Pyrogas from Biomass
F. Michael Lewis, July 14, 2007

Paper presented by F. Michael Lewis and Clarence M. Ablow to "A conference on Capturing the Sun Through Bioconversion," March 10-12, 1976, Washington, D.C. Shoreham Americana Hotel, presented by the Stanford Research Institute. 15 pp.

Introduction

Current supplies of domestic natural gas and liquid petroleum products appear to be insufficient to meet the fuel demands of our increasingly energy-oriented society. Natural gas, in particular, is diminishing in supply, and the prospects of discovering additional sources of this preferred fuel by conventional methods are uncertain.

By the unique natural process of photosynthesis, solar energy is converted into plant material (biomass). this biomass can be converted into fuel gas by the process of pyrolysis. the fuel gas resulting from pyrolysis would give it an environmental advantage over many coals, particularly eastern coals, whose sulfur content is high. Because biomass represents a renewable resource, pyrogas could represent a long-term solution to our energy problem.

Pyrogas can be produced by a number of pyrolysis processes that are now being developed for municipal refuse. this paper presents a comparative analysis of the energy content of biomass and eastern coal, describes some of the thermodynamic fundamentals of pyrolysis processes, and illustrates some of the changes in the equilibrium gas composition that occur in the pyrogas as operating conditions are varied.

See attached paper courtesy of F. Michael Lewis.
Pyrogas from Biomass (pdf)
F. Michael Lewis, July 14, 2007