Steam gasification of biomass in a fluidized bed.: Effect of a Ni-Al catalyst

Steam gasification of biomass has been studied at temperatures of 650 and 700 degrees C. The experiments have been carried our in an installation based on WFPP (Waterloo Fast Pyrolysis Process) technology that allows a continuous biomass feeding (up to 100 g/h) and uses a fluidized bed reactor at high heating rates and low residence time of gases in the reaction bed. The biomass used was pine sawdust. The presence of a Ni-Al coprecipitated catalyst in the gasification process modifies very significatively product distribution increasing total gas yield. The increase of steam gasification temperature for catalytic process almost does not change total gas. H-2, CO, CO2 and CH4 yields. The catalyst also modifies product gas composition to a composition close to thermodynamic equilibrium.