Page 73 - North American Clean Energy January February 2014

Pellets also aren’t the primary purpose of

forestry. In fact, wood pellets are merely an
afterthought. he economics of US forestry
practice favors the growth of large trees
to produce high-value products, includ-

ing lumber for homes or furniture—and
not the low-value wood iber that can be
pressed into pellets. he iber used for

bioenergy is simply a byproduct of those
higher value product industries.
American pellet producers rely on low- Biosynthetic sugar Vertical turbine Biomass receiving
cost, low-quality iber, using parts of trees process
pumps
systems

left behind or unsuitable for the pulp, pa- Proterro, currently the only biofeedstock KSB ofers a wide selection of Robert White Industries, Inc. (RWI)
per, or lumber markets.
company that makes sugar instead of vertical turbine pumps, including announces the development of new
Any argument that more US forestland is extracting it from crops or deconstructing the large capacity SEZ series of biomass receiving systems, designed
being depleted for wood pellet production cellulosic materials, has been issued
turbine casing pumps. Vertical for receiving biomass discharged from

is simply unfounded. What is correct is that a United States method patent,
turbine pumps, also known as standard or live-loor semi trailers.
demand for wood pellets is growing, along protecting its unique biosynthetic borehole or well pumps, typically he systems are created to properly
with managed US forests. In a recent letter sugar-producing process that combines are cylindrical in shape, with deal with the environmental, safety,
to UK regulators, Georgia Governor Nathan transgenic cyanobacteria with a robust their intake nozzle and impellers and the material-handling challenges

Deal wrote, “Less than one-tenth of one photobioreactor. It’s the latest step toward located at the lower end of a long presented by biomass unloading,
percent of southern US forest inventory commercialization of a process that tubular casing with a discharge processing, and storage. hey better
would be afected,” assuming European de- unleashes the economic value of biofuels nozzle located near the top. hey prepare biomass for storage by
mand meets projections through to 2020.
and biobased chemicals for industry are easy to install in a crowded smoothing biomass surges at the

Moreover, research shows that young partners.
plant or a deep well because of trailer discharge, metering product
trees absorb carbon at a faster rate than Using only CO2, sunlight and water, their simple, compact shape.
into the handling system, sizing
older trees. he practice of rotational har- Proterro’s process dramatically lowers
he SEZ tubular casing pumps product to speciication, and removing
vesting means there’s a continual cycle of the cost of sugar production, yields a are KSB’s largest vertical turbine tramp metal prior to storage. RWI’s

new growth. And, interestingly, trees tend fermentation-ready sucrose stream, and pumps. hey’re used in power systems are designed to work with
to grow faster in the southeastern United has proven to be 30 times more productive plant condenser systems and green or dry wood products, corncobs,
States, meaning the beneits from these on an acreage basis than sugar cane. large-scale desalination facilities corn stover, and other types of
carbon powerhouses are realized much Proterro is currently commissioning a where the requirement is to lift biomass material.

faster.
pilot plant in Florida, and has completed a very large volumes of water (up Robert White Industries, Inc.
preliminary design, layout, and associated to 18 m3/sec or 285,300 gpm) www.rwii.net
The economy
cost estimate for a demonstration-scale moderate distances.
As the wood pellet industry grows, so plant.
KSB Pumps Inc | www.ksb.ca
does it impact on local job markets and Proterro | www.proterro.com
state economies. Overall, the forestry in-
dustry is responsible for adding billions of

dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs
to the US economy, including in many
states hit hard by the recession—and,
particularly, in the southeast where trees

tend to grow the quickest. he developing
pellet industry is, therefore, also respon-
sible for creating new and much-needed
jobs in forestry, production, and shipping.

As European utilities have learned, it’s
relatively inexpensive to convert existing
coal furnaces to use industrial wood pel-
lets. his innovation enables electricity

producers to decrease reliance on coal and
reduce carbon emissions without incur-
ring the massive capital costs that come
with the construction of new plants.

he beneits of wood pellet production
seem clear: less waste, fewer emissions,
more jobs, and stronger forests. Not to
mention, less dependence on fossil fuels

and a cleaner source of heat and energy
production. It’s time to see the forest for
the trees.

Seth Ginther is the executive director
for the United States Industrial Pellet
Association.

United States Industrial Pellet
Association
www.theusipa.org

North American Clean Energy 73