Biomass Handling - Biomass Gasification, Pyrolysis and Torrefaction - page 408

Fuel conveyor
system

Gasification
plant

Fuel storage silos

Unloading
station

Screenin g

FIGURE 12.2 Plant layout for biomass gasification. Fuel received by trucks are cleaned of for-
eign materials before it is stored in silos.

except for small plants. A front loader is used for manual unloading. This is
why large plants use truck hoisters, wagon tipplers, or bottom-discharge
wagons. Figure 12.3 shows a typical system where a truck hoister unloads
the biomass. The truck drives onto the hoist platform or unloading bay where
it is clamped down. The hoister tilts to a sharp angle, allowing the entire
load to drop into the receiving chute under gravity. This method is fast and
economical.
A bottom-discharge wagon may be used for rail cars. The wagon drops
its load into a large bin located below the rail. An alternative is a standard
open-top wagon and a tippler to rotate it 180 to empty its contents into a
bin underneath. Such units are procured from the suppliers of various bulk
material-handling equipment. Their capacities depend on a number of fac-
tors, including plant throughput and frequency of truck and/or rail arrival.
Climate and local regulations could impact the design of the receiving
system. For example, some places allow large trucks to enter during