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Continuous-Flow Rice Husk Gasifier For Small-Scale Thermal Applications

1) The document describes a new design for a continuous-flow rice husk gasifier that allows for continuous firing using a single reactor rather than dual reactors. 2) The gasifier consists of a reactor, feeding hopper, char chamber, char separator, air injector, blower, and burner. It gasifies rice husks using limited air in a downdraft process. 3) Testing showed the gasifier can successfully operate continuously, producing combustible gas at an average rate of 8.3 kg of rice husks per hour with an efficiency of 63% and power output of 19 kW.

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Erick Marzan Alvarez
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112 views3 pages

Continuous-Flow Rice Husk Gasifier For Small-Scale Thermal Applications

1) The document describes a new design for a continuous-flow rice husk gasifier that allows for continuous firing using a single reactor rather than dual reactors. 2) The gasifier consists of a reactor, feeding hopper, char chamber, char separator, air injector, blower, and burner. It gasifies rice husks using limited air in a downdraft process. 3) Testing showed the gasifier can successfully operate continuously, producing combustible gas at an average rate of 8.3 kg of rice husks per hour with an efficiency of 63% and power output of 19 kW.

Uploaded by

Erick Marzan Alvarez
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CONTINUOUS-FLOW RICE HUSK GASIFIER FOR

SMALL-SCALE THERMAL APPLICATION


by

Alexis T. Belonio
Central Philippine University
Iloilo City, Philippines

Good news and glory to God!

Rice husk gasification can now be


done in a continuous mode with
the latest design of a continuous-
flow down-draft rice husk gasifier.
Instead of using a dual reactor,
continuous firing can be achieved
using a single reactor. With this
development, a more convenient
and lower cost rice husk
technology can be made available
to people who wish to use rice
husks as fuel as a replacement for
the high-cost LPG fuel.
Pictorial of the Continuous-Flow Rice
The continuous-flow rice husk Husk Gasifier
gasifier is another breakthrough
project of the Department of Agricultural Engineering and Environmental
Management of the College of Agriculture, Central Philippine University, Iloilo
City, Philippines, with the assistance from the following agricultural engineering
students: Maybel Alemani, Jason Gem Villaruel, Daniel Belonio, Lucio Larano,
and Xykster Pelaez.

The gasifier, as schematically shown, Rice Husk Feed Hopper

has the following components: a Blower Chimney

0.25-m diameter by 110-cm high Gasifier Reactor


single reactor where rice husk is Cyclone

gasified using limited amount of air Char Separator

for combustion; a ½-sack capacity Gas Burner

feeding hopper situated directly


above the reactor that feeds rice
husks by gravity mode; a char
chamber positioned directly beneath
the reactor used to hold burnt rice
husks and also served as an exit
Schematic Drawing of the Continuous-
Flow Rice Husk Gasifier
duct for combustible gases to
the burner; a char separator Air Air

attached to the char chamber


for cleaning the gas leaving the Rice
Gas
reactor before the gas enters Husk
Fire
the burner; and an air injector Zone

positioned beneath the char


chamber to gradually remove Char

the char from the chamber


pneumatically through a Char

cyclone separator. A 2-inch Char Air


electric blower supplies the air Cut-Away View of the Continuous Flow Rice Husk
needed for gasification and a Gasifier
2½-inch electric motor drives
the pneumatic conveyor.

Gasification of rice husks in this gasifier is accomplished in a downdraft mode.


Rice husks are fed at the top of the reactor and are burned at its bottom. Air is
introduced into the bed of rice husks from the top of the reactor and moves
downward through the fire zone. Fire zone is maintained by gradually removing
the char from the char chamber employing a jet-type pneumatic conveyor
installed right beneath the reactor. The gas generated in the reactor during
gasification is directed to the burner passing through the momentum separator.
Char is separated from the gas by a 30-cm diameter cylindrical shape
momentum separator. The gas produced is burned either in a jet-type, a gas
pipe-type, or a drum-type burner. The air that is used to convey the char is also
used to cool the reactor at the same time. At the end of the conveyor is a
cyclone separator to separate the char from air. A water container is provided at
the bottom of the cyclone to immediately cool the hot char that is leaving the
reactor.

Performance testing and evaluation showed that the gasifier can be successfully
operated in a continuous mode. Firing of the reactor can be start-up evenly by
using only few pieces of paper and by sprinkling kerosene at the bottom of the
fuel bed. Once spontaneous combustion of fuel is attained, combustible gases

Pipe-Type Burner Jet-Type Burner Drum-Type Burner


are generated. Tests have shown that the gasifier consumes rice husk fuel at an
ype Burner average rate of 8.3 kg per hour. The amount of air used to gasify rice husk was
measured at 13.2 m3/hr giving an equivalence ratio for the gasifier reactor of 0.4
The temperature of the gas leaving the reactor using a type k thermocouple wire
thermometer was measured at 117 to 205°C whereas the air used to cool the
reactor and, at the same time, used to convey
the char was measured at 50 to 87°C.

The computed specific gasification rate of the


reactor is 169.2 kg/hr-m2. Based on the airflow
and the cross-sectional area of the reactor, the
computed superficial velocity of gas in the fuel
bed is at 7.5 cm/min. The pneumatic conveyor
operates well at a char-to-air ratio of 16.5 and
for a terminal velocity of air inside the duct pipe
of 11.5 m/s. Based on the energy generated
from the gas and the energy available from the
fuel, the overall efficiency of the gasifier is 63%. Sample of Char Coming
And, the computed power output is 19 kW. Out from the Gasifier

The gasifier can be used to supply combustible gases and effectively burns fuel
either in a jet-type, pipe-type, or drum-type gasifier burner. The char that is
produced from the gasifier is completely black (40% of rice husk), which is good
for soil conditioning.

The cost of the gasifier is P35,000.00 per unit (1 US$ = 55 PHP). It requires a
single person to attend its entire operation. Operating the gasifier entails a total
electric power consumption of 0.4 kW. The computed payback period is less
than 1 year when compared with LPG burner.

The continuous-flow rice husk gasifier is of more advantage than the dual reactor
rice husk gasifier primarily in terms of current investment cost. Instead of using
two reactors, only one reactor is used which means lesser material cost. Other
features of the continuous-flow rice husk gasifier are: (1) It is convenient to
operate in which reloading of rice husk and unloading of char are eliminated; (2)
It saves space since it has only one reactor; and (3) The size of the reactor can
be scaled up or down, depending on the requirement of the client.

Individuals and organizations who are willing to adopt the technology may
contact the Project Director, Appropriate Technology Center, Department of
Agricultural Engineering and Environmental Management, College of Agriculture,
Central Philippine University, Iloilo City, Philippines. Landline: 063-033-3291971
loc 1071. Email: [email protected]. Mobile: 06309167115222

Good day and God bless!!!

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