Abstract
Biomass gasification is the thermo-chemical conversion of biomass into producer gas. The latter can be then integrated in a combined heat and power unit or chemically converted into biofuels. Tar formation during biomass gasification is the main process disadvantage. Tar leads to fouling and clogging problems in the process, in addition to catalyst deactivation when production of chemicals is envisaged. Eliminating tar from the producer gas forms the trigger point for any further valorization. This work hence evaluates the efficiency of wet scrubbers on tar removal from producer gas, based on simulations conducted using Aspen Plus. Wet scrubbers are highly efficient tar removal methods suitable for small scale gasifiers and having a low cost. Two scrubbers are placed in series to increase the tar removal efficiency. The tar reduction efficiency is assessed function of the scrubbing liquid: rapeseed methyl ester and water. Sensitivity studies handling the variation of the liquid to gas ratio and the scrubbing liquid temperature were conducted to study their impact on the tar removal efficiency. Results showed that increasing the liquid to gas ratio and decreasing the scrubbing liquid temperature leads to higher tar removal efficiencies. However, the conducted economic analysis indicated that the operational cost increases as well. A balance between the non-aqueous scrubbing liquid higher tar removal efficiencies with lower utilities cost and the actual liquid cost makes water an alternative scrubbing liquid choice. Finally, the selection of the optimal conditions depends mainly on the required tar limit set for the producer gas application.
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Harb, R., Rivera-Tinoco, R., Zeghondy, B. et al. Evaluating the impact of several scrubbing systems on the tar removal efficiency from producer gas. Clean Techn Environ Policy 24, 379–392 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-021-02189-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-021-02189-7