The True Cost of Biomass

T. J. Paskach
 Getting at the true cost of
biomass feedstock energy
– Need to account for all the costs of biomass in
a project
• Moisture effects
• Ash effects
• Density effects
• Scarcity effects (procurement risk)

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 Properly correcting for
moisture
• Impacts of moisture content for
thermochemical processes (e.g.
combustion)
– Boiler capacity and efficiency effects
– Increased material handling costs
– Increased storage volume requirements
– Stability issues
– Decreased heating value
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 Effect of Moisture on
Real Fuel Value

• Each lb of liquid moisture in the

feedstock typically ends up as roughly
300-400˚F steam at 1 atm
• This translates into a loss of 1178Btu/lb
of water in the feed

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 Example
• HHV (bone dry basis) =
8378
• HHV (as received) = 7300
• 8378x(1-0.1286) = 7300
• Ref. temp is 68˚F

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 Definition of Higher Heating Value

• Determined by ASTM D2015, heat

released by combusting a known mass
of fuel in a bomb calorimeter,
completely to CO2, SO2, nitrogen and
liquid water. (aka gross calorific value)

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 Definition of Lower Heating Value

• Heat produced by combustion of one

unit of a substance, at atmospheric
pressure under conditions such that all
water in the products remains in the
form of vapor. (ASTM D407)
• LHV = HHV – 1030*MC 1
1Steam, its Generation and Use, 41st Ed., John Kitto and Steven Stultz, Babcock
& Wilcox Co., 2005.

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 Introduction of energy based
moisture correction concept
• Simple Formula
LHV AR = HHV dry (1 − MC ) − 1030 (MC )
• The usual LHV formula uses 1030 Btu/lb
– Assumes water vapor at 68˚F
• Use 1178 for water vapor at 350˚ F:
LHV ' AR = HHV dry (1 − MC ) − 1178 (MC )
• (Heat of melting water is another 144Btu/lb:
in the winter, use 1322 Btu/lb!)
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 Example LHV’AR
cost of available 
Moisture Content  HHV  LHV LHV' Real Feedstock Value  energy
(as‐received)  (as‐received) (as‐received) (as‐received) (wet basis) (wet basis)
wt% Btu/lb wet Btu/lb wet Btu/lb wet $/wet ton $/MMBtu
0% 8500 8037 8037 $47.27 $3.11
10% 7650 7130 7115 $41.85 $3.51
20% 6800 6223 6194 $36.43 $4.04
30% 5950 5317 5272 $31.01 $4.74
40% 5100 4410 4351 $25.59 $5.75
50% 4250 3503 3429 $20.17 $7.29
60% 3400 2597 2508 $14.75 $9.97
70% 2550 1690 1586 $9.33 $15.76
80% 1700 783 665 $3.91 $37.60
* Feedstock at $50/ton (dry basis), with a dry‐basis heating value of 8500 Btu/lb and 5% H

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 Example LHV’AR
Effect of Moisture Correction Formula on Dollar Value of Feedstock
$60.00 
Moisture‐Corrected Value of Biomass, $/wet ton

$50.00 
Overvaluation at 50% moisture is 
$4.83 per wet ton, or 
$9.66 per dry ton
$40.00 
This is nearly a 20%  difference

$30.00 

$20.00 

$10.00 

$‐
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Moisture Content
 If this is how you correct for
moisture….
• $/ton wet = $/ton dry*(1-MC)
• Example:
– $50/ton (agreed on dry-basis price)
– 40% moisture incoming
– $50 * (1-40%) = $30 per wet ton paid
Then this is the cost of your
biomass energy
True Cost of Biomass Energy with Fixed Dry Basis HHV Pricing
$20
True Cost ofBiomass Energy, $/MMBtu (LHV')

$18
$16
$14
$12
$10
$8
$6
$4 Basis:
$2 $50/ton dry basis
8500 Btu/lb HHV dry
$0
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Moisture Content
 Ash is not “free”

• Cost of handling
– CAPEX of ash handling equipment
– Footprint/site costs
• Handling
• Storage
– Liability/hazards
• Flammability, dust, etc.

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 Ash is not “free”
• Problematic ash constituents
– K (potash)
– Na (soda ash)
– P(phosphorus)
– Si(silica)
– Cl (Chloride)
• Fast-growing biomass sources contain
higher amounts of these
 Problematic ash constituents

• Alkali:
– Increased boiler fouling
– With silica and chloride, forms low-melting phases
(slagging)
– Forms ultra-fine PM
– PM emissions
– SCR catalyst poisoning
• Chlorides
– In low-sulfur environment, cause boiler corrosion
– S/Cl ratio < 2 = certain problems
– S/Cl ratio > 4 = not a problem

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 Ash is not “free”

– The true cost of these equipment

impact issues is much harder to
quantify.
– Use experience, frequency of sootblowing,
tube failures, cost of outages, maintenance,
depreciation/replacement frequency, other
factors
 Density Effects
• Use “Dry Basis Density” for energy
ρ dry = ρ wet (1 − MC )
• Bulk density changes
• PSD effects
• Cost of storage, transportation, and material
handling
– Generally scale with volume or 1/density
• Geographic density (harvest density)
– Energy crops harvested each year
– Wood can be harvested 6+ year rotation
 Biomass demand may increase
the value of “easy” biomass
• Potential demand for electricity (State RPS’s)
• Potential demand for liquid biofuels (RFS2)
• Value of biomass depends as much on the
downstream use as it does on the cost of
production/storage and transportation
• What’s “Easy Biomass”
– Low moisture
– Low ash
– High density (dry basis)
– Availability per acre
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 Biomass Demand for BioPower
Biomass Electric Power Generation
Generation from biomass, billions of kWh per year 180 180

Biomass Demand, millions of tons per year
160 160

140 Biomass Demand
140

120 120

100 100

80 80
Power Generation from Biomass
60 60

40 40

20 20

0 0
2010 2015 2020 2025
Source: EIA Energy Outlook 2011

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 Biomass Demand for Biofuels
• One 50 mmgpy advanced biofuels plant
running on wood will consume about 700,000
dry tons/year.
• RFS2 mandates 36 billion gallons by 2022
• 500 million dry tons/year of biomass

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 Thank you!

Frontline BioEnergy, LLC

1421 S Bell Ave Ste 105
Ames, IA 50010
515-292-1200
www.frontlinebioenergy.com