Issues

Wood Heat in America

“Consumers increasingly want energy that is renewable, clean, and affordable from solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, and biomass sources (1) [for references, please click the above link to the full article]. One of the simplest and oldest of renewables is direct combustion of wood (2, 3). Wood supplied more than fossil fuels in the United States until the 1880s, when coal superseded wood. This transition occurred earlier in Europe, but today, thanks to regrowth of forests and improved technologies, advanced wood combustion (AWC) is being deployed throughout Europe, supplying heat, cooling, and power and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions (4). We argue that the European experience can guide successful implementation of community-based AWC in many regions of the United States.

Long important in Scandinavia, over that last two decades, AWC has grown in its contribution to energy use of France, Germany, and central and eastern Europe. More than 1000 AWC facilities have been constructed in Austria (5), nearly all local community-based; more than 100 combine heat and electric power. Most serve towns, portions of cities, industrial complexes, and public institutions, and nearly all are 0.1 to 10 MW (thermal). The facilities emit remarkably low quantities of air pollutants, including greenhouse gases, and have thermal efficiencies across the system approaching 90% (6). A high-efficiency wood-burning plant was recently opened in Simmering-Vienna with total thermal capacity of 65MW, delivering electricity to the grid and heat to the city’s district energy system (7).

Whether a plant of this size can be sustainably fueled is an open question. However, Europe’s thousands of new community-scale AWC facilities clearly demonstrate that, with public backing, AWC can be rapidly implemented, can reduce oil imports and greenhouse gas emissions, and can increase energy security with wood drawn from local woodsheds. AWC can also help communities transition to other renewable energies.”

“European technical advances in wood-energy development include automated control over combustion and air pollution. For example, Austria’s 100 AWC facilities emit minimal amounts of sulfur oxides, mercury and other metals, particulates, and carbon monoxide (5-7, 14). Minimal pollutant emissions result from high-quality combustion control (15, 16) an from wood’s low pollutant content compared to that of fossil fuels. Critical activities to facilitate adoption of reliable wood-based technologies include training of plumbers, steamfitters, and electricians (8) and adaptation of international standards for equipment specifications, operation, pollution control, and safety.

Wood-energy economics are generally more favorable in North America than in Europe (14), and it is ironic that AWC was initiated in Europe (17,18).”

Source: Richter, D., Jenkins, D., Karakash, J., Knight, J., McCreery, L., & Nemestothy, K. “Resource policy: wood energy in America.” Science. 2009. Vol. 323 (5920). Pp. 1432-1433.