Abstract
Western red cedar (WRC) is among the most valuable tree species in British Columbia. Application of WRC for pellet production is uncertain because unlike spruce/pine/douglas fir, WRC tends to combust in rotary drum dryers. The scientific reasons for the reported fire incident are not known. The goal of this research is to assess whether WRC has a higher tendency to emit combustible gases than SPF sawdust when these species of wood are heated. In controlled experiments, the composition of emitted gases during heating of WRC and SPF samples at 140 °C was measured. The GC-measured data showed that WRC released a lower amount of carbon monoxide, methane, and hydrogen than SPF. Flammability analysis showed that the concentration of the emitted gas mixture for WRC and SPF samples did not reach a flammable level. Theoretical calculations showed that the volumetric composition of carbon monoxide at 12%in the presence of ample oxygen is prone to combustion. This means that if the biomass smokes in the drum, the level of carbon monoxide might reach to flammable level.
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