Oxy-steam gasification of biomass for hydrogen rich syngas production using downdraft reactor configuration

The paper focuses on the use of oxygen and steam as the gasification agents in the thermochemical conversion of biomass to produce hydrogen rich syngas, using a downdraft reactor configuration. Performance of the reactor is evaluated for different equivalence ratios (ER), steam to biomass ratios (SBR) and moisture content in the fuel. The results are compared and evaluated with chemical equilibrium analysis and reaction kinetics along with the results available in the literature. Parametric study suggests that, with increase in SBR, hydrogen fraction in the syngas increases but necessitates an increase in the ER to maintain reactor temperature toward stable operating conditions. SBR is varied from 0.75 to 2.7 and ER from 0.18 to 0.3. The peak hydrogen yield is found to be 104g/kg of biomass at SBR of 2.7. Further, significant enhancement in H-2 yield and H-2 to CO ratio is observed at higher SBR (SBR=1.5-2.7) compared with lower range SBR (SBR=0.75-1.5). Experiments were conducted using wet wood chips to induce moisture into the reacting system and compare the performance with dry wood with steam. The results clearly indicate the both hydrogen generation and the gasification efficiency ((g)) are better in the latter case. With the increase in SBR, gasification efficiency ((g)) and lower heating value (LHV) tend to reduce. Gasification efficiency of 85.8% is reported with LHV of 8.9MJNm(-3) at SBR of 0.75 compared with 69.5% efficiency at SBR of 2.5 and lower LHV of 7.4 at MJNm(-3) at SBR of 2.7. These are argued on the basis of the energy required for steam generation and the extent of steam consumption during the reaction, which translates subsequently in the LHV of syngas. From the analysis of the results, it is evident that reaction kinetics plays a crucial role in the conversion process. The study also presents the importance of reaction kinetics, which controls the overall performance related to efficiency, H-2 yield, H-2 to CO fraction and LHV of syngas, and their dependence on the process parameters SBR and ER. Copyright (c) 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Steam-cured stabilised soil blocks for masonry construction

Energy-efficient, economical and durable building materials are essential for sustainable construction practices. The paper deals with production and properties of energy-efficient steam-cured stabilised soil blocks used fbr masonry construction. Problems of mixing expansive soil and lime, and production of blocks using soil-lime mixtures have been discussed briefly. Details of steam curing of stabilised soil blocks and properties of such blocks are given. A comparison of energy content of steam-cured soil blocks and burnt bricks is presented. It has been shown that energy-efficient steam cured soil blocks (consuming 35% less thermal energy compared to burnt clay bricks) having high compressive strength can be easily produced in a decentralised manner.

Experiments on a plume with off-source heating: Implications for cloud fluid dynamics

We report here on a series of laboratory experiments on plumes, undertaken with the object of simulating the effect of the heat release that occurs in clouds on condensation of water vapor. The experimental technique used for this purpose relies on ohmic heating generated in an electrically conducting plume fluid subjected to a suitable alternating voltage across specified axial stations in the plume flow [Bhat et al., 1989]. The present series of experiments achieves a value of the Richardson number that is toward the lower end of the range that characteristics cumulus clouds. It is found that the buoyancy enhancement due to heating disrupts the eddy structures in the flow and reduces the dilution owing to entrainment of ambient fluid that would otherwise have occurred in the central region of the plume. Heating also reduces the spread rate of the plume, but as it accelerates the flow as well, the overall specific mass flux in the plume does not show a very significant change at the heat input employed in the experiment. However, there is some indication that the entrainment rate (proportional to the streamwise derivative of the mass flux) is slightly higher immediately after heat injection and slightly lower farther downstream. The measurements support a previous proposal for a cloud scenario [Bhat and Narasimha, 1996] and demonstrate how fresh insights into certain aspects of the fluid dynamics of clouds may be derived from the experimental techniques employed here.

Intelligent thermal energy meter cum controller for solar water heating systems

A microcontroller based, thermal energy meter cum controller (TEMC) suitable for solar thermal systems has been developed. It monitors solar radiation, ambient temperature, fluid flow rate, and temperature of fluid at various locations of the system and computes the energy transfer rate. It also controls the operation of the fluid-circulating pump depending on the temperature difference across the solar collector field. The accuracy of energy measurement is +/-1.5%. The instrument has been tested in a solar water heating system. Its operation became automatic with savings in electrical energy consumption of pump by 30% on cloudy days.

Boundary layer transition observations on a body of revolution with surface heating and cooling in water

Boundary layer flow visualization in water with surface heat transfer was carried out on a body of revolution which had the predicted possibility of laminar separation under isothermal conditions. Flow visualization was by in-line holographic technique. Boundary layer stabilization, including elimination of laminar separation, was observed to take place on surface heating. Conversely, boundary layer destabilization was observed on surface cooling. These findings are consistent with the theoretical predictions of Wazzan et al. in The stability and transition of heated and cooled incompressible laminar boundary layers, in Proceedings of the Fourth International Heat Transfer Conference, Vol. 2, FCI 4. Elsevier, Amsterdam (1970).

Experimental investigation of interaction of strong shock heated oxygen gas on the surface of ZrO2 - a novel method to understand re-combination heating

Interaction of shock heated test gas in the free piston driven shock tube with bulk and thin film of cubic zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) prepared by combustion method is investigated. The test samples before and after exposure to the shock wave are analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The study shows transformation of metastable cubic ZrO2 to stable monoclinic ZrO2 phase after interacting with shock heated oxygen gas due to the heterogeneous catalytic recombination surface reaction.

Anomalous plasma heating by an intense laser beam

Heating of laser produced plasmas by an instability is investigated. For intense laser beams anomalous absorption is found. A comparison is made with the experiment.

Ion heating by the lower hybrid mode

The lower hybrid mode excited in a plasma with cross-field current and density gradient induces an attractive potential between the negative-and positive-energy modes of the plasma. The growth rate is thereby reduced and becomes comparable with the damping rates due to wave-particle interaction. This leads to the saturation of the turbulent field. Some applications have been made to the turbulent heating experiments in plasma where cross-field current is present.

Effectiveness of a Differential Temperature Controller on a Solar Water Heating System: An Experimental Study

A differential temperature controller is incorporated in a solar water heating system to study the influence of its set points on system performance. The effectiveness of the controller set points DeltaT ON and DeltaT OFF on the pump cycling and energy collection has been studied experimentally and the results are presented in this paper.

Importance of local heating in the compaction of thermally sensitive solids

Local heating is an important parameter in compaction of thermally sensitive solids since local hot spots could conceivably raise the temperature of the system by several hundred degrees. To understand the importance of local hot spots, 20 g of ammonium perchlorate (AP) and potassium perchlorate (KP) were pressed together at 1500 kg cm−2 for 5 min. The surface structural examination of the compact revealed a secondary phase at the interfaces between the grains in the compositions ranging from 50% AP-50% KP to 10% AP-90% KP. The observation of the secondary phase only at the interfaces has been attributed to the short life times of temperature pulses present during the compaction. An interesting aspect of the investigation is the formation of a series of solid solutions of AP-KP.

Negative differential resistance in Gd0.5Sr0.5MnO3: A consequence of Joule heating

Negative differential resistance (NDR) in current-voltage (I-V) characteristics and apparent colossal electroresistance were observed in Gd0.5Sr0.5MnO3 single crystals at low temperatures. The continuous dc I-V measurements showed a marked thermal drift. In addition, temperature of the sample surface was found to be significantly higher than that of the base at high applied currents. Two different strategies namely estimation and diminution of the Joule heating (pulsed I-V measurements) were employed to investigate its role in the electric transport properties. Our experiments reveal that the NDR in Gd0.5Sr0.5MnO3 is a consequence of Joule heating rather than the melting of charge order. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. doi:10.1063/1.3486221]

A MAS NMR investigation of aluminosilicate, silicophosphate, and aluminosilicophosphate gels and the evolution of crystalline structures on heating the gels

Gels of various composition containing SiO2, Al2O3, and P2O5 have been investigated by employing high resolution magic-angle-spinning (MAS) 27Al, 29Si, and 31P NMR spectroscopy. Changes occurring in the NMR spectra as the gels are progressively heated have been examined to understand the nature of structural changes occurring during the crystallization of the gels. 27Al resonance is sensitive to changes in the coordination number even when the Al concentration is as low as 1 mol%. As the percentage of Al increases, the hydroxyl groups tend to be located on the Al sites while Si remains as SiO4/2 (Q4). Mullite is the major phase formed at higher temperature in the aluminosilicate gels. In the case of the silicophosphate gels, Si is present in the form of Q4 and Q3 species. There is a change in the coordination of Si from four to six as the gel is heated. The formation of six-coordinated Si is facilitated even at lower temperatures (~673 K) when the P2O5 content is high. The phosphorus atoms present as orthophosphoric acid units in the xerogels change over to metaphosphate-like units as the gel is heated to higher temperatures. In aluminosilicophosphates, Si is present as Q4 and Q3 species while P is present as metaphosphate units; Al in these gels seems to be inducted into the tetrahedral network positions.

Comparative study of air heating solar collectors

Three types of conventional solar air heater are designed such that their heat absorbing areas and the pressure drops across them are equal for equal air mass flow rates per unit collector area. The results of thermal performance tests conducted simultaneously on these collectors, under the same environmental conditions, are presented.

Numerical estimation of hotspot temperatures in electrodes subjected to pulsed electron beam heating in vacuum

A numerical solution for the transient temperature distribution in a cylindrical disc heated on its top surface by a circular source is presented. A finite difference form of the governing equations is solved by the Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) time marching scheme. This solution has direct applications in analyzing transient electron beam heating of target materials as encountered in the prebreakdown current enhancement and consequent breakdown in high voltage vacuum gaps stressed by alternating and pulsed voltages. The solution provides an estimate of the temperature for pulsed electron beam heating and the size of thermally activated microparticles originating from anode hot spots. The calculated results for a typical 45kV (a.c.) electron beam of radius 2.5 micron indicate that the temperature of such spots can reach melting point and could give rise to microparticles which could initiate breakdown.