Optimization and Economic Evaluation of Industrial Gas Production and Combined Heat and Power Generation from Gasification of Corn Stover and Distillers Grains

Authors

Ajay Kumar, Oklahoma State UniversityFollow
Yaşar Demirel, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
David D. Jones, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Milford Hanna, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

ORCID IDs

Demirel 0000-0002-8183-0991

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

5-2010

Citation

Bioresource Technology (May 2010) 101: 3,696–3,701

doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2009.12.103

Comments

Copyright © 2009, Elsevier. Used by permission

Abstract

Thermochemical gasification is one of the most promising technologies for converting biomass into power, fuels and chemicals. The objectives of this study were to maximize the net energy efficiency for biomass gasification, and to estimate the cost of producing industrial gas and combined heat and power (CHP) at a feedrate of 2,000 kg/h. Aspen Plusbased model for gasification was combined with a CHP generation model, and optimized using corn stover and dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) as the biomass feedstocks. The cold gas efficiencies for gas production were 57% and 52%, respectively, for corn stover and DDGS. The selling price of gas was estimated to be $11.49 and $13.08/GJ, respectively, for corn stover and DDGS. For CHP generation, the electrical and net efficiencies were as high as 37% and 88%, respectively, for corn stover and 34% and 78%, respectively, for DDGS. The selling price of electricity was estimated to be $0.1351 and $0.1287/kW h for corn stover and DDGS, respectively. Overall, high net energy efficiencies for gas and CHP production from biomass gasification can be achieved with optimized processing conditions. However, the economical feasibility of these conversion processes will depend on the relative local prices of fossil fuels.