Continuously converting biomass
AssigneeEuropean Charcoal AG
InventorBernd Schottdorf
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods, devices and systems for continuously converting biomass are described herein. A device has a feed section for holding a moving bed of biomass, namely wood, having a drying section, a flame zone for degassing, and a, smolder zone for carbonizing the biomass into a solid converted product, namely charcoal. The device includes a tank for collecting the solid converted product arranged below a grate and coupled with the feed section in a gas-tight manner. The system comprising the device, a biogas plant and/or a combined heat and power plant conveys the liquid converted product, namely pyroligneous acid or acetic acid, to the biogas plant and/or the solid converted product, namely charcoal, to the combined heat and power plant.
Claims23
A method for continuously converting biomass comprising:
- receiving a moving bed of biomass into a feed section;
- drying the moving bed of biomass in an upper section of the feed section;
- degassing the moving bed of biomass in a flame zone in a middle section of the feed section;
- carbonizing the moving bed of biomass in a smolder zone in a lower section of the feed section to create a solid converted product;
- supporting the moving bed of biomass on a grate below the lower section of the feed section, and the grate allowing the solid converted product to pass downwards
- collecting the solid converted product in a collection tank arranged below the grate, the collection tank coupled with the feed section in a manner that is gas-tight against the surrounding air and having a wall area that is cooled.
A device to continuously convert biomass comprising:
- a feed section to receive a moving bed of biomass, the feed section including
- an upper drying section,
- a middle flame zone for degassing and
- a lower smolder zone to carbonize the biomass into a solid converted charcoal product;
- a grate, which supports the moving bed of biomass and is permeable to the solid converted product in the downward direction;
- a collection tank to collect the solid converted product, such that the collection tank
- is arranged below the grate,
- is couplable with the feed section in a gas-tight manner, and
- has a wall area having a cooling device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.