A coal-fired plant may benefit from a biomass conversion for several reasons, including coping with the rising cost of fossil fuels and dealing with more stringent emissions regulations. If you are considering this change for your plant, it’s essential that you consider the possible effects of biomass fuels on your existing boiler and systems. Let’s take a look at some of the challenges you may encounter and how to address them.
Engineering Considerations
The first thing to decide is what kind of engineering and structural changes will need to be made for this conversion. If you’re looking at tearing down walls or expanding your plant’s foundation, you’ll need to partner with a company who has experience in these types of adjustments. This company will offer guidance on the civil, structural, and environmental engineering changes you’ll need to make, and can help the transition go as smoothly as possible.
Equipment Considerations
Many facilities experience issues because they haven’t fully addressed their equipment needs. You need to understand the differences between dealing with coal and dealing with biomass. When handling biomass, your material and boiler equipment will have much greater demands regarding volume throughputs, erosion and corrosion, and more – and if your system isn’t built to handle these new demands, you may encounter some major problems with the materials handling process.
Cost Considerations
Another thing to think about is how much it costs to process biomass in its raw state. The increased cost can almost eliminate your ROI if you aren’t prepared for it. There are options for separate biomass and coal handling options that cost more upfront, but then pay off big in the long run. This might be a good route for a plant that wants to fire biomass in its raw state with a minimum fuel cost and maximum production levels.
Partner with ProcessBarron for Coal to Biomass Conversion
The best thing any plant can do is work with a professional team who understands the ins and outs of converting from coal to biomass. Here at ProcessBarron, we’ve got years of experience helping plants run as efficiently as possible. Contact us today for more information!