Robert,
Efficiency, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. If your goal is
electricity generation you can make ready comparison, but if you want a gas
that is in the correct proportions to synthesize liquid fuel or make heat for a
high value process, you have very different starting goals. Efficiency as I
see it, is how well you meet your goals that you went in expecting, versus what
you get out.
For example, Indianapolis Indiana burns municipal waste making electricity and
heat. The heat is used for downtown heating needs. They supply about 40% of
the electrical need as well. Is it efficient? If your goal is only electric
generation, probably not, heat only, probably not, but combined and taking in
the fact that it is otherwise landfill waste, YES.
So what are the goals Robert? What high value use do you have for heat, both
low and high grade? Can you cook a food product, dry lumber, or ???? with the
heat? I can hardly see approaching your project as a stand alone generator
system that sends huge amounts of heat into the atmosphere, rather than a
combined heat and power system that has plans for making high value product
from even low grade heat.
One small note to "syngas" comment from Kevin. I look at synthesis gas as
having a high portion of the energy content derived from breaking water bonds.
The heat requirements to do it thermally are significant and very much
different than "producer" gas, which for simplification is dry (8-14% moisture
content) fuel and degrades considerably with higher moisture fuels in most
gasification systems.
A combustion system has reactions all occuring at once while
gasification is concerned with stopping reactions from lack of oxygen and then
cooling the gas for later, downstream use... usually combustion by adding more
air. The energy content of producer gas and synthesis gas is very different
and so is the reject heat. Gas coming from a producer or IC engine is perhaps
400-600f while gas coming from synthesis is 1600-1800f or so.
I'm studying the combinations of producer gas making and synthesis gas making
that may some day prove my theories on combined processes.
Best wishes,
Toby Seiler
Seiler Technical Company
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