Can the Effluent of An Efficient Biomass Carbonizer Be Combusted?

Biocarbon (i.e. biomass charcoal) is the most widely used of all biofuels: it cooks our food, cleans our water, reduces ores (e.g. SiO2) to pure metals and semi-metals (e.g. Si for photovoltaic cells), and can be used as a substitute for fossil coal to generate electrical power. An efficient biomass carbonizer (e.g. the UH Flash Carbonization process) retains as much as 70% of the carbon in the biomass feedstock in the biocarbon product. Recognizing that the carbon in the biomass carries its energy; it is legitimate to wonder if the effluent of the Flash Carbonization process can be combusted. The impacts of the feedstock moisture content on the flame temperature are of special interest. In this paper we present experimental measurements of the flame temperature within a catalytic afterburner located at the outlet of a Flash Carbonization reactor, and compare these measurements with theroretical predictions.