a cooling medium discharge line 41 and branches into a heating medium return line 42 and a refrigerant return line 43 via a three-way valve 45 on the discharge line 41.
The heat medium return line 42 is connected to the heat medium tank 31. The heating medium tank 31 includes a heater 31a and a stirrer 31b, and raises the temperature of the cooled heating medium. It is preferable that N ₂ gas is supplied from an N ₂ cylinder as necessary, and the tank is maintained in an inert atmosphere to ensure safety. The outlet side of the heating medium tank 31 is connected to the cooling medium supply line 40 via a three-way valve 46.
Using such a configuration, when the reaction vessel 2 is heated, the heat medium is circulated to the heat medium tank 31 side by controlling the three-way valves 45 and 46, and the heat medium tank 31, the cooling medium supply line 40, A heat medium circuit including the cold heat medium passage 4 (reaction vessel 2), the cold heat medium discharge line 41, and the heat medium return line 42 is formed.

The refrigerant return line 43 is connected to the refrigerant heat exchanger 36. The refrigerant heat exchanger 36 is configured to exchange heat between cooling water such as clean water and the refrigerant to cool the refrigerant.
Furthermore, a refrigerant tank 35 is preferably provided upstream of the refrigerant heat exchanger 36 in the refrigerant return line 43. This refrigerant tank 35 has at least the ability to cool the refrigerant temperature to the boiling point of water or lower, preferably 80 ° C. or lower. Furthermore, the refrigerant tank 35 preferably includes a stirrer 35a, thereby reducing a change in refrigerant temperature at the outlet of the refrigerant tank 35 and improving the cooling capacity.
Using such a configuration, when the reaction vessel 2 is cooled, the three-way valves 45 and 46 are controlled to switch to the refrigerant tank 35 side so that the refrigerant circulates to the refrigerant tank 35 side. A refrigerant circuit including a refrigerant heat exchanger 36, a cooling medium supply line 40, a cooling medium passage 4 (reaction vessel 2), a cooling medium discharge line 41, and a refrigerant return line 43 is formed.
As described above, by using the cooling medium circulation mechanism including the cooling medium circuit 30 as the heating means and the cooling means for the biomass granules 11 in the reaction vessel 2, the biomass granules 11 can be heated or cooled quickly. It is possible to smoothly switch from heating to cooling.

Returning to FIG. 1, the pressurizing hydraulic mechanism 8, the discharging hydraulic mechanism 10, and the cooling medium circulating mechanism are controlled by the control device 100. The control device 100 includes a microcomputer having a central processing unit (CPU), a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), and an input / output interface (I / O interface). Furthermore, the control device 100 includes a counter 101 that counts the number of times of filling of the pressurizing piston 6 of the pressurizing hydraulic mechanism 8 and a timer 102 that measures the duration of predetermined control.

  In the bio-coke manufacturing apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration, after performing a filling step of filling the biomass fine particles 11 in the reaction vessel 2 and pressurizing at the time of filling, the biomass fine particles are semi-carbonized in a substantially dense state. Alternatively, a bio-coke is produced by carrying out a reaction process in which pressure-molding is performed while heating in a temperature range and a pressure range to obtain a semi-pre-carbonized solid, and the mixture is kept for a certain period of time, and then cooled while maintaining the pressure. The temperature range and the pressure range are semi-carbonized or semi-carbonized by thermally decomposing hemicellulose among lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose, which are the main components in the fine biomass of biomass, and maintaining the skeleton of cellulose and lignin. The pressure range and temperature range for obtaining the pre-solid material are set. That is, a temperature range and a pressure range in which hemicellulose in the biomass fine particles is thermally decomposed and lignin induces a thermosetting reaction.

In the present embodiment, in the reaction step, the back pressure of the pressure cylinder 7 is detected, and when the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, the pressure piston 6 is raised to make the biomass fine particles. A degassing process for degassing the body 11 is performed.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a reaction process including the degassing process according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the degassing process according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, the pressurizing cylinder 7 is driven to the lower side at a high pressure, and the pressurizing piston 6 is lowered as shown in FIG. 5 (i) (S <b> 13) to the cooling medium passage 4 of the reaction vessel 2. The circulation of the heat medium is started (S14), and the biomass fine particles 11 are reacted. In this case, detecting the back pressure of the pressure cylinder 7 by the pressure detection sensor 75 (see FIG. 2), whether to monitor the pressure cylinder pressure p becomes equal to a preset allowable pressure p ₁ or more (S30) . If pressure cylinder pressure p is lower than the allowable pressure p ₁ is the heat medium circulation and pressurized cylinder pressure p is maintained in the pressure range, continue normal operation Uslu.

On the other hand, if the pressing cylinder pressure p is a predetermined pressure p ₁ or more, and assumed that the gas reservoir pressure generated by biomass granulate 11 abnormal reaction in the pressurization is rising, gas Perform the removal process. In the degassing process, as shown in FIG. 5 (ii), the pressure piston 6 is slightly raised (S31), held for a predetermined time and degassed, and then again as shown in FIG. 5 (iii). The pressure piston 6 is lowered and returned to the pressure range (S32). When the pressurizing piston 6 is raised, the elapsed time is measured by the timer 102 of the control device 100, and when the measured time has passed a predetermined set time, the pressurizing piston 6 may be lowered again. Specifically, the set time is set to 30 seconds to 90 seconds, preferably about 60 seconds. Further, the rising amount of the pressure piston 6 is set to 30 to 60 mm, preferably about 50 mm. Furthermore, the allowable back pressure p ₁ is preferably 18 MPa.

In the reaction process, the back pressure of the pressurizing cylinder 7 is constantly monitored, and when the detected back pressure exceeds the allowable range, the degassing process is performed each time.
As described above, according to this embodiment, when the back pressure generation of the pressure cylinder 7 is detected and the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, the biomass fine particles that are pressure-molded 11, it is determined that gas has been generated and the back pressure has increased, and the pressurizing piston 6 is raised to perform the degassing process. As a result, it is possible to prevent gas from being included in the manufactured bio-coke and break it, and it is possible to manufacture high-quality bio-coke with few cracks.

Next, the flow of all the steps of the bio-coke manufacturing method will be described with reference to FIG.
First, in the filling process, the filling operation is started by the control device 100 (S1). This starts each hydraulic mechanism including the pressurizing hydraulic mechanism 8 and the discharge hydraulic mechanism 10 and the cooling medium circulating mechanism (S2), and resets the number of times the counter 101 is filled (S3). That is, if the number of times of filling is X (times), X ₀ = 0 is set. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7 (i), the pressurizing piston 6 is set to an initial position H ₀ above the reaction vessel 2.
And the biomass fine particle 11 which is a raw material is thrown in in the reaction container 2 from the hopper part 3 (S4). After the biomass fine particles 11 are charged, as shown in FIG. 7 (ii), the pressurizing cylinder 6 is driven downward by the pressurizing hydraulic mechanism 8 at a low pressure to lower the pressurizing piston 6 (S5). The pressure during the low pressure descending, a pressure stage P ₁ of the first lower than the pressure of the reaction steps described below. At this time, the filling count of the counter 101 is incremented by +1, and X ₀ = X ₀ +1 is set (S6). The control device 100 at the time of low-pressure lowering, pressure P of the pressure cylinder 7 monitors whether the set is greater than a predetermined pressure P ₁ in advance (S7). Oil pressure P of the pressure cylinder 7 is at a predetermined pressure P ₁ the following conditions, if the pressing time is measured by the timer 102 has elapsed preset predetermined time or more, the pressure cylinder 7 again returns to step S5 Drive down. Preferably, the pressure P ₁ of the first stage of performing filling upon pressurization and 14 MPa, the predetermined time is set to 10 seconds.

On the other hand, the hydraulic pressure P of the pressure cylinder 7 is if older than a predetermined time at a predetermined pressure P ₁ is greater than the state, then it detects the filling amount of biomass granulates 11 in the reaction vessel 2. This is done to mold bio-coke to the desired size.
The filling amount detection of the biomass fine particles 11 is performed as follows.
As shown in FIG. 7 (ii), the position sensor 20 detects the height direction position H of the pressurizing piston 6 when it is lowered. Then, it is determined whether or not the detected height direction position H is equal to or higher than the target height setting value H ₁ (H ≧ H ₁ ) (S8).

Another method of loading detection of biomass granules 11, the fall time T that the pressure piston 6 descends from the initial position H ₀ to the height direction position H of the pressurization is detected by the timer 102 filling The amount may be estimated. In this case, the descending time of the pressurizing piston 6 from the initial position H ₀ to the target height setting value H ₁ is acquired in advance, and this is set as the designated time T ₁ . Then, it is determined whether or not the detected fall time T is less than or equal to the designated time T ₁ (T ≦ T ₁ ) (S8).
As described above, by using the descent time T of the position sensor 20 or the pressure piston 6, it is possible to easily detect the filling amount of the biomass fine particles 11. In particular, when the position sensor 20 is used, highly accurate detection is possible, and when the falling time T is used, the apparatus can be made inexpensive.

When the filling position H in the reaction vessel 2 has not reached the filling target position H ₁ (H <H ₁ ), or when the lowering time T of the pressure cylinder 7 is longer than the specified time T ₁ (T> T ₁ ). determines that the amount of filler is insufficient to drive the pressure cylinder 7 to rise side (S11), the hydraulic pressure P of the pressure cylinder 7 is determined whether greater than a predetermined pressure P ₁ (S12) If it is larger, the process returns to S11, and the pressure cylinder 7 is further driven to the ascending side. If it is smaller, the biomass fine particle 11 is again introduced as shown in FIG. 7 (iii) (S4). The filling process of the pressure cylinder 7 is repeated. This operation, as shown in FIG. 7 (iv), the hydraulic pressure P of the pressure cylinder 7 is larger than the predetermined pressure P _1, and biomass granulate 11 filling amount preset filling amount set value H ₁ or more It ends when it becomes.
By performing the filling step as described above, it is not necessary to measure the biomass fine particles 11 in the reaction vessel 2 in advance, and it is possible to obtain bio-coke having a certain size. Further, since the biomass is put into the reaction vessel 2 in the form of fine particles, the bulk density is low, and if it is as it is, the volume of the reaction vessel 2 must be increased, but the pressure is reduced by the pressure piston 6 in the filling process. By performing the pressurization at the time of filling, it becomes possible to introduce more biomass fine particles 11 and to reduce the size of the reaction vessel 2.

If the biomass granulate 11 in the reaction vessel 2 is detected to have reached the loading of interest at S8, the filling times X ₀ which is counted by the counter 101 is less than the predetermined fill times Xa it is determined whether or not there (S9), when the filling number X ₀ is less than the predetermined fill times Xa is pressurized by the pressure piston 6 is abnormality such caught near the entrance of the reaction vessel 2 has occurred It is presumed that the pressure piston 6 has not been lowered properly, and the apparatus is stopped (S10). When filling the number X ₀ is a predetermined filling number Xa or more, the process proceeds to the reaction step. Thus, by counting the fill count X ₀ by the counter 101, it is possible to grasp an abnormal easily and real-time in the filling time of pressurization.

In the reaction step, as shown in FIG. 8, the pressure cylinder 7 is driven to the lower side at a high pressure to lower the pressure piston 6 (S13), and is required for reacting the biomass fine particles 11. The biomass fine particles 11 are pressurized in a predetermined pressure range P ₂ (second pressure stage). Further, the heating medium is circulated through the cooling medium passage 4 of the reaction vessel 2 to heat the biomass fine particles 11 within a predetermined temperature range (S14). Predetermined pressure range P ₂ is the pressure range and temperature range that induces hemicellulose of the biomass fine body in a pyrolysis or thermal curing reaction of lignin as described above. Preferably, the pressure range P2 is ₈ to 25 MPa, and the temperature range is 115 to 230 ° C. The biomass fine particles 11 in the reaction vessel 2 hold the above-described pressurization and heating state for a certain period of time. For example, when the cylinder diameter is 50 mm, the holding time is 10 to 20 minutes, and when it is 150 mm, the holding time is 30 to 60 minutes.

At this time, the degassing process (* 1) shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is performed. Since the degassing process has been described above, the description thereof is omitted here.
Then, it is determined whether or not the heat medium circulation time has ended in the timer 102 (S15). When the heat medium circulation time has ended, the cooling medium circulation mechanism is switched from the heating medium to the refrigerant, and the refrigerant circulation to the cooling medium passage 4 is started ( S16). Similarly, it is determined by the timer 102 whether or not the refrigerant circulation time has ended (S17), and when it has ended, the refrigerant circulation is stopped and the process proceeds to the discharge step.

In the discharging step, as shown in FIG. 9 (i), the high pressure of the pressurizing cylinder 7 is removed (S18), the discharging hydraulic mechanism 10 is driven to slide the bottom cover portion 9 to open the discharging portion 5 (S19). ). Next, as shown in FIG. 9 (ii), the pressure cylinder 7 is driven to the lower side at a low pressure, and the bio-coke 19 produced in the reaction vessel 2 is extruded and discharged by the pressure piston 6 (S20). Thereby, it becomes possible to easily discharge the bio-coke 19 formed in the reaction container 2 in a consolidated state.
At this time, it is determined whether or not the position of the pressure piston 6 detected by the position sensor 20 has reached the lower end position (S21), and if it has reached, the pressure cylinder 7 is driven to the higher side at a low pressure. The pressurizing piston 6 is raised (S22), the bottom cover 9 is closed (S23), and the pressurizing piston 6 is moved to the rising end (S24). When a normal operation stop command is input to the control device 100 (S25), the operation is terminated (S26). If no stop command has been input (S25), the process returns to S3, the number of times of filling is reset, and then the step of transferring the material (S4) is repeated.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, in the filling step, first, the pressurizing piston 6 is operated at the first low pressure stage to pressurize the biomass fine particles 11 and then pressurize in the reaction step. The pressure of the piston 6 is increased and the heat medium is caused to flow through the cooling medium passage 4 in conjunction with the pressure, and the biomass fine particles 11 are semi-carbonized or semi-carbonized before semi-carbonization in a substantially sealed state in the reaction vessel 2. Heating is performed while applying pressure in the temperature range and pressure range (second pressure stage) to be obtained, and after maintaining for a predetermined time, the cooling medium passage 4 is switched from the heat medium to the refrigerant while cooling is performed while the pressure state is maintained. The coke molded body 19 is manufactured. In this way, by controlling the pressurization hydraulic mechanism 8, the discharge hydraulic mechanism 10 and the cooling medium circulation mechanism in conjunction with each other by the control device 100, it is possible to efficiently produce bio-coke in a short time. .

  By using the bio-coke production apparatus according to this embodiment, it is possible to efficiently produce high-hardness and high-density bio-coke that can be used as an alternative to coal coke. In addition, the bio-coke produced in the present embodiment can be used as a heat source / reducing agent in a cupola furnace, a blast furnace, etc. in casting production or iron production, and also as a fired fuel such as boiler fuel for power generation and slaked lime. It can also be used for fuel demand, and can be used as a material material by utilizing characteristics such as higher compressive strength.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Bio-coke manufacturing apparatus 2 Reaction container 4 Cooling medium passage 6 Pressurization piston (pressurization body)
7 Pressure Cylinder 8, 10 Hydraulic Mechanism 9 Bottom Cover 11 Biomass Fine Granules 20 Position Sensor 30 Cooling Heat Medium Circuit 75 Pressure Detection Sensor 100 Control Device 101 Counter 102 Timer

Claims (7)

A filling step of filling the bottomed cylindrical reaction vessel with the biomass fine particles, and a temperature range and a pressure range in which the biomass fine particles filled in the reaction vessel are semi-carbonized or pre-semi-carbonized to obtain a solid before semi-carbonization. In the bio-coke manufacturing method, comprising a reaction step of pressure molding while heating at
In the reaction step, the biomass fine particles are pressurized so as to be in the pressure range by a pressurizing body that slides up and down in the reaction vessel, and at this pressurization, a fluid pressure cylinder that drives the pressurizing body A method for producing bio-coke, wherein a back pressure is detected, and when the detected back pressure is larger than a preset allowable range, the pressurized body is raised to degas the biomass fine particles.   The rising time of the pressurizing body is measured, and when the measured time has passed a predetermined set time, the pressurizing body is lowered again, and the pressure of the pressurizing body is returned to the pressure range. The bio-coke manufacturing method according to claim 1.   In the filling step, after the biomass fine particles are charged into the reaction vessel, the pressurized body is lowered from the upper part of the reaction vessel, and the pressurized fine body is added at the time of filling the biomass fine particles at a pressure lower than the pressure range. The method for producing bio-coke according to claim 1, wherein pressure is applied. A bottomed cylindrical reaction vessel filled with biomass fine particles, a pressure body for pressurizing the biomass fine particles in the reaction vessel, a heating means for heating the biomass fine particles, and the biomass fine particles Cooling means for cooling a molded body obtained by pressure molding while heating in a temperature range and a pressure range to obtain a semi-carbonized or semi-carbonized solid body by the heating means and the pressure body in a substantially dense state In a bio-coke production apparatus comprising:
A back pressure detecting means for detecting a back pressure of a fluid pressure cylinder for driving the pressurizing body, and a control device for controlling the pressure of the pressurizing body,
The said control apparatus performs the control which raises the said pressurization body, when the back pressure detected by the said back pressure detection means is larger than the preset tolerance | permissible_range, The bio-coke manufacturing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.   The control device includes a timer for measuring the rising time of the pressurizing body, and when the time measured by the timer has passed a predetermined set time, the pressurizing body is lowered again to reduce the pressure of the pressurizing body. The bio-coke producing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein control for returning to the pressure range is performed. An electromagnetic control valve for controlling supply and discharge of the working fluid to and from the fluid pressure cylinder, and a check valve disposed in a working fluid passage between the electromagnetic control valve and a back pressure chamber of the fluid pressure cylinder,
The bio-coke manufacturing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the back pressure detection means is means for detecting the pressure of the check valve. The control device includes a first pressure stage in which the pressure applied to the biomass fine particles is pressurized when filling the biomass fine particles at a pressure lower than the pressure range and the biomass fine particles pressurized during the filling. While controlling the pressure to the second pressure stage to pressurize in the pressure range,
The heating means is operated in a second pressure stage of the pressurizing body, and control is performed to switch from the heating means to the cooling means after the semi-carbonized or pre-semi-carbonized solid is generated. 4. The bio-coke production apparatus according to 4.

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