Moving from coal to torrefied wood (2011)

Undergraduate: Stewart Boss

Faculty Advisor: Pete Andrews
Department: Public Policy

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Coal-burning power plants capable of substituting biomass should begin co-firing torrefied wood to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and increase the use of abundant and sustainable energy resources. Coal generates nearly half of the nation’s electricity, but roughly one third of the nation’s more than 600 coal-fired power plants were built before the 1970s and are not subjected to many modern pollution control regulations. These coal-burning power plants produce roughly 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide every year. Although there are no projected new coal plants in the U.S. beyond those already under construction or supported by clean coal incentives, coal is predicted to remain the dominant energy source for electricity generation because of continued reliance on existing coal plants. The most attractive emerging option for reducing coal use and resulting greenhouse gas emissions in existing facilities is co-firing coal along with torrefied wood, a form of woody biomass that has been dried and heated to release water and volatile organic compounds to create a charcoal-like substance similar to coal.
Torrefied wood can be a renewable, relatively carbon-neutral energy resource if taken from continuing forestry operations. As a substitute for coal, torrefied wood would also lower sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions and promote local economic development of biomass resources.