Munro & Associates, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan, a manufacturing and design firm, has been working with Biomass Energy Enhancements LLC (BEE), based in Utah, and U.K.-based Active Energy Group Plc (AEG) to produce and market a new biomass fuel described as a replacement for coal.
The companies say the biomass fuel can be used in traditional coal-fired plants as either a co-mixed fuel with coal or independently, without changing the infrastructure of the plant. In addition, Munro says, current coal-fired plants may be able to reduce pollution emissions by transitioning to the new fuel.
In a news release issued by Munro & Associates, the process is described as one that “explodes” biomass fibers, allowing moisture and salts to be removed.
The companies also say the new process allows biofuels to be generated from materials that would not have been suitable or viable before, such as reclaimed waste wood and diseased and invasive crops or trees. A further benefit, the companies say, is that the final product repels moisture and therefore offers reduced distribution, transportation and storage costs.
“Although Munro has worked on several new technologies over the years, rarely does the company make the leap to actually invest in the technologies as well,” says Sandy Munro, CEO of Munro & Associates. “This process has the potential to revolutionize the industry and we are very proud to be a part of the Coal Switch Team.”
Munro says that the companies worked together to create a highly scalable, mobile and "flexible in the field" process that can be moved anywhere in the world.
“Our primary goal at BEE was to make the unusable usable,” says Chas Fritz, CEO of BEE. “According to the U.S. Department of Energy, over 93 million tons of forestry residues are left to rot each year in the U.S. alone and the global figure is vastly higher. That doesn’t include waste timber from sawmills, construction sites and other industrial uses such as redundant railroad ties. Our unique process converts all of that material into high-energy fuel, benefitting the environment in numerous ways.”
Munro engineers took an original prototype design created by BEE and scaled it up to create the new process/design. Munro says a critical component of the redesign methodology is its proprietary Design Profit software that provides the company with the ability to assess virtually every aspect of the manufacturing process and associated costs.
