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Feasibility study of biomass gasification for power generation in Northeast India

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Abstract

In India’s Northeast region, only 23.5% of rural households are connected with electricity. To date, only 3 kW comes from biomass gasification in this region. However, this region has plenty of biomass resources. Therefore, electricity generation from locally available biomass through the thermochemical gasification process may be viable in this region where grid-connectivity is not available. This paper presents a techno-economic analysis of biomass gasification for power generation in NE India. An attempt is made to find out the most economical process by comparing different systems, and it is observed that the downdraft gasifier connected with a 100% producer gas engine or dual-fuel engine could be the best option from the economic point of view. Downdraft gasifier connected with 100% producer gas engine with a capacity of 500 kW and 1000 kW can give the Levelized unit cost of electricity (LUCE) as low as $0.05/kWh, which is lower than the existing tariff in NE India comes from hydro- and gas power plants.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Mizoram, Aizawl, Mizoram, 796012, India

    Satyajit Pattanayak & Lalhmingsanga Hauchhum

  2. Energy Research Technology Group, CSIR-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute, Durgapur, West Bengal, 713209, India

    Satyajit Pattanayak & Chanchal Loha

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, Mizoram University, Aizawl, Mizoram, 796004, India

    Lalsangzela Sailo

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  1. Satyajit Pattanayak
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Correspondence to Chanchal Loha.

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Pattanayak, S., Hauchhum, L., Loha, C. et al. Feasibility study of biomass gasification for power generation in Northeast India. Biomass Conv. Bioref. 13, 999–1011 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13399-021-01419-8

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