[Gasification] Biochar - Carbon Negative?

Thu Apr 21 09:51:20 CDT 2016

Can someone enlighten us all as to 1) the Earths calcium and magnesium carbonate cycles and 2) any other significant carbon cycles in proportion. I know just enough to be dangerous and want it straight.

Dan Dimiduk 

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

Tom Miles <tmiles at trmiles.com> wrote:

International Biochar Initiative (IBI) spent several years developing a protocol for determining how to measure the forms of carbon and how to determine what carbon could be claimed for sequestration. The feedstock must be sustainable. The biochar must be safe (non-toxic). And only the stable portion of the char is counted. Details can be found on the IBI website. at www.biochar-international.org <http://www.biochar-international.org>    

The protocol was adopted last year (2015) by the California Association of Air Pollution Control Officers (CAPCOA) so it applies throughout California. http://www.ghgrx.org/ See the Biochar Production Project Reporting (Placer County APCD and ACR).   

The protocol was not adopted by the American Carbon Registry. I understand that the process is as much political as it is scientific and that the scientific premise of the proposed protocol is thought to be sound. 

The process took several years (2008-2015) and involved committees of scientists from around the world. It was developed with a large grant from a philanthropic organization. IBI has been unsuccessful at finding similar sources of funding to continue the work. (Philanthropic funding for climate change is now 20% of what It was in 2008.) Anyone with access to sources of funding, or ideas for funding, should contact IBI at info at biochar-international.org <mailto:info at biochar-international.org>  

Donate to IBI so that it can continue to be an international center for biochar information and networking. http://www.biochar-international.org/ 

Kind regards,

Tom Miles

IBI Board member

From: Gasification [mailto:gasification-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Gerald Kutney
Sent: Wednesday, April 20, 2016 3:39 AM
To: Discussion of biomass pyrolysis and gasification <gasification at lists.bioenergylists.org>
Subject: Re: [Gasification] Biochar - Carbon Negative?

While biomass is carbon neutral in principle, its use seldom is as the collection and processing of it is not.  The claim of carbon neutrality in the use of biomass has opened the industry to valid criticism as over-stating its benefits.  Bioenergy and biofuels are better than fossil fuels, but carbon neutrality is a hyperbole, in my opinion.

And while biochar is carbon negative in principle, not all of it is fixed and some appears to be vulnerable to biological activity.  Proving the degree of sequestration is challenging, and few jurisdictions have officially accepted this aspect of biochar.  

That said, bioenergy, biofuels and biochar are all (usually) beneficial to fight climate change (compared to fossil fuels), but we should be careful not to overstate the degree that this takes place.

Gerald Kutney, Ph.D.

Managing Director

Sixth Element Sustainable Management

“Innovation can move the world”

www.6esm.com <http://www.6esm.com>  (613) 425-0619

From: Gasification <gasification-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org <mailto:gasification-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org> > on behalf of Anand Karve <adkarve at gmail.com <mailto:adkarve at gmail.com> >
Reply-To: Discussion of biomass pyrolysis and gasification <gasification at lists.bioenergylists.org <mailto:gasification at lists.bioenergylists.org> >
Date: Wednesday, April 20, 2016 at 4:43 AM
To: Discussion of biomass pyrolysis and gasification <gasification at lists.bioenergylists.org <mailto:gasification at lists.bioenergylists.org> >
Subject: Re: [Gasification] Biochar - Carbon Negative?

Dear Doug,

biomass is formed by the process of photosynthesis. Burning biomass is considered to be carbon neutral, because the carbon dioxide produced in this process was originally already in the atmosphere before it got sequestered in plants by photosynthesis. After being released into the atmosphere by burning, it would be sequestered again in plants by photosynthesis. Therefore, the carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere is zero. if any of the biomass is converted into char and buried into the soil, it creates a negative carbon dioxide balance, irrespective of the proportion of char going into the soil.

Yours

A.D.Karve

***
Dr. A.D. Karve

Chairman, Samuchit Enviro Tech Pvt Ltd ( <http://www.samuchit.com> www.samuchit.com)

Trustee & Founder President, Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI)

On Wed, Apr 20, 2016 at 11:24 AM, Doug Williams < <mailto:doug.williams.nz at gmail.com> doug.williams.nz at gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Mark,

You ask:
> After gasification, approximately 5% of the woody biomass remains a biochar
> which sequesters carbon, hence a 'carbon negative' claim can be made.

Qualify which type of gasification, because 5% would only apply to a
high performance gas making system. If however it was a pyrolysing char
making system, about 1/3rd of the fuel weight would be char, but two
thirds would be consumed by combustion to become a CO2 emission. So not
honestly carbon negative in my opinion (other than replacing fossil
carbon). Restoration of the environmental CO2 balance would be a tricky
calculation.

> Alternatively, if the woody waste is left to rot in situ, the carbon
> sequestration is 0% (all carbon is released/transformed into CO2 and other
> gasses).

That fits the normal explanations, we all go back to CO2 and CH4 if
left to rot(:-)

> True?

Truth can be very elastic sided when claims are made about
gasification, so take care to confirm all calculations regarding the
process in question.There is a lot of attention paid to carbon credits
as an intensive to cheat in the Souther Hemisphere, and one should be
careful if included in any proposals.

Doug Williams,
Fluidyne.

_______________________________________________
Gasification mailing list

to Send a Message to the list, use the email address
 <mailto:Gasification at bioenergylists.org> Gasification at bioenergylists.org

to UNSUBSCRIBE or Change your List Settings use the web page
 <http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/gasification_lists.bioenergylists.org> http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/gasification_lists.bioenergylists.org

for more Gasifiers,  News and Information see our web site:
 <http://gasifiers.bioenergylists.org/> http://gasifiers.bioenergylists.org/

_______________________________________________ Gasification mailing list to Send a Message to the list, use the email address  <mailto:Gasification at bioenergylists.org> Gasification at bioenergylists.org to UNSUBSCRIBE or Change your List Settings use the web page  <http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/gasification_lists.bioenergylists.org> http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/gasification_lists.bioenergylists.org for more Gasifiers, News and Information see our web site:  <http://gasifiers.bioenergylists.org/> http://gasifiers.bioenergylists.org/ 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.bioenergylists.org/pipermail/gasification_lists.bioenergylists.org/attachments/20160421/e382088f/attachment.html>