Spin-off of the UCL created in 2001, Xylowatt has been constantly developing its collaboration with its original laboratory. Several research studies have been led jointly, and among these the development of a gasification technology for the countries of the South.

Live without electricity ?

For us Westerners, it is no longer conceivable to live without electricity. However, for over two billion people electricity remains an inaccessible energy: only 5% of rural Africa has electricity, and in India, now a world industrial power, over 580 million people still live without electricity.

Insufficient energy resources for the planet ?

The majority of global electricity is produced from fossil fuels (66%, with the other sources being principally nuclear energy and hydraulic energy), energies which are unequally distributed over the planet and for which the global demand is making the resources barely accessible economically to the poorer countries. Renewable energies, on the other hand, are better distributed. The countries of the South are even, from this point of view, in a better position. The issue consequently consists of converting these renewable resources into electricity. We think immediately of the use of direct solar radiation and photovoltaic cells. Unfortunately, the complexity of the technology, its cost, its partial phase difference in relation to needs, and the difficulty in storing the electricity makes it also barely accessible to the countries of the South. The biggest investments are currently being made in the countries of the OECD.

There is another solar detector, admittedly 20 times less effective than photovoltaic cells, but the cost of which has no comparison: biomass. Through photosynthesis, it converts the solar energy into chemical energy (principally in the form of C-H bonds). Currently 13% of our global energy needs are met through biomass (IEA – Key world energy statistics - 2008) and this consumption only represents around 0.5% of the annual mass of biomass produced. Exploited efficiently and sustainably, biomass can widely contribute to meeting the energy needs of the countries of the South.

Production of electricity through gasification of biomass

For the production of electricity on a small and medium scale (10 kWe -> 10 MWe), gasification is particularly interesting. Coupled with an internal combustion engine, a gas producer makes it possible to convert the biomass (wood, agricultural residues, etc.) into electricity, with a yield of around 25% and even from the very low powers. No other line cellulose biomass conversion technology makes it possible to achieve such yields at these levels of power. Gasification is therefore particularly suitable for regions with a low level of electrification. Since the 1980s, several programmes have been set up by national governments (Philippines, India, Brazil, …) and international institutions (WB, FAO, PNUD, …), unfortunately with little success. The lack of maturity of the technology, its poor integration into the rural environment, and the complexity of the maintenance engendered by the tar (heavy breakdown products of the wood present in the gas) are the principal causes of this. The tar is in effect the “bête noire” of the gasification. It is particularly difficult to extract from the gas; it does not permit easy handling; it can contain carcinogenic substances; and it has a cost for the environment. Furthermore, if it is not eliminated before its introduction into the engine, it significantly reduces its life expectancy.

NOTAR technology

The issue of tar is well known to Xylowatt (xW). While the elimination of the tar to obtain clean gas and avoid any engine problem has been well controlled since the initial years of Xylowatt’s activity, on the other hand its associated management and maintenance have caused many setbacks. In 2005 Xylowatt, with the scientific support of the UCL TERM unit, launched a huge R&D programme with the aim of destroying the tar at the heart of the gas producer itself. The NOTAR® programme required an investment of 1.5 million EUR, a little under half of which has been granted in the form of a repayable advance by the Walloon Region (DGTRE). The results obtained today are at the height of the ambitions: the tar content in the gas upon leaving the gasification reactor has been reduced by a factor of 40, from 0.2% to less than 50ppm, and the various maintenance operations have had their frequency reduced by a factor of 10 or more! This successful research programme has made Xylowatt one of the worldwide leaders in its field.

A gasification technology for the South

Developing a gasification technology adapted to the technical and economic, social and environmental conditions of the countries of the South is a deeply anchored desire at the UCL TERM unit (Prof. J. Martin made his first “African missions” in the nineteen eighties) and was one of the motivations for the creation of Xylowatt (xW’s Business Plan provided for the development of activities in the countries of the South from its 5^th year).

Now, boasting the results of the Notar programme and its network of relations with various participants in the South, xW has decided to activate its strategy for the countries of the South by developing an action programme divided into three parts:

Development of a NOTARBATCH® gas producer, in collaboration with the TERM unit, the principal specifications of which are (i) satisfaction of the primary needs for electrical energy of the populations and small industries of the South (Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America); (ii) power between 10 and 200 kWe; (iii) simplicity and reliability of operation; (iv) low investment cost; (v) tar content below 100ppm; (vi) safety of operation and no nuisance for health or the environment. From these constraints, an innovative concept has been developed and the first prototype will be constructed at the UCL shortly.
Exploration and analysis of the Indian market: benefiting from a subsidy from the “Prince Albert Fund” and the support of the Indian subsidiary of Hamon (shareholder of xW), a sales engineer will explore and prepare the Indian market for Xylowatt from October 2008.
Assembly of pilot projects: Xylowatt is putting together pilot projects in the countries of the South in order to confront its technology with the reality of the countries of the South, evolve it, and identify the factors of integration and success. Projects have been submitted or are being prepared for Africa, Brazil and Southeast Asia in synergy with the Belgian (CTB) and international (UE, WB) institutional cooperation bodies, NGOs and research centres. These projects integrate the technical, economic and social dimensions. Training is an important subject.

Involvement of partners of the South

In addition to the fundamental and applied research in the field of biomass (pyrolysis, combustion, leaks in the granular porous environments, etc.), the TERM unit is working with some countries of the South in order to recycle the local biomass resources into energy. As an example, two European projects (BEPITA and BEPINET) have made it possible to associate the TERM unit with an international dynamic of energy recycling of resources in West Africa (principally Burkina Faso and Cameroon) and in Brazil. These programmes include not only University interactions, but also awareness training targeted at a wider public. Furthermore, the TERM unit is participating in the 2008-2012 five-year programme of institutional university cooperation with the University of Kinshasa in the field of energy (financed by the CUD, Commission Universitaire pour le Développement). Several doctoral degrees will be undertaken in partnership, some of which will relate to NOTARBATCH® technology.

H. Jeanmart - Professeur, unité de Thermodynamique de l’UCL

F. Bourgois - Fondateur, Responsable innovation et développement projets chez XYLOWATT