A phenomenological model of a downdraft biomass gasifier flexible to the feedstock composition and the reactor design

The development of a one-dimensional (1D) phenomenological model for biomass gasification in downdraft reactors is presented in this study; the model was developed with the aim of highlighting the main advantages and limits related to feedstocks that are different from woodchip, such as hydro-char derived from the hydrothermal carbonization of green waste, or a mix of olive pomace and sawdust. An experimental validation of the model is performed. The numerically evaluated temperature evolution along the reactor gasifier is found to be in agreement with locally measured values for all the considered biomasses. The model captures the pressure drop along the reactor axis, despite an underestimation with respect to the performed measurements. The producer gas composition resulting from the numerical model at the exit section is in quite good agreement with gas-chromatograph analyses (12% maximum error for CO and CO2 species), although the model predicts lower methane and hydrogen content in the syngas than the measurements show. Parametric analyses highlight that lower degrees of porosity enhance the pressure drop along the reactor axis, moving the zones characterized by the occurrence of the combustion and gasification phases towards the bottom. An increase in the biomass moisture content is associated with a delayed evolution of the temperature profile. The high energy expenditure in the evaporation phase occurs at the expense of the produced hydrogen and methane in the subsequent phases.