Woodchip from waste for renewable heat and power

Completed

Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Applications for heat and electricity)
Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Production of other biomass-derived fuels (incl. Production from wastes))

Applied Research and Development

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

Not Cross-cutting

Mr A Tolfts
Trees and Woodland Section Cultural Services Department
London Borough of Croydon

3

Carbon Trust

01 January 2004

30 September 2004

9 months

£61,752

London

Mr A Tolfts, Trees and Woodland Section Cultural Services Department, London Borough of Croydon

Project Contact, BioRegional Development Group

The project is relatively simple, but important as it completes the renewable energy supply system for the BedZED ecovillage. With woodchip production set up, all stages from waste material to final heat and power generation will be demonstrated and shown to be financially self-sustaining.

London Borough of Croydon (LBC) and BioRegional Development Group (BDG) have worked together to improve management of woodlands and trees in the borough since 1994. Using waste wood as a carbon-neutral energy source meets multiple environmental and operational targets for the council and BDG. Greater London generates an estimated 60,000 tonnes of woody tree waste per year, much of which now goes to landfill. With the construction of the Peabody Trust's pioneering Beddington Zero Energy Development (BedZED) just six miles from the green waste yard a market became available for 1200 tonnes a year of woodchip to fuel an integrated combined heat and power plant (CHP). The CHP is the first commercial installation of a fully automated downdraught gasifier by B9 Energy. This is sited within the Peabody development. The challenge is to establish an efficient, cost effective way to produce high quality chip for the CHP from the available tree surgery waste. Such waste is notoriously difficult to process owing to the great range of sizes and high degree of irregular shape encountered. At present, this waste is a disposal problem with much going to landfill, yet has the potential to become a valuable resource. Under this project a model woodchip production facility will be designed, built and commissioned using proven equipment to limit technical risk. Suitable transport and delivery systems will also be identified and tested. Once constructed, the chipping facility will havethe capacity to supply three or four times the fuel required by the BedZED CHP, facilitating the introduction of other woodchip-fuelled heat and power plants in the vicinity. It will be an important first step in the development of a wider wood fuel market

01/01/07