Increased resource efficiency through innovative new raw material handling in the production of fuel pellets

Purpose and goal:

The aim and goal of the project, to increase knowledge of why self heating and toxic gases occurs when storing fuel pellets, has been achieved. Participating companies have applied new raw material handling routines regarding small diameter and large diameter timber sawdust and discussions regarding new installations of drying process steps has started.

How problems with self-heating can be counteracted through better knowledge of the raw material properties has been disseminated via scientific articles, conferences and presentations for the Swedish pellet industries. Expected results and effects:

The expected effects around new raw material handling routines has been started within the project´s participating companies and spread to other companies in the industry, as well as the role of the drying process. The project´s results in showing the big differences between sapwood and heartwood properties as well as the possibilities to sort large diameter and small diameter timber sawdust are expected to give the importance of raw material routines completely new possibilities to reduce and eliminate the risk of self-heating and gas formation when storing pellets.

Approach and implementation:

The project´s setup, to study self heating during pellet storage from laboratory level of sapwood and heartwood pellets dried in different drying processes to industrial tests with three different drying processes, has provided unique knowledge to the pellet industry. For the first time, pellet tests on an industrial scale have been carried out with controlled raw material handling from the same supplier.

The arrangement of being able to scale laboratory results in the same project has provided great knowledge and attracted great interest from industry and academia.