The Impact of Bark Content of Wood Biomass on Biofuel Properties

Woody biomass is an abundant, renewable energy source. Forest residue is the fraction remaining after harvest and the outtake of wood timber, including tree tops and bark. Compared with the wood portion, bark has a wide variation of ash content. Wood usually has a relatively low ash content, while bark has considerably higher ash content, which may generate clinker in the furnace and thereby tends to create more demand for maintenance. High ash content also generates more particulate emissions. Different types of bark were studied in the present work in terms of their effect on energy content, moisture, and ash content. The ash content of three different samples (Norway spruce, birch, and European beech) were measured at 550 and 815 °C. The results showed the impact of bark content on all parameters, in particular the calorific value and ash content. The ash content increased with increasing bark content. The addition of 1% bark content resulted in increases of ash content in the range 0.033 to 0.044%.