The Bioenergy & Biofuels LAB is an analytical and experimental laboratory equipped to test thermochemical and biochemical processes for biomass conversion and biofuels production as well as to analyze samples of woody biomass, other solid fuels, wet biomass, and process by-products (e.g., char) for a variety of applications. Several analytical equipments and reactors are available for the purpose.
Moreover, process simulations are performed using thermodynamic, kinetic and fluid dynamics models based on the integration between different tools that allow focusing on different degrees of detail that are part of a process.
The main investigated processes are
- thermochemical processes, such as gasification and pyrolysis, but also more traditional ones such as combustion,
- innovative valorization pathways such as hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL),
- syngas upgrading routes such as reforming for hydrogen production, Fischer-Tropsch synthesis and fermentation processes for biomethane or biopolymers production.
The research is carried out at different process scales, ranging
- from the micro-scale studied in controlled lab conditions,
- to pilot-scale in which systems are developed to better understand the dynamics of the processes,
- and also to the real industrial scale studied through the on-site monitoring of plants in actual operation.
The Bioenergy & Biofuels LAB is part of the Faculty of Engineering at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano. It is also one of the laboratories at the NOI Techpark of Bolzano.
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