Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

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Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments

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Comparison of the gasification performance in the downdraft fixed-bed T

gasifier fed by different feedstocks: Rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture
⁎
A.A.P. Susastriawana, , Harwin Saptoadib, Purnomoa
a
Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Industrial Technology, Institut Sains & Teknologi AKPRIND, Indonesia
b
Dept. of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: In order to figure out the compatibility of downdraft gasifiers on different feedstocks, performance of a fixed-bed
Compatibility downdraft gasifier fed by rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture (1:1 by mass) are compared in the present work.
Downdraft gasifier Gasification is performed with varying equivalence ratio, i.e. 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25. Gasification air is injected
Mixture into the reactor via three tuyers located at 330 mm above the grate. Gasification characteristics (temperature
Rice husk
profile of the reactor, fuel consumption rate, volume fraction of CO, H2, and CH4 in the producer gas) and
Sawdust
performance of the gasifier (lower heating value of the producer gas and cold gas efficiency of the gasifier) are
observed and analyzed. The results indicate that the gasifier is compatible for rice husk, sawdust, or their
mixture. Optimum equivalence ratio for gasification of the rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture are 0.20, 0.20,
and 0.15, respectively. At the optimum equivalence ratios, lower heating values of the producer gas are 3.13,
2.69, and 0.35 MJ/Nm3 for rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture. Meanwhile, cold gas efficiencies are 72.73%,
69.27%, and 82.08%, correspondingly.

Introduction
Downdraft gasifiers have been widely used for biomass gasification
in small scale applications under 1 MW thermal capacity [1]. Down-
draft gasifier is very attractive due to its easy fabrication and operation,
and also due to low tar content in producer gas. Low tar content pro-
ducer gas is suitable for fuel of internal combustion engines. In addi-
tion, combustion of producer gas is cleaner than direct combustion of
biomass fuel [2]. The advantages attract many researchers in devel-
oping the downdraft gasifier. As been reported in Susastriawan et al.
[3], numerous downdraft gasifiers have been established worldwide for
different biomass feedstocks. Typically, the gasifiers have been speci-
fically design for a particular feedstock and mostly for wood chips.
Limited downdraft gasifiers have been designed and fabricated for low
density feedstock, such as rice husk or sawdust.
Ma et al. [4] developed a downdraft gasifier for rice husk feedstock
and investigated the effect of equivalence ratio on the performance of
the gasifier. The results shown that heating value of the producer gas,
tar content in the producer gas, and cold gas efficiency are affected by
equivalence ratio. A gasifier-gas engine system fed by rice husk has
been developed by Lin et al. [5]. To generate 10 kW electric power, the
system required 28 kg of rice husk per hour. Another work on rice husk
gasification was performed by Yoon et al. [6]. The gasifier was fed by
rice husk and rice husk pellet as well. It was found that heating value of
synthetic gas and cold gas efficiency of the gasifier is higher for rice
husk pellet gasification. Meanwhile, Susastriawan et al. [7] have de-
signed and fabricated a throat-less downdraft gasifier and investigated
the effect of equivalence ratio on the gasifier performance fed by rice
husk and rice husk-sawdust blend. The highest gross heating value of
the producer gas and cold gas efficiency of the gasifier were 3.21 MJ/
Nm3 and 76.90% at an equivalence ratio of 0.20 for rice husk gasifi-
cation. The values were 2.18 MJ/Nm3 and 58.09% at an equivalence
ratio of 0.15 for the blend gasification.
Due to the difficulty in producing producer gas using downdraft
gasifiers, only a few work has been reported on gasification of wood
sawdust. Wander et al. [8] developed an open-top throat-less downdraft
gasifier for pine sawdust. Channeling and bridging were found as a
main problems during gasification of the sawdust. The problems may be
due to low density of sawdust. In order to encounter the problems of
channeling and bridging, the sawdust was pelletized prior to be used as
feedstock of the downdraft gasifiers [9–11]. However, the use of a
pelletized feedstock required additional processing cost for pelletizing
low density biomass, such as rice husk and sawdust.
Beside feedstock characteristics, an equivalence ratio (ø) is another
important parameter in biomass gasification. The equivalence ratio is
defined as actual air flow rate used in gasification to stoichiometric air

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: agung589E@akprind.ac.id (A.A.P. Susastriawan).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seta.2019.04.008
Received 19 October 2018; Received in revised form 8 March 2019; Accepted 18 April 2019
2213-1388/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

flow rate for complete combustion [12]. Typically for effective gasifi- the CHP plant fed with charcoal to the grid is very interesting.
cation, the equivalence ratio is in the range of 0.2–0.4 [13]. Gasification From several works that have been reported, none of those works
is dominated by pyrolysis for equivalence ratio lower than 0.2. investigated compatibility of particular downdraft gasifier on different
Whereas, gasification is dominated by combustion for equivalence ratio feedstocks, such as rice husk, wood sawdust, and mixture of rice husk-
higher than 0.4 [14]. Air flow rate is proportional to oxidation rate [15] sawdust. In order to figure out the compatibility of downdraft gasifier
and biomass consumption rate [16]. Oxidation rate and feedstock on different feedstocks, performance of fixed-bed downdraft gasifier
consumption rate increase as air flow rate rises. Oxygen availability developed by Susastriawan et al. [7] are compared for feedstock of rice
surges as increasing air flow rate, thus enhances the oxidation rate husk, sawdust, and their mixture. In the previous work, performance of
which in turns followed by temperature escalation. Improvement of the the gasifier was evaluated with air injection at 400 mm above grate and
oxidation rate results in increasing the biomass consumption rate. two feedstocks variation (rice husk and blend of rice husk-sawdust).
Heat from oxidation zone is utilized for drying, pyrolysis, and re- Meanwhile in the present work, the performance of the gasifier is as-
duction processes during gasification. Endothermic and exothermic sessed with air injection at 330 mm above the grate at equivalence ratio
reactions in reduction zone play important roles in production of of 0.15, 0.2, and 0.25, and the feedstocks of rice husk, sawdust, and
combustible gases CO, H2, and CH4. The reactions in the reduction zone their mixture (1:1 by mass). Gasification of the mixture is performed in
that form CO, H2 and CH4 are [1] order to optimize the use of rice husk and sawdust as feedstock of the
gasifier, as individual feedstock or their blend.
Water Gas C+ H2 O↔ CO + H2 + 131 kJ/mol (1)
The change of air injection location from 400 mm [7] to 330 mm
Bouduard C+ CO2 ↔ 2CO + 172 kJ/mol (2) above the grate is aimed to figure out an effect of tuyer location above
grate on reduction zone height and axial temperature profile of the
Water Gas Shift CO + H2 O↔ CO2 + H2 − 41.2 kJ/mol (3) gasifier. The reduction zone height and the axial temperature may af-
fect composition of the producer gas and performance of the gasifier.
Methanation C+ 2H2 ↔ CH 4 − 74.8 kJ/mol (4)
This effect was not investigated in the previous work. In the present
In a closed top downdraft gasifier, air is supplied into the gasifier via work, investigation is also performed with feedstock of sawdust. Thus,
a tuyer or a nozzle on circumference of the reactor. Single stage tuyers the data obtained from the present work can be used for appropriate
as well as multi stage tuyers have been used for the air injection. Two selection of tuyer location above grate when the gasifier is feed by rice
stage tuyer is able to improve gasification temperature and increase husk, sawdust, or their mixture.
performance of the gasifier. A gasifier with two-stage air supply has
been developed by Galindo et al. [17]. Primary air is supplied in the 1st Materials and methods
stage and secondary air is supplied in the 2nd stage. Ratio of air sup-
plied through the 1st stage and the 2nd stage was defined as air ratio. Ultimate, proximate, and heating value analyses
The use of primary and secondary air enhances pyrolysis temperature as
high as oxidation temperature. Meanwhile, Ma et al. [18] designed and The feedstocks are analyzed to quantify their proximate, ultimate,
evaluated a 190 kWe fixed-bed double air stage downdraft gasifier. The and lower heating value characteristics. The analyses are performed
result shown that high temperature of 900 °C was achieved in oxidation using ASTM standards. Table 1 shows proximate, ultimate, higher
zone due to the use of secondary air. High gasification temperature heating value (HHV), and lower heating value (LHV) of the rice husk
promoted better tar cracking, thus resulted lower tar content in the and sawdust used in the present work. The LHV of the feedstocks is
producer gas. A two air stage gasifier was also reported by Martinez calculated using Eq. (5) [1]
et al. [19]. Other researchers, [20–21] designed and tested gasifiers
9H M
with three-stage air supply.
Several biomass gasifiers have been used successfully in combined
LHVf = HHVf − hw { 100 +
100 } (5)
heat and power (CHP) system. Mertzis et al. [22] performed assessment where hw is the latent heat of water vapor (2260 kJ/kg), H and M are
on a small mobile gasifier-CHP system. The small agricultural waste the hydrogen and moisture percentage of the feedstock.
gasification has been designed and successfully applied in SMARt-CHP
demonstration project of 5 kW electricity output. Biomass gasifier unit Experimental work
is coupled with internal combustion engine based generator set for CHP
production. A Johansson Biomass gasifier (SJBG) with capacity of Fig. 1 displays a photo and a schematic diagram of the experimental
300 Nm3/h has been manufactured and installed at Melani village in setup of the present work. The work is performed at Laboratory of
the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The SJBG is used to drive to Energy Conversion, Department of Mechanical and Industrial
generate low-cost electricity to drive community economic develop-
ment initiatives [23]. Yin et al. [24] investigated effect of particle size Table 1
on performance of pilot-scale fixed bed gasification system fed by Peach Ultimate and proximate characteristics and ASTM standard being used [7].
trees pruning. The unit has a capacity of 25 kg/h feedstock and able to
Analysis Rice husk Sawdust ASTM Standard
generate producer gas for 30 houses. Other researchers [25–28] also
assessed several successfully operated gasifier-CHP plants. Proximate:
Economic feasibility of the gasification-CHP plant was also in- Fixed Carbon (wt%, adb) 12.83 13.29 D 3172
Volatile matter (wt%, adb) 56.2 71.48 D 3175
vestigated. Economic studied of a pilot gasification-CHP plant fuelled
Ash (wt%, adb) 21.17 1.97 D 3174
with olive industry wastes was conducted by Vera et al. [29]. The in- Moisture in air dried (wt%, adb) 9.8 13.26 D 3173
vestment achieved reasonable profitability index with a payback period
Ultimate:
of 5–6 years. They stated that the energy recovery potential from the C (wt%, adb) 34.05 44.99 D 5373
olive industry wastes may represent a good opportunity to promote H (wt%, adb) 5.35 6.68 D 5373
distributed generation systems. Chang et al. [28] conducted thermo- O (wt%, adb) 39.14 45.62 D 3176
economic analyses of a Taiwanese combined CHP system fuelled with N (wt%, adb) 0.17 – D 5373
S (wt%, adb) 0.12 0.74 D 4239
syngas from rice husk gasification. The economic profitability, re-
Lower heating value (MJ/kg) 13.393 17.577 D 5865
presented by the Simple Pay Back, Net Present Value and Profit Ratio, Lower Heating Value (MJ/kg)* 12.083 15.919 –
cannot be considered satisfactory due to the consistent investment cost.
Meanwhile, Rodrigues et al. [26] stated that selling the electricity from * The Lower Heating Value is calculated using Eq. (5) [1].

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A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

Table 2
Air flow rates at each tuyer for respective feedstock and equivalence ratio.
Equivalence ratio Air flow rate (m3/h)

Rice husk Sawdust Blend

0.15 1.07 1.17 1.12

0.20 1.43 1.55 1.49
0.25 1.79 1.94 1.87

efficiency of the gasifier (CGE) is defined as the ratio of energy released

by the producer gas to energy content in the feedstock. Equations used
to calculate the LHV and the CGE are [15]:
LHVg = 107.98H2 + 126.36CO + 358.18CH 4 (6)
where H2, CO, and CH4 indicate the percentages of hydrogen, carbon
monoxide, and methane in the producer gas.
LHVg × Vg
CGE = × 100%
LHVf (7)
3
where Vg is the specific gas yield (Nm gas/kg feedstock) and calculated
using Eq. (8).
mg
Vg =
ρg (8)
where mg is the specific mass of the producer gas (kg gas/kg feedstock)
and ρg is the density of the producer gas (kg gas/Nm3 gas). The values of
mg and ρg are obtained using calculation as follows [30].
MWg
mg =
n (9)

[(x1. ρ)CO + (x2 . ρ)CO2 + (x3 . ρ)H 2 + (x 4 . ρ)CH 4 + (x5 . ρ)N 2 ]

ρg =
100 (10)

Fig. 1. Photo and schematic diagram of the experimental setup.
Engineering, Universitas Gadjah Mada. Detail specification of the ga-
sifier can be found elsewhere [7]. K-type thermocouples are located at
50 mm (T1), 120 mm (T2), 190 mm (T3), 260 mm (T4), 330 mm (T5),
and 400 mm (T6) above the grate. Data logger OMRON ZR-RX45 is used
for logging temperature measurements. Downward movement of the
feedstock during gasification is measured using a lever rod and used to
calculate fuel consumption rate. Producer gas from the gasification
process is collected at a sample port near the flare. The gas composition
of CO, CO2, H2, and CH4 is analyzed using Gas Chromatograph SHIM-
ADZU GC-8A. As shown in the photo, the producer gas flame was ob-
served during the experiment. The red flame was seen due to tar pre-
sents in the producer gas.
Air as gasification agent is supplied into the reactor at 330 mm
above the grate by a blower via three tuyers. The air flow rate is con-
trolled with a rotameter in order to maintain equivalence ratio ob-
served. The equivalence ratios investigated are 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25.
Three different feedstocks of rice husk, sawdust, and blend of rice husk-
sawdust (1:1 by mass) are investigated in the present work. Gasification
is performed in batch mode operation for an hour, thus for 5 kg of
feedstock fed into the gasifier for each run, the air flow rate require-
ment at the individual tuyer for each feedstock can be calculated and
the results are given in Table 2.
The operating characteristics (temperature profiles, fuel consump-
tion rates, and composition of the producer gas) and the performance of
the gasifier (lower heating values of the producer gas and cold gas ef-
ficiencies) fed by rice husk, sawdust, or their mixture are observed and
analyzed. The compatibility of the gasifier on the feedstocks is eval-
uated by comparing cold gas efficiencies of the gasifier. The lower
heating value (LHV) of the producer gas is calculated based on volume
fractions of CO, H2, and CH4 in the producer gas. Meanwhile, cold gas
Density of the compounds at NTP are ρCO = 1.165 kg/Nm3,
ρH2 = 0.089 kg/Nm3, ρCH4 = 0.668 kg/Nm3, ρCO2 = 1.842 kg/Nm3, and
ρN2 = 1.165 kg/Nm3
Meanwhile, from volume fractions of CO, CO2, H2, CH4, N2 in the
producer gas and global reaction of gasification, the molar of the
feedstock (n) and the molecular weight of the producer gas (MWg) can
be calculated using equations as follows.
n (CHx Oy Nz ) + mφ (O2 + 3.76N2) → x1 CO + x2 CO2 + x3 H2 + x 4 CH4
+ x5 N2 (11)
[(x1. MW )CO + (x2 . MW )CO2 + (x3 . MW )H 2 + (x 4 . MW )CH 4
+ (x5 . MW )N 2 ]
MWg =
100
(12)
Results and discussion
Temperature profiles
The temperature profiles every 10 min during gasification of rice
husk (RH), sawdust (SD) and their mixture (RH-SD) for equivalence
ratios of 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25 are shown in Fig. 2. Typical for the
feedstocks, the heights of oxidation-reduction zone increase as in-
creasing gasification time for each run. The height of the zone is
120 mm at 10 min and rises to 260 mm at 20 and 30 min for the
equivalence ratio of 0.15. For the equivalence ratio of 0.20, it is ob-
served that the height changes from 190 mm at 10 min to 260 mm at
20 min, and finally achieves 330 mm at 30 min. Meanwhile for the
equivalence ratio of 0.25, the measurements show that the heights of
oxidation-reduction zone are 120 mm, 260 mm, and 330 mm at gasifi-
cation times of 10, 20, and 30 min, respectively. The change in the

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A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

400 400 400

t = 10 min. t = 20 min. t = 30 min.
RH

Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

330 330 drying-pyrolysis zone 330
SD drying-pyrolysis zone
RH-SD
260 260 260
drying-pyrolysis zone
190 190 190
oxidation-reduction zone oxidation-reduction zone
120 120 120
oxidation-reduction zone
50 50 50
0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000
o o o
Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C)

(a) Equivalence ratio of 0.15

400 400 400
t = 10 min. t = 20 min. t = 30 min.
RH drying-pyrolysis zone
Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

330 330 330
SD drying-pyrolysis zone
RH-SD
260 260 260
drying-pyrolysis zone
190 190 190
oxidation-reduction zone oxidation-reduction zone
120 120 120
oxidation-reduction zone
50 50 50
0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000
o o o
Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C)

(b) Equivalence ratio of 0.20

400 400 400
t = 10 min. t = 20 min. t = 30 min.
drying-pyrolysis zone
RH
Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

Height above grate (mm)

330 330 330
SD drying-pyrolysis zone
RH-SD
260 260 260
drying-pyrolysis zone oxidation-reduction zone
190 190 190
oxidation-reduction zone
120 120 120
oxidation-reduction zone
50 50 50
0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000
o o o
Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C) Temperature ( C)

(c) Equivalence ratio of 0.25

Fig. 2. Temperature profiles of the reactor.

heights of the oxidation-reduction zone indicates that the gasification
reaction propagates upward whereas air moves downward in the re-
actor during gasification. The opposite movement between the gasifi-
cation reaction and the gasification air is defined as reverse propagation
[31].
Temperature of the oxidation-reduction zone improves as the
equivalence ratio increases from 0.15 to 0.20, but it reduces at the
equivalence ratio of 0.25. The temperature of the zone is 600–800 °C for
the equivalence ratio of 0.15, about 700–900 °C for the equivalence
ratio of 0.20, and around 600–800 °C at the equivalence ratio of 0.25.
More oxygen is available with rising equivalence ratio from 0.15 to
0.20, thus higher oxidation rates and more heat is released at the
equivalence ratio of 0.20. These cause higher temperature of oxidation-
reduction zone at equivalence ratio of 0.20. Enhancing the equivalence
ratio to 0.25, oxidation rates and heat release step up. But, the tem-
perature of the zone lowers. Nitrogen content in the air also increases
when the equivalence ratio changes from 0.20 to 0.25. Nitrogen may
act as heat carrier during gasification which reduces temperature inside
the reactor [19,32]. Similar phenomena during rice husk gasification
were also obtained by Ma et al. [4] where the reduction temperature
rose at the equivalence ratio from 0.169 to 0.211 and the value declined
at the equivalence ratio higher than 0.211.
As shown in Fig. 2, the difference temperature profile during rice
husk, sawdust, or the mixture gasification is due to fuel bed density
between rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture differ. However in
general, the temperature profiles follow the trend of temperature pro-
file given in Basu [1]. Typically, higher temperature of the oxidation-
reduction zone is obtained during rice husk gasification for all
equivalence ratios observed. Bed porosity during the rice husk gasifi-
cation is higher than those of two other feedstocks, thus air from the
tuyers penetrates into the rice husk bed much easier and meet the ga-
sification flame immediately. This causes oxidation rates and heat re-
leased amplify, hence higher gasification temperature is obtained
during the rice rusk gasification. Since the size of sawdust is very small,
the bed porosity becomes lower and may obstruct air flow from the
tuyers to the gasification flame. The temperature profiles of sawdust
gasification fluctuate more than those of rice husk gasification. Pro-
blems of channeling and bridging occur during the sawdust gasification
which may cause instability in the temperature profiles. The problems
are diminished by rotating the grate every 5 min.

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A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

16 16 16
ø = 0.15 ø = 0.20 ø = 0.25
14 14 14
RH
12 SD 12 12
10 RH-SD 10 10
FCR (kg/h)

FCR (kg/h)

FCR (kg/h)
8 8 8
6 6 6
4 4 4
2 2 2
0 0 0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
Time (minutes) Time (minutes) Time (minutes)

(a) Equivalence ratio of 0.15 (b) Equivalence ratio of 0.20 (c) Equivalence ratio of 0.25
Fig. 3. Fuel consumption rates (FCR).

Fuel consumption rates Compositions of the producer gas

Fig. 3 presents the fuel consumption rate (FCR) every 10 min gasi- The volume fractions of combustible gases CO, H2 and CH4 in the
fication time. At the equivalence ratio of 0.15, the trend of FCRs be- producer gas from rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture are given in
tween the sawdust gasification and the mixture gasification are almost Fig. 5. The samples of the producer gas are taken after 20 min gasifi-
similar. The FCRs tend to increase as gasification proceeds. Meanwhile cation. CO, H2 and CH4 are formed during the reduction process and
for rice husk gasification, the FCR rises significantly up to 10 min ga- affected by the temperature of the reduction zone [33]. From Fig. 5, it
sification and then declines. At the equivalence ratio of 0.20, the FCRs can be observed that the volume fraction of CO is the highest. The re-
trend of the feedstocks are almost similar but different in the maximum action rate of the water–gas reaction which mainly produces CO is
values. The FCRs of rice husk and the mixture reach maximum at higher than that of H2 and CH4 production. Sequences of the reaction
10 min gasification, but grasp maximum at 20 min during sawdust ga- rates are Water Gas > Bouduard > > Methan reaction [1]. Thus, it is
sification. At the equivalence ratio of 0.25, the FCR touches optimum at acceptable that the volume fraction of CO is the highest in the producer
10 min for the mixture and increases as gasification proceed for two gas for all three feedstocks and all equivalence ratios observed.
other feedstocks. As shown in Fig. 3 for the feedstocks at 10 min, the The composition of combustible gas strongly depends on the tem-
FCRs tend to increase as the equivalence ratio improves from 0.15 to perature of gasification [34]. Higher temperatures during the rice husk
0.20. The oxidation rates enhance with improving the equivalence ratio gasification flavor for enhancing the rate of water-gas reaction, thus
from 0.15 to 0.20. This means that more feedstock is consumed at the more CO is produced. According to [35], the water gas reaction con-
equivalence ratio 0.20. tributes more than the Buoduard reaction in forming CO and H2. High
Improving air flow rate causes enhanced oxidation rates and fol- reduction zone temperature also improves the Bouduard reaction that
lowed by escalated FCR [16] due to increasing oxygen availability for convert CO2 into CO [33]. Maximum volume fraction of CO in the
oxidation. Enhancing oxidation rates result in more heat released and producer gas from rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture are 15.41%,
more feedstock consumed, thus higher temperature of the oxidation 14.13%, and 5.23%, respectively. Meanwhile, the maximum values of
zone and FCR step up. Fig. 4 shows the relation between the oxidation H2 are 8.05%, 3.57%, and 0.78%. Since Methane reaction is the
temperature and the FCR during 30 min gasification of each feedstock. slowest, the volume fraction of CH4 are the lowest in the producer gas
In general, the oxidation temperature increases significantly within from all feedstocks, i.e, less than 2%. The CH4 are zero in producer gas
10 min gasification which indicates high oxidation rates and heat re- from the mixture gasification may due to accuracy during measurement
lease rates during this period of time. The trend of increasing oxidation of gas composition.
temperature is also followed by rising the FCR.

Tox ; ø = 0.15 FCR ; ø = 0.15 Tox ; ø = 0.15 FCR ; ø = 0.15 Tox ; ø = 0.15 FCR ; ø = 0.15
Tox ; ø = 0.20 FCR ; ø = 0.20 Tox ; ø = 0.20 FCR ; ø = 0.20 Tox ; ø = 0.20 FCR ; ø = 0.20
Tox ; ø = 0.25 FCR ; ø = 0.25 Tox ; ø = 0.25 FCR ; ø = 0.25 Tox ; ø = 0.25 FCR ; ø = 0.25
1000 20 1000 20 1000 20
Rice husk Sawdust Mixture
Temp. of oxidation zone ( C)

Temp. of oxidation zone ( C)

Temp. of oxidation zone ( C)

o

800 16 800 16 800 16

FCR (kg/h)

FCR (kg/h)

FCR (kg/h)

600 12 600 12 600 12

400 8 400 8 400 8

200 4 200 4 200 4

0 0 0 0 0 0
0 600 1200 1800 0 600 1200 1800 0 600 1200 1800
Time (s) Time (s) Time (s)

(a) Rice husk (b) Sawdust (c) The mixture

Fig. 4. Relations between the oxidation temperature and the FCR.

31
A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34

RH SD RH-SD RH SD RH-SD RH SD RH-SD

16 16 16
14 14 14

CH 4 volume fraction (%)

CO volume fraction (%)

H2 volume fraction (%)

12 12 12
10 10 10
8 8 8
6 6 6
4 4 4
2 2 2
0 0 0
0.15 0.2 0.25 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.15 0.2 0.25
Equivalence ratio Equivalence ratio Equivalence ratio
Fig. 5. Volume fraction of CO, H2 and CH4.

RH SD RH-SD RH SD RH-SD
3.5 100
3
80
2.5
LHV (MJ/Nm )
3

60
CGE (%)
2
1.5 40
1
20
0.5
0 0
0.15 0.2 0.25 0.15 0.2 0.25
Equivalence ratio Equivalence ratio
Fig. 6. LHV and CGE.

LHV and CGE
Fig. 6 depicts the LHV of the producer gas and the CGE of the ga-
sifier. Using Eq. (6), the highest LHV of the producer gas from rice husk
and sawdust are obtained at the equivalence ratio of 0.20. Meanwhile,
the highest LHV of the producer gas from the mixture is found at the
equivalence ratio of 0.25. The highest LHV of the producer gas from
rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture are 3.13, 2.69, and 0.35 MJ/Nm3,
correspondingly. Precision of Eq. (6) in term of R2 for rice husk, saw-
dust, the mixture are 0.78, 0.86, and 0.94, respectively. The LHV of the
rice husk producer gas > the LHV of the sawdust producer gas > the
LHV of the mixture producer gas. The much lower LHV of the producer
gas from the mixture is due to the volume fractions of CO, H2, and CH4
which are much lower than the volume fractions in the producer gas
from rice husk and sawdust as can be seen in Fig. 5. Meanwhile using
Eq. (7), the maximum CGE of the gasifier fed by rice husk, sawdust, and
the mixture are 72.73%, 69.27%, and 82.08%. The precision of Eq. (7)
in term of R2 are 0.77, 0.87, and 0.81 for CGE of rice husk, sawdust, and
the mixture, respectively. Although the highest LHV is achieved during
the rice husk gasification, but the highest CGE is obtained during the
mixture gasification.
The CGE is not only affected by the LHV but also the gas yield (Vg)
as indicated in Eq. (7). It can be seen that the CGE increases when the
Vg improves. Compared to the rice husk and sawdust gasification, the
Vg of the mixture is the highest. At the optimum equivalence ratio, the
values of Vg for rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture are 4.33, 2.81, and,
32.95 Nm3 gas/kg feedstock, respectively. The Vg of the mixture gasi-
fication is much higher than the Vg of the rice husk and sawdust gasi-
fication. The volume fractions of CO, CO2, and CH4 are very low during
the mixture gasification. This leads to small value of molar number of
the feedstock (n) in Eq. (11). The specific mass of producer gas (mg)
rises up when n decreases as can be obtained from Eq. (9). Finally, the
Vg steps up when mg grows up as indicated in Eq. (8). Since the CGE of
the gasifier fed by rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture are still higher
than 50%, hence it can be stated that the gasifier is compatible for rice
husk, sawdust, and their mixture (1:1 by mass). There is no specific
criterion for judging gasifier compatibility. However, in the present
work it is acceptable to use the CGE values of 50% for determining the
compatibility of the gasifier on different feedstocks since CGE of
50–70% for rice husk gasification was obtained by Yoon et al. [6] and
CGE of 67.67% for sawdust gasification was achieved by Wander et al.
[8].
Tar content
In the present work, tar content of the producer gas is not measured.
However, tar contents of the producer gas for gasification of the feed-
stocks using tuyer 400 mm above the grate were investigated quanti-
tatively in the previous work [7]. Quantitative tar content investigation
is very important during gasification, since the producer gas is intended
for Internal Combustion engine fuel. The tar content in the producer gas
have to fulfill the minimum tar content allowed. Fig. 7 shows an effect
of equivalence ratio on gasification temperature and tar content of
producer gas from rice husk, sawdust, and the mixture. Increasing
equivalence ratio from 0.15 to 0.120 improves gasification temperature
for the all feedstocks. The enhancement of gasification temperature
results in decreasing tar content. Higher gasification temperature leads
to better cracking of the tar in reduction zone, thus lower tar content in

32
A.A.P. Susastriawan, et al.
Fig. 7. Effect of equivalence ration on gasification temperature and tar content
of the producer gas [38].
the producer gas [36]. The tar content of rice husk, sawdust, and the
mixture are 5.8–53.3 g/Nm3, 8.3–35.0 g/Nm3, and 8.9–90.0 g/Nm3,
respectively. The values are higher than the minimum tar content al-
lowed for internal combustion engine fuel, i.e. 100 mg/Nm3 [37]. In
order to be used as engine fuel, investigations of low cost and effective
tar reduction methods should be performed in the future work.
Conclusions
From gasification of rice husk, sawdust, and their mixture (1:1 by
mass) in a small-scale downdraft gasifier which have been performed in
the present work, it can be seen in general that it can be concluded that:
• In general, the highest gasification temperature about 900 °C is
obtained at an equivalence ratio 0.2 for all feedstocks investigated.
The maximum fuel consumption rates are also observed at the
equivalence ratio of 0.2.
• The maximum volume fraction of CO in the producer gas from rice
husk, sawdust, and the mixture are 15.41%, 14.13%, and 5.23%,
respectively. Meanwhile, the values for H2 are 8.05%, 3.57%, and
0.78%, accordingly.
•
The optimum equivalence ratios for rice husk, sawdust, and the
mixture are 0.2, 0.2, and 0.15, respectively. At the optimum
equivalence ratios, the maximum lower heating values of the pro-
ducer gas and the cold gas efficiencies for rice husk, sawdust, and
the mixture are 3.13 MJ/Nm3–72.73%, 2.69 MJ/Nm3–69.72%, and
0.75 MJ/Nm3–82.08%, accordingly.
• Since the cold gas efficiencies are higher than 50% for the feedstocks
and the values are not much different, hence it can be stated that the
gasifier is compatible for those feedstocks. There is no specific cri-
terion for judging gasifier compatibility. However, in the present
work it is acceptable to use the CGE values for determining the
compatibility of the gasifier on different feedstocks. The compat-
ibility on the different feedstocks contributes to continuous opera-
tion of the gasifier, thus the sustainability of the gasifier operation is
achieved.
• Optimization of tuyer inclination angle and distance above the grate
may be performed in the future work for improving the performance
of the gasifier. Tuyer location above grate and its inclination angle
may affect air distribution characteristic along a cross sectional area
of the gasifier. The air distribution will contribute to the gasification
process and obviously will affect the performance of the gasifier.
33
Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 34 (2019) 27–34
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to express their gratitude to Ministry of
Research, Technology, and Higher Education (Kemenristekdikti) –
Republic of Indonesia for providing Scholarship for pursuing Doctoral
Study at Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
Universitas Gadjah Mada. The authors would like to thank Dr. Eng. Tri
Agung Rohmat, “Head of Energy Conversion Laboratory” for providing
the data logger during the work.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.seta.2019.04.008.
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