Biochar from Wood Waste and Forestry Waste

The era of decarbonization and bioeconomy continues and continues to grow over time. While some people focus on the carbon neutral sector such as the production of biomass fuels such as wood pellets, wood briquettes or wood chips, people who focus on negative carbon seem to be fewer, including the use of CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) and biochar production. Compared to CCS, biochar production with pyrolysis is easier and cheaper so it is projected to become a future trend. Logically, the negative carbon scenario is actually much better because in addition to reducing the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, while the neutral carbon scenario only does not increase CO2 emissions in the atmosphere, but does not reduce or absorb CO2 in the atmosphere. CO2 sequestration or biochar carbon removal (BCR) is currently also the most industrially relevant carbon removal technology. BCR is a key solution for real climate change mitigation today and its development is very rapid. BCR also has a vital role in the carbon removal technology portfolio. 

Woody biomass, especially from wood industrial waste and forestry waste, is a potential raw material for biochar production, even this type of wood biomass is the best raw material because it can produce high quality biochar, namely fixed carbon of more than 80%. The potential for wood biomass raw materials in Indonesia is very large, estimated at 29 million m3/year from forest harvesting waste, and 2 million m3/year from wood processing industry waste including 0.78 million m3 in the form of sawdust (the yield of the sawmill industry ranges from 50-60% and as much as 15-20% consists of sawdust). And that does not include if there is a biomass plantation or energy plantation dedicated to biochar production.

With the condition of agricultural land, plantations and forestry which are experiencing a lot of degradation, the need for biochar is also very large. Among the factors causing the decline in land fertility is the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides for decades continuously and tends to be excessive. This causes a decline in soil quality which has an impact on crop production because it makes the land more acidic and hard which is estimated to reach millions of hectares. In addition, the price of chemical fertilizers is increasingly expensive and difficult to obtain, which results in low agricultural production, so the government is forced to import several agricultural commodities to meet the needs of the community. This actually does not need to happen considering the potential land in Indonesia is very large, it only needs to improve the condition of the land so that it can be optimal again. Making damaged land fertile is not difficult, it only takes perseverance to repair and care for the land so that it continues to be fertile.

Meanwhile, dry land consists of ultisol soil of 47.5 million ha and oxisol of 18 million ha. Indonesia has a coastline of 106,000 km with a potential land area of ​​1,060,000 ha, generally including marginal land. Millions of hectares of marginal land are spread across several islands, have good prospects for agricultural development but are currently not well managed. The land has a low fertility rate, so technological innovation is needed to improve and increase its productivity. Not to mention post-mining land which is almost all very damaged and also covers millions of hectares. And biochar is the right solution that can restore the condition of the land to be fertile again. 

Slow pyrolysis is the best technology for biochar production. But the technology used must be efficient and emissions meet the threshold standards of the country concerned. In addition, excess heat and/or liquid products and gas products from pyrolysis should also be utilized. With the criteria for pyrolysis technology as above, in addition to the quality and quantity of products, namely biochar, can be maximized, the production process also does not cause new problems in the form of environmental pollution. This is very much in line with biochar business activities so that it becomes a solution to the problem of industrial biomass waste from wood and forestry waste as well as a solution to climate problems. Even the utilization of by-products (excess heat and/or liquid products and gas products from pyrolysis) can also encourage the emergence of other environmentally friendly and renewable products.

In economic terms, the outline can be as follows, namely with an investment of 10 million US dollars, approximately 200,000 tons of biochar with more than 400,000 carbon credits will be produced over a period of 10 years. Or if with an investment of 100 million US dollars, almost 2 million tons of biochar and more than 4 million carbon credits will be produced over a period of 10 years. And for example, with a selling price of biochar of 100 dollars per ton and also a carbon credit of 100 dollars per unit (per ton of CO2), then within 10 years the investment has increased 6 times or it only takes about 1.7 years for the initial investment to return (payback period). Of course, when the price of biochar is higher and / or its carbon credits, of course the return on capital will be faster. And that does not include the utilization of liquid and gas products from pyrolysis and excess heat which also have economic potential that is no less interesting. The trend of the future business era will not only focus on financial profit but also provide solutions to environmental problems and climate problems, and of course solutions to social problems by creating jobs.

Increasing Food Agriculture Productivity: Biochar Application or Forest Clearing for Food Estate?

Indonesia currently ranks 69th out of 113 countries in 2022 in food security and this is lower than Malaysia and Vietnam with indicator points below the global average. This condition is concerning considering that Indonesia was once self-sufficient in food before and even the price of rice in Indonesia is the most expensive in ASEAN. Efforts to maintain food productivity are indeed a challenge, let alone increasing it. Along with increasing population growth, the need for food automatically increases. The condition of declining food production and productivity is related to a number of factors including land conversion to non-agricultural land, and soil / land damage. A number of regulations have been made to stem the rate of decline in food productivity due to these two things.

Regarding land damage, repair efforts need to be made so that agricultural productivity increases. It is estimated that the area of ​​land damage that occurs is very large with a high level of severity. This requires gradual and sustainable repair efforts with various strategies including improving farming patterns and even a number of incentives. Only with these efforts can the agricultural sector as a source of food be repaired or if not, the damage to agricultural land will get worse so that repair efforts will be more difficult.

Biochar application or forest clearing for food estate ?
Biochar application will be able to repair damaged lands. In addition to being a slow-release fertilizer agent so that fertilizer use becomes efficient and does not pollute the environment, increasing soil pH, increasing soil organic carbon and increasing agricultural productivity, biochar will also help overcome the management of agricultural waste that has so far polluted the environment. The increase in agricultural productivity from the use of biochar is on average around 20%. If Indonesia's current rice production is around 31 million tons per year, then the application of biochar will increase total rice production to 37.2 million tons (an increase of 6.2 million tons). With an average rice production per hectare of 6 tons, the increase of 6.2 million tons is equivalent to increasing the area of ​​agricultural land by 1.03 million hectares. Even damaged land from post-mining can be reclaimed and rehabilitated with the application of biochar, with the land area also reaching millions of hectares. This is certainly better than clearing new forest land for food estates because of its environmental impact. 

As the human population grows, the need for food and energy will continue to increase. Indonesia's population in 2045 is estimated to reach 319 million people and the world's population in 2050 is approaching 10 billion people. The need and urgency of biochar to improve soil quality is increasing. Tens of millions of hectares of all Indonesian acidic soils, which are classified as dry land acidic soils, need to be improved with biochar. This means that the business potential reaches billions of dollars or trillions of rupiah. Meanwhile, rice imports in 2024 are targeted to reach 3.6 million tons (as a buffer), a large amount. With an annual rice requirement of around 31 million tons, the contribution of imported rice reaches more than 10%.

Biochar in addition to repairing soil damage so that it increases its fertility which ultimately increases agricultural productivity is also part of the climate solution, namely by means of carbon sequestration. Biochar applied to the soil will last hundreds or even thousands years, and does not decompose. This is another advantageous factor for biochar producers, namely getting carbon credits. The quality of biochar will determine the acquisition or price of the carbon credit, so that the raw materials of biochar and its production process are affected. The price of carbon credits is increasing so that it is increasingly attractive and also the carbon credit market continues to grow.

Damage to land or agricultural land that occurs is mostly caused by excessive use of chemical fertilizers. If the use of chemical fertilizers can be reduced in dosage or with sufficient use, there will be improvements in land quality. Even if chemical fertilizers are gradually reduced in dosage and organic fertilizers / compost are increasingly added so that in the end chemical fertilizers are not used at all, soil fertility will be optimal as well as agricultural productivity.

The photo from here

Of course, this requires time and continuous effort. Livestock must also be encouraged so that compost / organic fertilizer can also be produced sufficiently from the processing of livestock manure. Integrated farming with livestock is the best solution for improving agricultural land with biochar, especially increasing the efficiency of fertilization. If the above can be implemented properly, then forest clearing for food estate land can also be slowed down / held back by considering all aspects comprehensively so that it is not a short-term solution that tends to be forced, and rushed because of the regime's image efforts even at a cost of hundreds of trillions.

Encouraging the Machinery Industry to Support the Bioenergy Industry

When realizing that Indonesia is a biomass “heaven” so that it has the potential to become a world leader in bioenergy, then a number of efforts should be made to support this. Production equipment or machines are one of the components that support this. For example, large-capacity wood pellet production usually relies on European machines that have proven to be reliable so that the wood pellet business goals can be achieved. Cost to benefits ratio analysis is used in selecting these European machines. However, because buying European machines with complete production lines is expensive, the use of combination machines is an alternative. The complexity and heart of a production process usually lies only in the main equipment and this is still imported, while supporting equipment should be able to use local production equipment.

When production equipment can work according to its capacity and function, the production target (quantity and quality) can be achieved. Choosing a number of supporting equipments that is appropriate and able to operate according to the needs of the main equipment is not easy. Getting a local machine manufacturer partner to get a match between the characteristics of the main machine and the supporting machine does take time and process. But to be able to play a role and reduce risk in the decarbonization era, it can be started by supporting some equipment at a small capacity or limited to certain equipments only. Engineering and design factors are the main important factors before fabricating the supporting equipments.

Of course, if a number of supporting factors are met, such as mastery of science and technology, experience, good company organization and so on, then 100% production of production equipment or complete lines can be done. Of course, it takes time and effort that is not simple, such as maintaining the performance of the quality of the machine product so as to provide satisfaction to users with the hope that business performance will also increase and research is ongoing. And by gradually becoming part of actively participating in various bioenergy projects, mastery of technology through technology transfer is also possible. Being part of the solution and playing a role in it is an important thing to do, including in the machinery industry that supports the bioenergy industry.
 

Industrial Wood Briquette Becomes an Alternative Between Wood Chips and Wood Pellets

Biomass fuel is a renewable fuel or renewable energy that is currently positioned as one of the alternative fuel. However, along with awareness of various climate problems, the use of alternative energy from biomass has increased over time. The decarbonization trend as a response to climate problems has penetrated all lines of life including the industrial sector. As a profit-oriented industry, of course, efforts to maximize are a major concern, including in the use of alternative fuels. There are various types of fuels that can be produced from biomass and especially for solid fuels, including wood chips, wood pellets and wood briquettes. The characteristics of these fuels are slightly different from one another, including their production costs. It is necessary to look more carefully and deeply so that you can get the best biomass fuel according to the goals of the industry.

Industrial briquette can be produced in large quantities at a lower cost than briquette produced with hydraulics or extruders. And when compared to wood pellets, industrial wood briquette is also cheaper to produce. But of course the production cost is more expensive than wood chips. Wood chips can be said to be the easiest and cheapest biomass fuel to produce.

This places industrial wood briquette in a position between wood chips and wood pellets or hydraulic and extruder type briquettes. As a biomass densification product, industrial wood briquette is also more economical for long-distance transport. In addition, a number of industrial boilers have also been specially designed to be able to use industrial wood briquette fuel, even with automatic feeding. Other factors such as uniformity of shape, size can vary and low water content are other advantages of industrial wood briquette.

Boiler users in industry and even coal power plants can consider using industrial wood briquette. Especially for companies engaged in industrial utilities such as steam providers for processing industries so that the operation and maintenance of the boiler including the use of biomass fuel is the responsibility of the company. With a long-term steam supply contract, for example around 5-10 years, the provision of biomass fuel in the form of industrial wood briquette within that period is also very important. In addition to the availability of sufficient, legal and sustainable raw materials, the reliability aspect of industrial wood briquette production machines cannot be ignored.