The thermochemical pretreatment trials of the first selected contaminated biomass, sorghum, have been completed by TNO and RE-CORD.

TNO has carried out several series of TorWash screening lab-scale tests to set the best operational conditions in removing contaminants, e.g. heavy metals, from the biomass feedstocks. These optimized conditions were used at larger scale to produce about 6 kg of decontaminated TorWash sorghum solids, which were sent to TUM for entrained flow gasification tests.

RE-CORD has carried out lab-scale slow pyrolysis trials for the identification of the best operating conditions to be adopted in the pilot-scale campaigns. The latter were carried out in the RE-CORD screw pyrolysis unit, SPYRO, in which both inert and oxidative slow pyrolysis were tested. The char from inert and oxidative slow pyrolysis showed similar properties and contaminant concentration, but the one obtained from the oxidative operation showed a greater surface area.

The pretreated products have been delivered to TUM for the gasification experimental campaign and to CERTHfor characterization and investigation on the fate of contaminants.

Treatment and analysis of other biomass crops will follow in the next six months with the anticipated dissemination of results to start early next year summer.

Photo 1: Decontaminated TorWash sorghum solids. Credit: TNO

Photo 2: Biochar from contaminated sorghum”; “Simone Piazzini monitoring an experiment in the RE-CORD screw pyrolysis unit (SPYRO). Credit: Amr Sanad, RE-CORD R&D engineer