The Feedstock Whisperers: BETO’s Upgraded Biomass Feedstock National User Facility Is Open for Business
by Katie Carnahan and Michelle Goff (Idaho National Laboratory/Biofuels Digest) … The upgraded Biomass Feedstock National User Facility (BFNUF) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) addresses many of the challenges facing the U.S. bioenergy industry. The research conducted at the facility supports advanced feedstock supply logistics, post-harvest quality management, material handling, preprocessing, scale-up, and advanced fractionation and separation technologies. All of these make bioenergy technologies more accessible and effective by improving feedstock quality at minimal cost.
The upgrades provide one of the most versatile feedstock preprocessing facilities in the world, featuring equipment capable of processing agricultural waste, forest residue, municipal solid waste, biosolids, sludges, food waste, plastics.
INL has a wide array of preprocessing capabilities. Automated sorting and separation remove rocks, metals or other unwanted items. Advanced milling and fractionation alter material properties for improved feedstock quality, while material handling and feeding system design address flowability challenges. Finally, INL also offers size reductionand densification, blending, formulation, and packaging final quality feedstocks for shipping to a conversion partner.
The facility’s flagship is its biomass feedstock Process Development Unit (PDU). The equipment’s innovative design — modular and reconfigurable at many scales — helps bioenergy companies find the best way to convert biomass into conversion ready feedstock for their processes.
The PDU can process and characterize raw materials starting at gram quantities and scale up to multiple-ton, industrial-grade bales. It harnesses techniques like sorting, segregation, feeding, mill size reduction, rotary and solvent drying, pelleting, blending and cubing. It also provides unique packaging options. The unit offers unparalleled versatility by addressing many sorting and processing needs in one space.
Changing the Game With Garbage
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One processing project underway in the facility focuses on municipal solid waste. READ MORE
