Case Study India: Priority of Biomass Pellet Production Over Biomass Briquette

There are dozens of biomass briquette machine manufacturers in India and almost all of these machine manufacturers use mechanical press technology for the production of these briquettes. With this technology, briquettes will be formed due to mechanical press such as repeated strokes every minute (about 220 strokes per minute). This briquette machine manufacturer industry has also existed for decades in India so that biomass briquette products have also been widely known in India. Technically, there are actually 2 other technologies for the production of biomass briquettes, namely screw press and hydraulic press. Based on the briquette production technology, the briquette product output is also slightly different, for more details, read here.

The Indian government launched a decarbonization program at their coal power plants, recently, namely on October 8, 2021 which ordered the use of 5% to 10% biomass pellets for cofiring at all power plants and took effect in October 2022 or one year is the target time set. For example, in the early stages, the Indian government targeted only 5% for the cofiring ratio in their coal power plants, where the 5% figure when translated into biomass pellet production would reach around 50 million tons of biomass pellets per year. A very large number especially with a very short target time. And with a cofiring ratio of 5%, coal power plants also do not need to modify their equipment even though the biomass pellets used come from agricultural wastes, whose quality is below that of woody biomass.

With the number of power plants reaching about 900 units with an average consumption of 50 thousand tons of biomass pellets per year or a total of almost 50 million tons per year, so that a biomass pellet factory with a capacity of around 5 thousand tons / month seems to be suitable, and even if each factory supplying one power plant, the need for a biomass pellet plant will also be the same as the number of power plants, which is 900 units. A huge amount.

Production of biomass briquettes or biomass pellets?
In India, biomass briquette is indeed more popular than biomass pellets, but for the world level pellets are much more popular than briquette, even in 2021 alone, the need for pellets for global power generation alone is estimated to have reached 23 million tons. In addition, the production or pellet factory in general is also larger than the briquette factory. There are many pellet factories with a capacity of 5 thousand tons or even 10 thousand tons per month, while for briquettes it is very rare for a biomass briquette factory to have a capacity like the pellets above. Pelletisers for pellet production for commercial capacity have a capacity of 3 tons/hour or more, while briquette machines are generally less than 2.5 tons per hour, even for the screw press type the average machine capacity is only 300 kg/hour. Technically, even though they are both products of biomass densification technology with the difference that the size of the briquettes is larger than pellets, the production of briquettes is easier than pellets. 

The driving force from the business side makes biomass pellet production more attractive, especially because of its need as cofiring fuel in coal power plants as part of the decarbonization program. The need for biomass pellets can be a driving force for the production of biomass pellets or in general, namely the economy in various regions. The program should also be able to provide three benefits at once, namely environmental, social and economic. In addition, because briquette products are mainly used for boilers in industry, while pellets are for power generation, both of them also have their own market segments so that there is no market competition.

What about the Briquette Machine Manufacturing Industry?
Dozens of industries producing biomass briquette machines should now see this as an opportunity so that they can respond to it. These industries can adapt by creating a new line of business, namely helping the manufacture of a biomass pellet factory. Technically, the biomass briquette production line with biomass pellets also has many similarities (both use biomass densification technology) with the main difference being the pelletiser and briquetter. A number of equipment that can be made themself will reduce imported machines. Pelletisers are almost certain to be imported, so the selection of pelletisers as the heart of the pellet production process must be of high quality so that the pellet production target can be achieved. In the production of large capacity pellets, a number of equipments come from a number of providers, as is common in wood pellet factories with a more detailed explanation here.

In the long term, the goal is to minimize import spending, and even 100% can be made or fabricated by themself. This effort will usually take longer because the complexity of the pelletiser is higher than that of the briquetter. These briquette machine-producing industries can also cooperate with machine manufacturers in Europe who are more experienced and proven with pellet production as an effort to accelerate the transfer of the technology. Within one year as the target was set, it is very difficult to do this, so the practical effort is to buy a 100% complete line from a proven vendor, or sort out a number of equipment that can be produced yourself as above and gradually substitute the imported equipment. This is because achieving the production target for the decarbonization effort is a priority.

In conclusion, at this time India has to maximize efforts to accelerate the construction of biomass pellet factories to achieve this target. However, 1 year to achieve this target is very difficult. With these conditions in the future, it is possible that power plants in India will import biomass fuels such as wood pellets and PKS (palm kernel shell) to meet their needs. With the planned cofiring ratio, which is the lowest target of 5%, the need for biomass pellets reaches around 50 million tons, if only 2% of the biomass fuel needs are imported, both PKS and / or wood pellets, it will reach 1 million tons, a fixed amount still quite big.

Opportunity to Export Wood Pellet to Germany

At the end of 2022 or this year, all nuclear power plants in Germany will be discontinued, then in 2030 or at the latest in 2038 all coal fired power plants will also be discontinued. Germany in the context of decarbonization has planned to reduce fossil fuels, especially coal in its power plant. The percentage of nuclear power plants in Germany is 3.6% or about 8 GW and this requires immediate efforts to replace the electricity supply. Meanwhile, coal-fired power plants reach about 28% or more than 40 GW, and currently electricity production with coal is very expensive, due to the price of coal itself and carbon tax. Coal prices are around $150 but recently there has been a spike to $435 and a carbon tax of over $100 for every ton CO2 emitted. With these cost components, the price of electricity production for each MWh reaches around $220 (not including labor costs, maintenance, and so on), whereas if it is replaced with wood pellets the production price is only around $90 per MWh or approximately one third. Very cheap. Moreover, with the use of wood pellets, the sulfur scrubbing process (FGD = flue gas desulphurisation) can be reduced or even eliminated.

Biomass fuels such as wood pellets are carbon neutral so they do not increase the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, so that when using wood pellets for power generation and subsequent CO2 gas emissions, which are greenhouse gases, are captured and stored (CCS = Carbon Capture and Storage) so that they do not escape into the atmosphere, then this becomes carbon negative or reduces the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. The amount of CO2 gas that can be captured and soraged can also get carbon credit compensation, so that the coal power plants will get additional income. But without even having to use CCS, the use of wood pellets has reduced the cost of electricity production very significantly and is environmentally friendly. Meanwhile, if the power plant uses coal which is carbon positive and then CO2 emissions are captured and stored with CCS technology, this becomes carbon neutral. Of course, carbon negative efforts are better than carbon neutral.

On the other hand, Germany is famous for its technological products, especially industrial machines. A number of machine manufacturers for the production of wood pellets also come from Germany, such as Muench, Salmatec and Kahl. These machines are widely used for the production of wood pellets around the world and are reliable. It is possible that later the machines for the production of wood pellets will be imported from Germany and wood pellet products from Indonesia will be exported to Germany. This is in accordance with the potential advantages of each country. Indonesia with a land area of 1.91 million km2 with a lot of available land and being in the tropics has great potential as the world's main producer of wood pellets.

Currently about 55% of the fuel for power generation in Germany uses natural gas originating from Russia, and currently war is breaking out between Russia and Ukraine. The issue of Germany's alignment may affect the supply of natural gas from Russia to the country due to the war. Conversion from coal power plant to wood pellet power plant is not difficult and does not require a large investment, so this conversion is the most realistic solution. With the number of coal-fired power plants in Germany more than 100 units or about 1/3 of the electricity supply, so the need for wood pellets will also be very large if the power plants switch to wood pellets.

Biomass Pellets in India

India has hundreds of millions of biomass waste, especially from agricultural wastes or about 230 million tons per year. Hundreds of millions of tons of biomass waste is of course an environmental problem, especially because most of the waste is simply burned in fields where the smoke pollutes the environment, but on the other hand it will be a solution, namely for decarbonization programs and climate change. Technically, the biomass waste from agricultural waste will be processed into fuel pellets (biomass pellets) which are used for fuel in power plants by cofiring. In the early stages, the Indian government targeted 5% for the cofiring ratio in their coal power plants, where the 5% figure when translated into biomass pellet production would reach around 50 million tons of biomass pellets per year. This is a very large amount, especially with a short time target, which is only one year since it was ordered on October 8, 2021 and will take effect in October 2022 or this year, so hard efforts are needed to achieve this target. Meanwhile, in 2021, the world's demand for wood pellets for power plants will only be around 23 million tons.

The establishment of factories for the production of biomass pellets must be carried out immediately to achieve the production target. These factories must also be supported by logistical readiness to supply raw materials so that the factory can be completed, so that the production of biomass pellets can be carried out as soon as possible. With an average power generation capacity of 275 MW in India, with a cofiring ratio of 5%, the annual need for biomass pellets is estimated at 50 thousand tons or 170 tons per day. With the number of power plants reaching around 900 units with an average consumption of 50 thousand tons of biomass pellets per year or a total of almost 50 million tons per year, the distribution of biomass pellets is also a challenge. A factory with a capacity of around 5 thousand tons/month is likely to be suitable, and even if each factory supplies one power plant, the need for a biomass pellet factories will also be the same as the number of power plants, which is 900 units. A huge amount.

Biomass pellets or agri-waste pellets, namely pellets from agricultural wastes do have a number of differences with wood pellets. Wood itself is also a part of biomass so it can also be called biomass pellet. Biomass has a wider range, including wood pellets and agri-waste pellets. Agri-waste pellets have higher ash content, and some have higher chlorine, potassium and silica content in the ash. The content of these substances is not friendly to the heat exchanger pipes in the boiler which will cause fouling and corrosiveness, so that in addition to decreasing boiler efficiency, the service life of the boiler is shortened. In addition, the harvest of agricultural products usually coincides at certain times, while the pellet factory must continue to produce every day. This is why it is necessary to store and allocate raw materials in the form of agricultural waste for the routine production of these pellets. And because these agricultural wastes cannot be left alone in the agricultural area, they need additional investment in the form of storage warehouses and to be able to store more agricultural waste they need to be temporarily compacted by baling. These things usually don't happen in wood pellet production, so the agri-waste pellet production approach is different.

And because the ash chemistry of agricultural wastes causes many problems in the operation of power plants, their use is also limited. With a cofiring ratio of 5%, the problem can still be tolerated, but when the ratio is enlarged, the impact will be more pronounced. The exception is the CFB (circulating fluidized bed) type plant which can use 100% of the agricultural waste pellets, but in India the power plants using CFB technology are very small, around 1% (9-10 units). Indonesia and Malaysia also produce biomass fuel that is almost similar to pellets and even in the international market is the pellet competitor, namely palm kernel shells or PKS. The volume of PKS also reaches millions of tons, so it can be exported to India to help meet India's needs for biomass pellets, which so far have been mainly for export to Korea and Japan. PKS is also produced by a number of countries in West Africa. But it seems that the Indian government for now will prioritize the use of their agricultural waste first, so it has not provided financial support for the import of the biomass fuel.

Currently, India must make every effort to accelerate the construction of biomass pellet factories to achieve this target. However, 1 year to achieve this target is very difficult. With these conditions in the future, it is possible that power plants in India will import biomass fuels such as wood pellets and PKS to meet their needs. With the currently planned cofiring ratio of 5%, the need for biomass pellets reaches around 50 million tons, if only 2% of the biomass fuel needs are imported, both PKS and/or wood pellets, it will reach 1 million tons, the amount is still very big.

Rice Husk Briquettes Amid the Soaring Condition of Biomass Fuel Demand

 "Briquettes are a compressed biomass fuel (densified biomass fuel) as an alternative to pellets."

The use of biomass energy is increasing day by day so this is a positive thing that needs to be encouraged. The increase in coal prices (domestic industry is priced at $90) and the resulting pollution are especially the driving force for energy use from the biomass. Among biomass energy, wood pellets are the most popular and most widely used form of biomass fuel. The use of wood pellets is not only used by processing industries but also by power plants. A number of small and medium industries such as tofu factories, cracker factories, and so on. Wood chips, as a simpler form, are less attractive than wood pellets, even though they are cheaper. With a low density, the transportation costs are also high, besides that the moisture content of wood chips is sometimes also less controlled.

The form of briquettes is also less popular than wood pellets. Briquettes can also be said as an alternative to pellets. The technology for making briquettes is the same as wood pellets, namely biomass densification, the difference is that the size of the briquettes is larger than wood pellets. Unlike wood pellets, which only use roller press technology for their production, briquettes have several variants of technology for their production, for more details, read here. But in Indonesia there is only one type of briquette, namely the screw press. Indeed, in many ways briquetting is easier than pelletizing. Biomass materials that are difficult to pelletize are usually easy to briquette. Certain types of boilers may also be more suitable for briquettes, compared to wood pellets, read in more detail here. Therefore, the use of briquettes should also be encouraged.

In addition to wood waste, agricultural wastes are also potential biomass for fuel. Rice husk is an abundant agricultural waste because the staple food of Indonesians is rice. It is estimated that the amount of rice husk is 15 million tons/year. However, with the high content of ash and silica, this rice husk is less desirable to make pellets because it is abrasive, thus shortening the service life of machine components. Likewise for making briquettes, but with a variant of the mechanical press technology, the abrasive problem can be minimized. The production of rice husk briquettes with mechanical press technology can be a solution for the utilization of the rice husk waste. In the midst of the increasing use of biomass fuels, rice husk briquettes can be the next alternative.

Briquetting of Banana Plantation Industry Waste

Banana has been a fruit that is commonly consumed and loved for a long time. Along with the increasing need for banana fruit, a number of banana plantations were created and many of these banana plantations were large scale with up to tens of thousands of hectares. The biomass waste from this banana plantation will also be very large, such as banana trunk, bunches and leaves. Such a large volume of waste should be processed so that in addition to not polluting the environment and even causing disease in the banana tree itself, processing this biomass waste can also provide economic benefits. Briquette is an effective solution to overcome this waste. The briquette products of banana trunk, bunch and stem are used for fuel or energy sources.

To be able to briquette the biomass waste is reduced in size (down sizing ) to about 1 cm. The biomass waste with a small particle size is then squeezed to separate the water with a screw press. After the water can be separated from the waste until the water content is around 10%, then it can be briquetted. If the moisture content has not reached the moisture content, drying with a dryer can be done. The liquid separated from the waste is rich in potassium / kalium so it can be reused as liquid fertilizer for the banana plantation. Mechanical press briquette is the best option for briquette technology choices. In contrast to pelleting which only uses one technology, namely roller press, briquette there are 3 variations of technology that can be used, for more details, please read here. The briquette is also technically easier and economically cheaper to produce.

The trunk of a banana has many similarities to the stem of water hyacinth. Water hyacinth is an aquatic weed, so the number must be reduced or eliminated. Both are non-woody biomass materials such as trees. Some efforts have been made to compaction water hyacinth into pellets some time ago. Water hyacinth briquette is also very possible, in fact, the rule is that all materials that can be pelleted can certainly be briquette but not the other way around, meaning that all materials that can be briquetted cannot be pelleted easily. This is because in addition to the varied briquetting technology, the tolerance level for material properties is also looser, such as particle size and moisture content. The particle size is too fine which cannot be pelleted like pellets waste and can even be briquetted as well for larger particle sizes. Meanwhile, water content of up to 16% can still work well in briquette but cannot be done in pellet production. The level of briquette density can also be adjusted and generally briquettes are also denser than pellets, even up to 1.4 ton / m3.