HM3 Energy, Inc.
Projects
Demonstration Plant under Construction
Pilot Plant Operations Successfully Completed
HM3 Energy has successfully completed pilot testing and has moved its laboratory to a larger facililty in Troutdale, where we are building a demonstration plant with room for drying, torrefaction and briquetting on a larger scale. A $460,000 USDA-SBIR Phase 2 grant awarded in in June will assist with further torrefaction testing.
The equipment used in the demonstration plant mirrors the equipment design of the planned commercial plant. We will also be able to produce hundreds of pounds of torrefied biomass made from various feedstock materials for future test burns. The data collected will be used to finalize the process heat and mass balance and the quipment design for the first commercial production plant.
Demonstration Plant under Construction
We evaluated commercially available torrefaction equipment from a number of vendors and identified design flaws that either make the equipment uneconomical or fail to meet quality specifications. We then designed our own torrefaction equipment which remedied the problems encountered. Our design will accomodate a large particle size distribution normally found in biomass feedstock. The equipment is sized so that the scale up to commercial size will be below a factor of 20. The demonstration plant is designed to operate continuously.
Test Burns at Research Facility
Our second co-fire test at Western Research Institute in Larmie, Wyoming, was completed on February 25, 2010 with HM3 Energy TorrB™ torrefied biomass, which we at that time referred to as "T-Wood." The HM3 Energy torrefied biomass was pulverized, blended 50% with coal, and fired in Western Research Institute's small pulverized coal combustion facility, which models the operation of large pulverized coal power plants. After we observed the steady-state combustion of the 50/50 blended feed for about two hours, we switched the feed to 100% TorrB™ pulverized torrefied biomass. It performed just as coal, with the exception that a feed rate of about 20% less torrefied biomass than coal was needed to maintain the same furnace temperature. The test burn ran for more than two hours of steady-state operation before being terminated.
The analytical data of our TorrB™ torrefied biomass shows that the sulfur content was 0.03% versus 0.79% for coal on a dry basis; furthermore the mercury concentration in the TorrB™ biomass was below detection. Notably, the furnace operator observed that the slag build up near the burners after this test burn was in the normal range experienced with burns of 100% coal. This letter from Western Research Institute confirms the test burn results.
We believe this is a historic accomplishment, as the conventional wisdom has been that a torrefied biomass blend with coal of more than 25% would result in unacceptable boiler behavior. Advancing the success of the last test burns, this new test burn proves that coal can be replaced completely by TorrB™ torrefied biomass in pulverized coal-fired power plants without any modifications to the power plants.
First Commercial Plant
HM3 Energy has started engineering of its first commerciall torrefied biomass plant. We have been in close contact with biomass feedstock suppliers and have selected Prineville, Oregon for our first commercial plant, slated for completion by early 2013. This plant will produce the thousands of tons of HM3 Energy TorrB™ biomass briquettes necessary for large-scale test burns at coal-fired power plants.
NEWS
NOV 2011: HM3 Energy Northwest Cleantech Open regional finalist, competes in national competition in San Jose. READ MORE
AUGUST 2011: HM3 Energy featured in Biomass Power & Thermal magazine. READ MORE
JUNE 2011: HM3 Energy awarded SBIR-USDA Phase 2 grant, worth $460,000. READ MORE
HM3 Energy receives US Endowment for Forestry and Communities grant, worth $241,000. The award will be used for pilot plant operation and key commercial scale equipment design and fabrication... READ MORE
Successful test burn completed with 100% torrefied biomass in pulverized coal-fired combustion facility proves torrefied biomass can replace coal directly in coal-fired power plants... READ MORE
Torrefied biomass energy can come from a variety of feedstock sources.... READ MORE
Torrefied biomass energy costs compare very favorably with other clean energy forms, such as solar and wind...READ MORE