Biomass pellets as a means of combating climate change

Coping with climate change is undoubtedly one of the biggest challenges that biomass energy utilization systems have to cover.

The dependence of the economy on fossil fuels and their enormous consumption for energy production, has been characterized by scientists and politicians as the main factor for the exacerbation of the phenomenon of global warming, with all the known consequences (rise of the average sea level, extreme weather etc.).

The neutrality of pellets in terms of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions does not result from the fact that they do not release this particular gas during combustion; this is impossible for any combustion of carbon-containing compounds. The environmental friendliness of pellets results from the fact that natural raw materials are used for their production (e.g. logging residues, sawdust, special crops) which for their growth absorb approximately the same amount of carbon dioxide as they emit during their combustion. Consequently, the overall carbon dioxide transport balance in the atmosphere is, approximately, zero. Of course, there are several parameters that must be taken into account for a more rigorous calculation of the carbon balance, such as the efficiency of the pellet combustion system or the energy consumption of the production units of these biofuels.

Several investigations have been carried out across Europe in the last decade to clarify the question of whether pellets

biomass are a more environmentally friendly fuel than conventional fossil fuels. In a related study by the UK Department of Trade and Industry (2003) where carbon dioxide emissions from various fuels were examined, throughout their life cycle, it was found that per megawatt hour (MWh), biomass pellets produce less than 5% of the corresponding emissions from oil. In comparison, with natural gas (which is "advertised" as a clean fuel), the same scientists estimated that the carbon dioxide emissions from the pellets correspond to only 5.5%. In any case, both oil and natural gas are, by definition, non-renewable fuels, unlike biomass, which is also, by definition, a renewable fuel.

The famous US Environmental Protection Agency. (USEPA) refers to wood pellets as a renewable fuel produced from compressed and dried wood or other biomass sources. He adds that stoves using biomass pellets pollute so little that USEPA certification is not necessary. (as is done with conventional wood stoves).

Special Austrian Institute for Urbanization and Housing (Salzburger Institute for Urbanization and Housing) reported as a result of research that an average household in Austria that uses pellets instead of oil for heating contributes to the protection of the environment by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide by 10 tons which discharges annually.

The direct link that exists between the use of pellets and environmental protection is demonstrated, in practice, by the fact that the largest pellet consumptions occur in countries that are both economically advanced and environmentally sensitive. Prominent among these is Sweden, the country with the largest consumption of biomass pellets in Europe, which, in fact, used more biomass than oil in 2009 to meet its energy needs.

The worldwide examples from official, reliable bodies and studies proving the contribution of biomass pellets to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions are numerous. Carbon dioxide is not, however, the only gaseous product of combustion that concerns.

Between the period 1980-2000 there was a sharp drop in the amount of carbon monoxide (CO) emitted by domestic pellet burning systems; a fact attributed to the technological development of these systems. Similarly, suspended particulate matter (PM10) is an equally important pollutant when burning solid fuels. Similarly to the case of carbon monoxide, the technology of pellet combustion systems has advanced so rapidly that a reduction in emitted particles of the order of 1% has been achieved within twenty years. It is worth noting that PM10 emissions from burning pellets are less than 5% of those emitted by conventional wood-fired fireplaces.

source: biomass energy

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