Techno-Economic Feasibility of Steam and Electric Power Generation from the Gasification of Several Biomass in a Sugarcane Mill.

The present work investigated the techno-economic feasibility of using gasification as an alternative to direct combustion to generate steam and electric power generation in a sugarcane mill using different types of solid biofuels. Two cogeneration scenarios were analyzed: scenario 1 (S1), using a boiler and steam turbines only, while scenario 2 (S2) uses gas and steam turbines. It was found that for a solid biofuel cost of 8 US $/ton, the economic results between types of biomass are similar, but at a higher solid biofuel cost, the cost of energy production is lower in S2 when compared to S1. The cost of generated power in S1 using sugarcane bagasse (0.091 US $/kWh) is higher than the cost considered for grid electricity (0.077 US$/kWh), while in S2 is lower (0.063 US$/kWh); therefore, electricity might be exported to the grid at a competitive price in S2. In both scenarios, the greatest contribution to the total annual costs comes from the investment required by about 83%. In the case of the other biofuels, such as cladodes, oil brunches, and coffee pulp, the cost obtained is less than 0.077 US$/kWh for all cases in both scenarios, except for the tender cladodes in S1, mainly due to its higher moisture content. The systems studied in S2 using oil palm empty brunches as complementary solid biofuel in the sugar mill are recommended for year-round bioenergy production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]