Final Report Summary - BIOLIQUIDS-CHP (Engine and turbine combustion of bioliquids for combined heat and power production.) Executive Summary:The Bioliquids-CHP project involved resarch and technology development (RTD) in the following areas: (a) bioliquids upgrading, (b) modifications of prime movers (engines and turbine) to enable efficient use of bioliquids, (c) pollutant emission reduction, and (d) techno-economic and environmental assessment of the developed systems.Regarding the research on bioliquids, several batches of biofuels have been produced or purchased, characterised and upgraded. These biofuels included fast pyrolysis oil made from pine and straw, straight vegetable oil (i.e. sunflower oil), and biodiesel. These biofuels were characterised and their ageing behaviour was monitored. RTD activities focused on upgrading fast pyrolysis oil and on preparing blends or emulsions for use in engines/turbine. Different approaches for upgrading fast pyrolysis oil were investigated, including (a) partial dewatering and fractionation, (b) solids removal in a centrifuge, (c) esterification of acidic components with alcohol, and (d) mild hydrodeoxygenation under elevated pressure in the presence of hydrogen and a catalyst. The production of tertiary blends of fast pyrolysis oil, biodiesel and alcohol was also investigated.RTD on engines/turbine initially focused on identifying and implementing modifications that would enable the use of bioliquids. The engines/turbine considered in the project include two internal combustion (IC) engines, a newly developed external combustion engine and a micro gas turbine (MGT).BTG ran tests with a Chinese diesel engine (Jiang Dong 1-cylinder 20-kWe), running it on diesel oil, biodiesel, sunflower oil, ethanol and fast pyrolysis oil. They characterised the engine and identified required modifications and suitable materials to manufacture fast pyrolysis oil resistant engine parts. An extensive testing programme was implemented to understand the combustion behaviour of a range of biofuels and to steer further development and modifications. A significant achievement was the operation of the engine for 40 hrs on pure fast pyrolysis oil without any change of fuel pump or injector, and without significant effect on the flue gas emissions. Similar results are not found in literature.NAMI modified and extensively tested a Russian diesel engine (YMZ-238M2). It was was assembled on a test bench with a generator, an exhaust gas cleaning system (developed and supplied by BIC), a heat unit and a microprocessor control system. The exhaust gas cleaning system consists of a syngas reactor and DeNox unit. BIC carried out extensive research to identify and select the most suitable catalysts.The third project partner working on engines is Encontech. They deevelop and modified a Rankine-cycle engine and a Stirling/Manson-type single-piston external combustion engine. First individual engine components were improved and tested, and later the complete engines. The improvements resulted in the design of an unparalleled versatile new heat engine that can use any heat source (including a variety of bioliquids) from 50 to 1000 oC and is easy scalable in the range 1-1000 kWe per cylinder.The University of Florence worked onm a micro gas turbine (Garrett GTP 30-67). The turbine was adapted with minor modifications for vegetable oil and biodiesel, and characterised using diesel oil. Computational fluiddynamic simulations were carried out on the combustor to assess major modifications required for biofuels feeding. This work led to the design, construction and assembly of a modified combustor chamber. Testing with biodiesel and vegetable oil showed a reduction in flue gas emissions, and the modification is considered successful. Test runs with fast pyrolysis oil have not yet been successful mainly due to stability problems with the oil feeding pump.Finally, the project assessed the developed systems in terms of economic and environmental performance, and identified market opportunities for prospective users of the developed systems. Aston University prepered a partial database of prime movers using bioliquids in CHP mode in partner EU countries, and developed an MS-Excel model for economic evaluation, sensitivity analysis and case studies.Additional project achievements are the organisation of final dissemination event in Brussels and the preapration and publication of a comprehensive set of training and education materials on bioliquids. Related documents Microsoft Word - Bioliquids-CHP_final_report_June 2012.docx
