Wood Pellet Venture To 'Torrefy' Biofuel

woodworkingnetwork.com
By Bill Esler 12/02/2011 3:13:00 PM

WASHINGTON, DC -- Oil giant ConocoPhillips and Enviva, a processor or wood and other biomass fuels, formed a joint venture to operate a new company, ECo Biomass Technologies, which will bring torrefied wood fuels to market.

The torrefaction process involves superheating wood in a controlled process, to create a uniform, water-repellant, dense fuel akin to coal. But sourced from wood it is considered to have a superior environmental profile compared with fossil fuels.

Torrefied fuel is said to burn cleanly, and be mixed and stoired with coal for power generation, diluting negative envinronmental imacts of the coal.

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