In our view, biomass has considerable potential because it keeps growing back. The term bioenergy defines the generation of energy from plants, plant residues or residual materials from organic waste or wood residues. The common feature of these input materials is that they are plant-based and store solar energy in the true sense of the word.
As biomass can be used in a variety of ways, namely as a fuel, to generate heat, process heat and to generate electricity, whereby electricity and heat can be generated in a coupled mode, it is considered an alternative to known fossil fuels and with low CO2 emissions.
The use of biomass, which is considered a waste material, should not be ignored. If energy and fertilizer can be obtained from liquid manure, residues from biogas production, wood residues, wood chips and green waste, this represents a sensible cycle with considerable added value. This makes energy production from biomass a renewable energy source.
Our technology is based on the following procedure:
The biomass in question is carbonized and gasified in a pyrolysis process. The materials that can be processed include all carbon-containing materials, such as pomace, fermentation residues, sewage sludge, green waste, mill residues and residual and waste wood.
This produces an energy-rich pyrolysis gas, which is made up of approx. 25 % hydrogen, 30 % carbon monoxide, 15 % methane and 25 % carbon dioxide. These ratios can vary depending on the process control and water content. Electricity and heat can be generated and used directly on site from the resulting pyrolysis gas using standard technologies. Even at moderate energy prices, the amount of energy generated enables revenues of between €120,000 and €600,000 per year, depending on the size of the plant. Compared to the current energy mix in Germany, this results in a CO2 avoidance of 500 to 6,000 tons per year.
Another product is biochar, a material with almost unlimited applications. In soils, it has been scientifically proven to lead to a sustainable build-up of humus and an increase in nutrient and water storage capacity. Furthermore, it is probably currently the most scalable solution for the permanent removal of CO2 from the atmosphere. This removal can be traded via carbon dioxide removal certificates. The resulting biochar can be sold directly or further refined with technologies from our partners and then sold. The market for biochar has high double-digit growth rates and is becoming increasingly important, primarily due to its excellent properties for soil improvement, nutrient and water retention. Biochar makes soils more fertile and more resilient to the consequences of climate change.
Biochar consists of carbon that was removed from the air as CO2 by the plant during its growth. When incorporated into the soil, it represents a permanent CO2 sink. One tonne of biochar corresponds to between 2 and 3 tons of CO2 equivalent that has been permanently removed from the atmosphere. Negative CO2 certificates (e.g. Carbon Dioxide Removal Certificates) can be issued and marketed via this CO2 sink. The market for CO2 sinks made from biochar is experiencing very high demand and even at a conservative estimate, we expect market prices of €100-150 per ton in the next few years. Depending on the size of the plant, 150 to 1800 tons of biochar are produced, removing 300 to 5,500 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere.
Another use is in connection with existing biogas plants. Biogas plants under consideration must be able to store their fermentation residues for 180 or 270 days. If the digestate store is full and spreading is not permitted or not possible due to the weather, the plant must be throttled in the worst case scenario.
In red areas, it is often not possible to spread the entire fermentation residue on the fields in the region; instead, it has to be transported to other regions at great expense.
Biowaste and food waste fermentation plants also have fermentation residues that require energy-intensive sanitization before transport and are contaminated with plastic and microplastics.
