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Biochar has become incredibly popular in recent years as a means of permanently ‘removing’ carbon (derived from CO2) from the biosphere with lower cost and far less effort than many other technologies (such as Direct Air Capture). It is seen as a potential means of removing significant CO2 from the atmosphere and sequestering it for (at least) hundreds of years. The offsets granted for carefully vetted biochar projects are considered true ‘removals’ offsets with no permanence risks.
Biochar is a porous, carbon-rich material produced by heating biomass (like agricultural waste or wood) in a low-oxygen environment using a process called pyrolysis, typically at temperatures between 300° C and 700° C. Attributes such as porosity, carbon content, ash content, grain size, etc. can be fine-tuned by varying ‘how’ the biochar is made, using different temperatures and processing times, ‘densified’ feedstock, or different kinds of systems ranging from open or closed kilns to various batch or continuous feed pyrolysis chambers to accomplish it. A variety of volatile compounds are released during biomass pyrolysis, and these can be processed from the resulting syngas to produce various bio-oil products or simply combusted to reduce overall emissions. The best pyrolysis chambers have very low emissions, are significantly exothermic during operation, some including the ability to convert ‘waste heat to energy’ to either thermal (ex: hot water) or electric energy.
Clean Earth Innovations recognizes the importance of biochar programs to meeting critical Climate Change goals and has made the commitment to undertake biochar programs on-scale. Our first project is a 60,000 ton/year (woody biomass) biochar processing facility on 61+ acres in northern rural Florida, co-located with an established biomass supplier. Using waste wood chips or logs sourced from nearby sustainably managed and certified forests, our site enjoys access to nearly unlimited additional biomass (through multiple supply sources).
We are building an initial production capability using four (4) high-capacity, latest-generation pyrolysis systems, including remote monitoring capabilities and built-in Organic Rankine Cycle modules for ‘waste heat to power’ electricity production. This will allow us to optimize biochar/offset yields moment-by-moment and will also enable the site to produce most – if not all – of its own power needs. In the event internal power generation exceeds site requirements, a power substation is co-located with the site and is available for grid connection.
The site is being designed with future expansion options in mind – including the ability to install high-capacity pelletizing equipment (broadening feedstock options and enabling us to ship biochar in densified form to better satisfy certain applications).
Our site is being designed with efficiency and productivity as hallmark concepts: it will include a ‘truck dump’ to quickly empty chips (the entire truck is lifted to empty out chips), a heavy-duty truck scale, a robust log chipper (to enable taking logs as biomass, when needed), and a rail spur, giving us immediate access to west and east coast Florida ports and competitive transport options to most of the USA.
