Modeling and experimental study of a small scale olive pomace gasifier for cogeneration: Energy and profitability analysis

A thermodynamic model of a combined heat and power (CHP) plant, fed by syngas produced by dry olive pomace gasification is here presented. An experimental study is carried out to inform the proposed model. The plant is designed to produce electric power (200 kWel) and hot-water by using a cogenerative micro gas turbine (micro GT). Before being released, exhausts are used to dry the biomass from 50% to 17% wb. The ChemCad software is used to model the gasification process, and input data to inform the model are taken from experimental tests. The micro GT and cogeneration sections are modeled assuming data from existing commercial plants. The paper analyzes the whole conversion process from wet biomass to heat and power production, reporting energy balances and costs analysis. The investment profitability is assessed in light of the Italian regulations, which include feed-in-tariffs for biomass based electricity generation.