Plant Description

Feedstock Metering Bin
The bin, an airtight structure when shut contains a pre designated quantity of feedstock awaiting pickup by the airtight feedstock delivery system.

Airtight Feedstock Delivery System
The feedstock delivery system is airtight and may be a drag chain or auger. It is programmed to continually deliver the designated feedstock to the Powerhearth at a predetermined rate of flow.

Powerhearth
The Powerhearth, a biomass conversion unit, is simplicity itself! It has no moving parts and, through a carefully managed air floe, is capable of easily reaching very high temperatures of twelve hundred fifty to thirteen hundred degrees centigrade.

It is in the presence of these very high temperatures that the process of reduction and gasification takes place. In simple terms, it is this process that converts a solid fuel feedstock such as wood chunks, chips, briquettes, etc. into a very clean, hot, high octane gas.

The gas may be used directly in a furnace or boiler or go through the cleaning and cooling components before being used as fuel for an engine or turbine.

The level of efficiency of the Powerhearth and the conversion process may be observed in the ash quantity. The industry standard for ash content hovers around two percent and some manufacturers are quite proud to produce one percent of ash.

Powerhearth consistently produces one quarter to one half of one percent ash by volume of consumed fuel feedstock. That results in an ash content of five kilograms or less per metric ton of fuel feedstock consumption.

For all that it is capable of producing, Powerhearth is quite small. As an example, a ONE MEGAWATT (1 MWe) Powerhearth has a footprint of about one meter square and stands about two meters high.

The level of efficiency can also be measured in the fuel feedstock ratio of conversion to gas. As an example, a fuel feedstock weighing between 0.8 and 1.25 kilograms will produce an amount of gas sufficient to generate one kilowatt of electricity. The differences in weight lies with the feedstock species and the type of engine fueling: chips, coal, MSW, etc. and dual fuel or gas only (spark ignition).

Cyclonic Gas Cleaner
The cyclonic gas cleaner is an important feature to the Powerhearth and an equally vital part of the conversion process as well, worthy of explanation.

The gas leaves the Powerhearth at a very high rate of speed and we employ the velocity of the gas to clean itself.

Upon leaving the gasifier the gas enters a series of especially engineered tubes that "swirl" the gas at an even greater velocity, creating a "cyclonic" effect. It is by the centrifugal force created by this effect that causes the particulate matter to leave the gas as it swirls through the cleaner. At this point, all but a few microscopic particles have been removed from the gas.

Gas Cooler
The gas cooler employs scientific principles to cool the hot gas to a predetermined temperature acceptable to the engine manufacturer's specifications, thus guaranteeing the highest performance and efficiency of the designated engine alternator(s).

Powerhearth Automation and Management System (PAMS)
The Powerhearth Management System enables one to monitor every phase of the gasification process and the entire power plant from the control booth, a cellular phone or the internet. The Powerhearth Management System is also responsible for the system automation.

An important point to note is that, in spite of the system automation, any process can be easily overridden and easily operated in the normal or manual operation. At any time the entire system can be overridden and operated manually.

The system is equipped with a sensor array, facilitating either mode of operation.

Note: Regardless the mode of operation, it is recommended that a walkabout inspection be performed every ten to twelve hours of operation.

Control Booth
The Powerhearth Management System is best observed from the control panel or control room where everything comes together. From a seat in the control room one can observe all of the displays that indicate all that is happening in the power plant. Also found in the control room is a data storage unit, a data recorder and the necessary alarms and automation equipment.

Engine Alternator (Read More about I Power Engines)
This is where the action is!

Though the gas created by Powerhearth can run any engine in the world, we prefer to fuel especially manufactured engines. They are, after all, manufactured for our gas.

We are very pleased to provide additional information about these engines and will gladly do so. Please contact us at Engines@Powerhearth.com and tell us of your exact requirements. Ask us about the "I Power" engine.

Boiler, Furnace, Turbine, etc.
Gas for these applications is fed directly to the burners that we build or modify for our high calorific value gas.
The Powerhearth can be used just for electricity. It can be used only to fire a boiler or furnace or whatever and is commonly used to do both, simultaneously. This is known as cogeneration and is easily managed by Powerhearth as its specialty.