Conceptual Design Study of a Coffee Stem Gasification Scheme in the Context of a Biorefinery
Camilo Andrés Guerrero-Martin,
Leyder Alejandro Prieto-Moreno,
Jaime Eduardo Arturo-Calvache,
Stefanny Camacho-Galindo,
Laura Estefanía Guerrero-Martin,
William Alberto Guerrero,
Oswaldo Hideo Ando Junior,
John Carlos Arevalo,
Elizabete Fernandes Lucas
Affiliations
Camilo Andrés Guerrero-Martin
Energy and Sea Research Group (Grupo de Pesquisa em Energia e Mar), Universidade Federal do Pará, Campus Universitário de Salinópolis, Salinópolis 68721-000, PA, Brazil
Leyder Alejandro Prieto-Moreno
Grupo de Procesos Sostenibles, Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Ambiental, Universidad de América, EcoCampus de los Cerros, Avda Circunvarlar No. 20-53, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
Jaime Eduardo Arturo-Calvache
Grupo de Procesos Sostenibles, Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Ambiental, Universidad de América, EcoCampus de los Cerros, Avda Circunvarlar No. 20-53, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
Stefanny Camacho-Galindo
Facultad de Ingeniería, Fundación de Educación Superior San José—Usanjose, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
Laura Estefanía Guerrero-Martin
Facultad de Ingeniería, Fundación de Educación Superior San José—Usanjose, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
William Alberto Guerrero
Facultad de Ingeniería, Fundación de Educación Superior San José—Usanjose, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
Oswaldo Hideo Ando Junior
Academic Unit of Cabo de Santo Agostinho (UACSA), Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Cabo de Santo Agostinho 54518-430, PE, Brazil
John Carlos Arevalo
Facultad de Ingeniería, Fundación de Educación Superior San José—Usanjose, Bogotá 110311, Colombia
Elizabete Fernandes Lucas
Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Program/COPPE/LADPOL, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Av. Horácio Macedo, 2030, Bloco F, Rio de Janeiro 21941-598, RJ, Brazil
A conceptual design of coffee stem biomass gasification was developed using the Aspen Plus process simulator, which was analyzed based on energy criteria such as the lower heating value of the produced synthesis gas and cold gas efficiency. The results yielded a lower heating value of 5.07 kJ/MJ, with a cold gas efficiency of 77.45% and a yield of 2.75 kg gas/kg biomass, all operating under optimal conditions with studied parameters including an air-to-biomass ratio between 1.8 and 2.5, gasifying agent temperature of 260 °C, and biomass moisture content below 10%. A sensitivity analysis was conducted on the formation of the most important compounds for synthesis gas quality (H2, CO, CO2, H2O, CH4). This involved understanding the reactions occurring throughout the gasification reactor and evaluating process parameters such as feed moisture content, gasification section temperature, and the ratio between feed and gasifying agent flows to optimize the process with the aim of improving product quality and reducing residue formation. The simulation scheme was validated against experimental data, yielding results consistent with reality. This contributed valuable information towards process optimization for projects targeting the Colombian coffee sector, paving the way for future gasifier designs tailored to the quantity of raw material to be processed.