| Popis: |
Presently, one of the biggest predicaments in developing countries is the ever-growing local demand for electrical energy in the face of limited availability of locally derived natural resources. The Middle Eastern country of Jordan provides for an apt example of this. Domestically, Jordan generates a very limited amount of its own electrical energy output. Contributing 2.4% of its total energy consumption, Jordan has been driven by the need to diversify its reliance on alternative energy sources. One such alternative is that of renewable energy with its potential to cater to local supply and demand for electricity. Off-grid energy generating technologies can provide a more reliable supply and extending its reach into remote and rural areas. These technologies provide the added benefits of being more environmentally sustainable, cost-efficient, and can operate independently, not reliant on multiple public utilities. Against this backdrop, this study evaluates the benefits of gasification technology, providing for a renewable energy source that can meet the needs for a reliable supply whilst simultaneously distributing power to remote rural areas. It does this by scrutinizing existing investigative works and experimentations premised on the gasification of carbonaceous material for the purpose of producing syngas that can then be used as an energy source. In this gasification process, the most common material typically used is biomass. However, such technologies and their accompanying processes are not without their challenges. These include, but are not limited to, low energy density, low heating value, higher tar content, and an unstable supply. In an attempt to overcome these associated issues, biomass and coal are often synergized in a singular process referred to as ‘co-gasification’. While the combination of biomass and coal vastly improved the process of co-gasification, various other factors aid this process. These include flow geometry, where the gasifier can be categorized into several forms: an entrained flow gasifier, a moving bed gasifier, and a fluidized bed gasifier. Further factors included a gasification agent, operating conditions (i.e. temperature, pressure), heating rate, feedstock composition, fuel blending ratio, and particle size, influenced by the percentage of gases and ratio produced between CO, CO2, CH4, and H2. This study therefore provides a comparative analysis between a co-gasification process and normal gasification to determine not only the elements that impact these processes, but also what can be improved for ultimately optimizing gasification. |
