BIOMASS POWER

Broadly defined, biomass is any organic matter derived from plants or animals and is readily available on a renewable basis. In the context of combustion-based electricity generation, the term biomass typically refers to all types of plant derived biological material and includes wood and agricultural crops, herbaceous and woody energy crops.  

With a global installed capacity of more than 60GW, biomass power plants account for more than 3% of the total electricity generation. Contrary to the intermittency of wind and solar based power biomass plants provide reliable base-load power to the grid; accordingly biomass based electric power is expected to have a critical role in meeting renewable energy targets worldwide.

HOW IT WORKS

In an ORC based power plant, biomass is fed into the thermal oil boiler which supplies heat to the ORC via intermediary thermal oil loops. Within the ORC heat is converted into electric power (supplied to the gird) and thermal power (supplied to users as heating/cooling or dissipated).  

TURBODEN ORC MODULES FOR BIOMASS APPLICATIONS

The electric power output of Turboden's turbogenerators generally ranges between 200 kW and 15 MW. Depending on whether there is requirement for Heating and/or Cooling, Turboden ORC units can be configured for either electricity-only applications (HRS units) or Combined Heat and Power applications (CHP units). 

Click here  to view Turboden's available models for biomass applications 

THERMAL OIL BOILERS

Turboden’s ORC units operate essentially as a plug and play device, consistently delivering the expected electric and thermal output values and performance when provided with a thermal input as specified.    

While Turboden ORC units are effectively boiler agnostic, selecting the appropriate thermal oil boiler for each application is critical for reaching peak plant performance, reliability and availability especially when dealing with technically challenging biomass fuels. 

INMIS has established partnerships with leading thermal oil boiler suppliers and offers the full range of EPC services at the highest quality standards as set by Turboden’s ORC technology.  

 Click here   to view more info on the thermal oil boiler suppliers INMIS is working with. 

TURBODEN | BIOMASS PLANTS

Select from the links below to view the corresponding list of Turboden ORC biomass plants  

AVAILABLE ORC MODELS 

Turboden produces a wide range of ORC modules integrating design parameters which can be suited to the specific requirements of biomass projects.   

Select from the images below or the side menu, the ORC type suitable for your biomass application  

Or for smaller size applications the new 200/300kW Turboden units. 

 HRS UNITS | High efficiency electricity generation from biomass

Turboden has developed a range of new HRS models capable to deliver high electrical efficiency, and sizes ranging from 600 kW and reaching up to 11 MW for a single unit. 

Turboden’s standard 12 HRS and 24 HRS (1.0 and 2.5 MW respectively) deliver an electric efficiency of around 24%, while at larger sizes (>5MW) HRS units can reach an electric efficiency of up to 27%.  

HRS models can operate both in dissipative condition -maximizing the electrical output-, and in cogeneration mode -providing heat with water temperature up to 60° C-, adapting to seasonal thermal loads and effectively maximizing the utilization of the biomass. 

LARGE SIZE HRS UNITS | Data sheet

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STANDARD SIZE HRS UNITS | Data sheet

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CHP UNITS | Combined Heat and Power from biomass 

Cogeneration plants with Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) products produce both heat and electrical power from biomass efficiently and in a user-friendly manner. Standard size CHP units have a rated output between 1 MW and 3 MW.

ORC split systems allow maximization of electric power production for a given biomass consumption due to a more efficient utilization of thermal power from the boiler, while non-split systems maximize electrical efficiency. 

CHP UNITS WITH SPLIT | Data sheet 

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CHP UNITS | NO SPLIT | Data sheet

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200 | 300kW UNITS | Data sheet

Click to enlarge

THERMAL OIL BOILERS | INMIS' PARTNERS 

Turboden’s ORC units operate essentially as a plug and play device, consistently delivering the expected electric and thermal output and performance when provided with thermal input values as specified.    

While Turboden ORC units are effectively boiler agnostic, selecting the appropriate thermal oil boiler for each application is critical for reaching peak plant performance, reliability and availability especially when dealing with technically challenging biomass fuels.

INMIS has established partnerships with leading thermal oil boiler suppliers and offers the full range of EPC services at the highest quality standards as set by Turboden’s ORC technology.

Use the buttons below or navigate the side menu for an in-depth view of the biomass combustion systems of VAS and MIMSAN. 

COMPANY PROFILE

Austrian company VAS Energy Systems International GmbH , is a leading European supplier of biomass thermal oil boilers. Since 1999 VAS has built more than 65 biomass plants including 30 thermal oil plants and over 200 single projects as the supplier of exhaust gas treatment systems.  

Backed by state of the art technology and committed to top quality standards, VAS demonstrates a remarkable track record with notable project references with Turboden ORC units such as the CHP plant at Heathrow Airport (), the CCHP plant in Sky studios in London (), the CHP plant powering district heating in Bruneck, Italy (), and the CHP plant at Malteurop's production facility in Poland ().   

VAS is the only European thermal oil boiler supplier with in house capabilities to design, manufacture and deliver all the components of the entire combustion system, from the fuel handling equipment and the furnace and up to the thermal oil heat exchangers and the filters. By having the entire combustion system supplied by VAS based on in-house designed components, the risk of interface conflicts caused when using equipment from different suppliers is minimized, and system efficiency is maximized.    

Following close cooperation with INMIS, VAS is uniquely positioned among European suppliers to manufacture, deliver and guarantee complete combustion solutions designed to operate with the type of residual agricultural fuels which most biomass power plants in Greece are likely to use.  

SELECTED VAS BIOMASS PLANTS PHOTOS

Click on images below to enlarge. 

Further information

For a detailed description of VAS' biomass combustion system click here 

For an overview of VAS' system advantages click here 

For VAS' references click here  ;for a detailed presentation of selected references navigate using the menu on the left.  

VAS | BIOMASS COMBUSTION SYSTEM

The main components of a typical biomass combustion system by VAS are indicated in the scheme below: 

PROCESS DESCRIPTION

VAS COMBUSTION SYSTEM | ADVANTAGES 

01. Unique in house capabilities and vertical integration | Single supplier of the entire combustion system  

VAS is the only European thermal oil boiler supplier with in house capabilities to design, manufacture and deliver all the components of the entire combustion system, from the fuel handling equipment and the furnace and up to the thermal oil heat exchangers and the filters. By having the entire combustion system supplied by VAS based on in-house designed components, the risk of interface conflicts caused when using equipment from different suppliers is minimized, and system efficiency is maximized.   

Furthermore, in the unlikely event of system malfunction, customers will deal with VAS as the single counterparty responsible for the entire biomass combustion system and thus avoid the uncertainty and complication of root cause analysis procedures.

02. Availability & Maintenance 

VAS provides a standard availability guarantee of 90% with annual maintenance requirements estimated in the order of 240-336 hours. 

The availability typically achieved in VAS plants however, is well above the minimum guaranteed often exceeding 95%.

 03. Efficiency & Performance 

Contingent upon project-specific parameters and fuel characteristics, VAS combustion system delivers an industry leading 85-88% efficiency.  

04. Automation 

Similarly to Turrboden ORC units, VAS' combustion system is highly automated with minimal operation requirements. System operation is monitored and controlled remotely while plant personnel duties are typically limited to a simple inspection.  

05. Flue gas treatment 

VAS' combustion systems integrates highly advanced, in-house designed, flue gas treatment technology capable to support compliance with strict emission limits even when dealing with challenging biomass fuels. 

In addition to the the ESP which reduces dust content from about 2.500 mg/Nm³ down to under 20 mg/Nm³, the installation of an in-house designed bag filter can reduce dust content even further (below 10 mg/Nm³). Other fuel-specific pollutants can be removed by an additives feed in line before clean flue gas is vent to the atmosphere.  

Furthermore, VAS' furnace is working with low-NOX technology, achieving NOx levels below 150mg/Nm³ at plants using normal wood based fuel. For plants using agricultural based fuel, and depending on the applicable emission limits, the addition of a Selective Non Catalytic Reduction system designed by VAS may be required. 

06. Safety 

VAS' combustion system integrates several safety features to protect against an event of system malfunction. In addition to the emergency chimney placed on top of the furnace, a vertically arranged refractory-lined hot gas shaft is placed right after the furnace. If unsafe operating conditions are detected, VAS' control system will automatically initiate the shut down of the system.