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BiomassModern wood burning stoves and boilers are making wood fuel an increasingly efficient and competitive alternative to fossil fuels. Use of woodfuel is widespread in some European countries such as Austria and Finland, and is becoming increasingly popular in Scotland. If it used to replace a heating oil boiler, a modern wood burning boiler can pay for itself in less than 6 years If you are considering installing a biomass system, TRECO have developed a tool to calculate indicative sizing which can be found here. Alternatively, a more in depth model developed at the Unviersity of Strathclyde can be accessed here. Biomass systems can are usually designed for a particular fuel type, e.g. log, woodchip, straw, pellet or grain. A study of the benefits of a woodfuel industry in the Scottish Borders is analysed in this document. Log
Modern automated log boilers are very robust and efficient, and can be an ideal solution where there is a cheap supply of logs. They are capable of burning any form of clean, dry wood, e.g. old palets, provided it is of suitable size. They typically require loading once per day, then they will burn for 4-5 hours and fill a large and highly insulated accumulator tank to supply hot water and heating 24 hours per day.
Costs vary depending on the individual site and model. Some indicative costs for log boilers, including installation, flue, controllers, valves, and accumulator tanks are given below (excluding VAT):
Pellet
Wood pellets are made from compressed sawdust and are a relatively energy dense and free-flowing fuel. They produce very little ash, and there are a whole range of automated pellet stoves and boilers, from individual stoves suitable for rooms, through to boilers providing central heating and hot water for the entire house.
The typical costs for a automated pellet stove suitable for heating
a room is around £3,500 ex VAT. This
report highlights the benefits to the local economy of a wood
pellet industry in the Scottish Borders
WoodchipWoodchip can be produced from any source of clean wood, such as forestry thinnings, recycled pallets, timber offcuts etc. Wood chip systems require less manual handling of fuel, and can be scaled up to much larger applications such as community heating schemes. Woodchips are loaded into a fuel store or hopper and are fed automatically to the boiler. By using a large hopper, the boiler requires less refilling. It is important to use woodchips of the right moisture content, size and consistency to prevent any problems with operation.
GrainGrain can be a good fuel, since poor quality grain has low selling value, but high energy content, and is easily handled. It produces more ash and clinker than wood pellets, but grain burning stoves have been developed successfully in Denmark. Where a cheap supply of grain is available, a grain burning stove may pay back in only a few years, when compared to the cost of replacing an oil-fired system. For more information see:
StrawBailed straw, and other fuels such as cardboard and waste wood can be burned in some boilers. Straw can provide a very economical and readily available fuel source. Some boilers will burn straw, as well as other clean fuels such as waste wood, grain, and cardboard. For more information see Farm2000
Further InformationFor further information see:
For a list of woodfuel suppliers in your local area please visit the Forestry Commission website Usewoodfuel
If you are a woodland owner, equipment installer or simply interested in biomass as a renewable energy source we would like to hear from you. Please get in touch with Michael Bayne of Borders Machinery Ring at michael@ringleader.co.uk. |
