Simulation of tar-free biomass syngas enhancement in a calcium looping operation using Aspen Plus built-in fluidized bed model

Abstract

The FluidBed model in Aspen Plus v10 is applied to simulate Calcium-looping for production of hydrogen-rich product gas from a bubbling fluidized bed carbonator of a dual fluidized bed (DFB) reactor. The predictions are compared with experimental results from a steady-state 20 kWth DFB biomass gasifier performing Ca-looping, fed with tar-free syngas. The effects of key operating parameters such as carbonator temperature, space time, Ca-looping ratio and feed syngas composition are studied over substantial ranges. The good agreement between the predictions and experimental results suggests that the model is a useful tool which can be revised and extended to simulate lime-enhanced biomass gasification more generally.