A small-scale power generation system based on biomass direct chemical looping process with organic rankine cycle

Abstract Biomass is one of the most promising renewable energy sources for power generation. Recently, there is increase interest in utilization of chemical looping process for converting biomass into energy based on combined heat and power (CHP) concept. In this study, the possibility of combining biomass direct chemical looping (BDCLC) process with the organic Rankine cycle for the waste heat recovery (ORC-WHR) in a small-scale power generation system is investigated. The effects of various working fluids in the ORC-WHR unit and operating pressure of BDCLC unit on the performance of system are analyzed. It is found that 191.2 kWe can be generated from 1000 kWth biomass input, in which the expansion-compression process in the BDCLC unit contributes 170.2 kWe and the ORC-WHR unit contributes the other 21.0 kWe for the system with an efficiency of 19.1% for the overall system and an ORC-WHR efficiency of 19.9 % when benzene is used as the working fluid. It is expected to provide a more promising small-scale biomass-based power generation system.