Hagalis biomass – BTH and BTM Reformer
30-300 kW electric 90-900 kW total combustion
Description of BTH and BTM method
BTH and BTM are abbreviations for biomass to hydrogen and biomass to methane , i.e. the conversion of biomass to hydrogen and methane. The BTH- and BTM method of Hagalis AG produces a syn gas with H2 and methane
The method uses the process of allothermic steam reformation. Steam reforming is currently the most economical and most widely used (~ 90 %) method to produce hydrogen. Through the use of fossil fuels but as much of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide CO2 is released it as their combustion. By using biomass air balance can be improved, because only then the carbon dioxide is released, which has been previously absorbed from the atmosphere during the growth of the plants.
The steam reforming is an allothermic process that occurs according to the following equation:
(Methane + water → carbon monoxide + hydrogen; endothermic)To increase the yield of hydrogen , the carbon monoxide produced in a further reaction , the water gas shift reaction , be reacted to form carbon dioxide and additional hydrogen.
(Water -gas shift reaction; slightly exothermic)
To carry the hot steam is to be reformed gas – in this case, gas from biomass – and reacted under the constant supply of energy over a heterogeneous catalyst in the gas phase.
The BTH method is particularly suitable for the gasification of small, damp and carbonaceous biomass. So biomass, which can hardly be processed in conventional devices and processes such as wood gas plants, wood heating plants or fluidised bed gasifiers, can be gasified with the BtH Reformer.
The steam reformer is fresh biomass to 60 % moisture content , such as fresh wood chips , wood chips from short rotation plantations , road verges , organic waste , agricultural waste, straw , nut shells , olive pits , but also sludge process with TS 40 % in the mixture with the abovementioned raw materials.
There are different types of known reformers, however, can achieve all wet biomass at no economically exploitable results.
The steam reformer BTH has a good efficiency even when wet biomass, thus achieving economically viable results.
A specially designed reactor with parallel tubes, in which transport coils transport the biomass during the gasification, enables the process of the steam reforming. A hydrogen-containing syngas is produced. Below the reactor is a combustion chamber, where biomass and the excess carbon from the corresponding stage filter under excess air is burned and provides the process heat required for drying of biomass and the process of the reformation.
In this new technic the allothermic gas generation process is separated from the heating process. Nevertheless, the total biomass is moved through the two processes, that the initially moist biomass is gasified in the process of steam reforming in the transportation spirals and then meanwhile largely dried burned in the further step of the process in the lower heating chamber. At the end of the process, only clean ash is produced, which is not encumbered and can be used as a fertilizer. There will not remain residues or unusable charcoal and therefore no expensive waste.
At the same time, the degassed material is used in a specially patented coke filter for gas purification, since the resulting intermediate step in the charcoal has a very high surface formation and thus a high absorption capacity for contaminants and – particles and thus has a great cleaning power. Those obtained from the activated carbon process intelligently cleans the resulting hydrogen-rich gas and methanized it as well. This creates a high-quality fuel gas that can be converted directly into electricity in cogeneration units or can be prepared with an additional method to natural gas quality. Then the processed quality fuel gas can be fed into the natural gas network and thus contribute to a decentralized CO2 -free and clean energy supply.
A direct power generation in CHP plants is also provided.
