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■ table of contents

www.woodbioenergymag.com

RAW MATERIALS PROCESSING From The Woods To The Wood Yard

12 PINNACLE ALICEVILLE Teaming with Westervelt, Two Rivers

PRODUCT NEWS Biomass Steam Boiler For Olive Marc

20 WOOD BIO PART TWO Atlanta Conference Keeps On Giving

Cover Photography:

IN THE NEWS Enviva Puts It In Writing

26 CONVEYOR CONSIDERATIONS Underestimate It And You’ll Pay For It

Pinnacle Renewable Energy has taken its industrial wood pellets production expertise into the Southeast U.S., and more specifically, Alabama, with one plant running and another one on the way. (Jessica Johnson photo)

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table of contents ■

advertising index Advertiser Index is a free service for advertisers and readers. The publisher assumes no liability for errors or omissions.

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Baker Rullman Manufacturing

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Bandit Industries

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Biomass Engineering & Equipment

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Mid-South Engineering

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Peterson Pacific

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Precision-Husky

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Editor-in-Chief ■ Rich Donnell Senior Editor ■ Dan Shell Senior Associate Editor ■ David Abbott Senior Associate Editor ■ Jessica Johnson Associate Editor ■ Patrick Dunning

Process & Storage Solutions

866.354.7277

Progress Industries

205.655.8875

Rawlings Manufacturing

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Publisher/Editor Emeritus ■ David (DK) Knight

Schaeffer Oil

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Art Director/Production Manager ■ Cindy Segrest Ad Production Coordinator ■ Patti Campbell Circulation Director ■ Rhonda Thomas Online Content/Marketing ■ Jacqlyn Kirkland

Stela Laxhuber

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Vecoplan

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Vermeer Manufacturing

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Wood Bioenergy (ISSN 1947-5306) is published six times annually by Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc., 225 Hanrick St., Montgomery, AL 36104. Wood Bioenergy is free to qualified readers in the United States, including owners, managers, supervisors and other key personnel. All non-qualified U.S. subscriptions are $50 per year, Canadian subscriptions are $60 and foreign subscription are $95 per year (U.S. funds). Subscriber Inquiries and Back Issue Orders—TOLL-FREE: 800.669.5613. Fax 888.611.4525. Subscribe or renew online: www.woodbioenergymagazine.com and click on the “Subscribe” button. When requesting change of address, please specify both old and new. Periodicals postage paid at Montgomery, Ala. and at additional mailing offices.

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■ from the editors

Not Seeing The Forest

EPA Bails On Biomass Y

ears ago when it was introduced, the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was quickly challenged in court on several fronts, the biggest being that the plan had over-reached by attempting to regulate energy policy through the Clean Air Act as opposed to sticking with environmental issues. Yet now, with the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) Rule from the Trump Administration being finalized to replace the CPP, rule-makers at the EPA have again wandered off course, this time ignoring the benefits of biomass in favor of emphasizing coal technology improvements in the pursuit of lower greenhouse gas emissions. Scott Osbourn, principal with Trinity Consultants, covered the impact of the new rule during a presentation at the Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo in Atlanta in March. The biggest difference between the two plans when it comes to biomass, he said, is the CPP only considers “inside the fence” systems and technologies that can be improved upon at a given facility, not any benefits that can be gained by using alternate fuel sources or closing facilities to shift capacity and feedstock. A key term EPA uses is the best system of emission reduction (BSER), which gives operators guidance on how to best meet emissions reduction goals. However, benefits derived from biomass conversions or co-firing such as sustainability and carbon sequestration from replanting aren’t even considered. The new ACE rule notes that “While biomass itself can be considered a carbon-neutral fuel due to its role in the natural carbon cycle, biomass combustion emits more CO2 per BTU than fossil fuels, thereby increasing the CO2 emission rate at the source.” According to the new ACE rule, recognizing the benefits of biomass for its sustainability and carbon sequestration characteristics “relies on accounting for activities not applied at and largely not under the control of that source…including consideration of terrestrial carbon effects during biomass fuel growth.” Then, as if to underline its commitment to coal, Section 111 also says states can’t rely on emission averag-

ing or trading among affected coal-fired units at the same or different plants and no credits can be given for reductions achieved through increased utilization of renewable energy or gas-fired generation. While the EPA should make every effort to identify and promote emissions-reducing coal power production technologies, ignoring the benefits of biomass is incredibly shortsighted. This is especially true considering that biomass and industrial pellets fit so well into current coal-firing power plant infrastructure when it comes to co-firing or replacing aging coal power facilities. Like coal, biomass and pellets are true baseload power sources that can turn turbines when the wind doesn’t blow or the sun doesn’t shine. Dr. William Strauss of FutureMetrics in Maine has spoken and written extensively about the important role biomass can play in emissions reduction and transitioning to more renewable energy sources. In addition to the carbon accounting benefits of biomass and pellets, there’s also the good fit with existing material handling and firing systems at coal power plants, enabling operators to extend facility life with new fuel sources. By concerning itself only with “inside the fence” technologies, the new ACE rule misses a chance to include renewable fuel when delivering “outside the fence” environmental benefits.

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■ in the news Enviva Reveals 2020 Implementation Plans Enviva, the world’s largest producer of industrial wood pellets, published its 2020 Implementation Plans, a detailed proposal of new goals and initiatives to continue to deliver on the company’s commitment to responsible and sustainable wood sourcing. Enviva sources its wood pursuant to its global Responsible Sourcing Policy (RSP)— its standing environmental pledge that ensures the company’s wood is sourced according to its strict environmental standards. The 2020 Implementation Plans define Enviva’s set of measurable goals for this year in three sections: sustainable forestry standards, verification and transparency, and conservation leadership across the U.S. Southeast, where the company owns and operates wood pellet production plants. Enviva exports its wood pellets to power and heat generators primarily in the United Kingdom, Europe and Japan, enabling them to replace coal with renewable fuel and to reduce their lifetime carbon footprint by about 85%. “In today’s challenging pandemic environment, we continue to focus on our mission to improve environmental outcomes for forests and people and to mitigate climate change,” says Dr. Jennifer Jenkins, Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Enviva. “Our 2020 goals provide a measurable and important step to hold us accountable for our commitment to improving forest ecosystems through collaborative work including conservation and restoration, as well as with our own sustainable sourcing practices.” In 2020, Enviva plans to publish its first Corporate Sustainability Report describing how the company works to deliver on its mission to displace coal, grow more trees and fight climate change, its current environmental impact and sustainability practices and its goals for continuous improvement in sustainability of its business in the long-term.

In addition, over the course of 2020, Enviva plans to add 30,000 acres to the American Tree Farm System (ATFS) and/or Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified land base, assisting private forest landowners in its sourcing region with writing sustainable land management plans to keep family forests healthy and productive for ecosystem services like wildlife, clean water and wood supply. Enviva will also strengthen its existing partnership with The Longleaf Alliance to actively seek longleaf restoration through its wood sourcing on private and public lands in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Florida, Virginia and the Carolinas. Longleaf forests are one of the most important and biologically diverse ecosystems in the U.S. Southeast, and because many such forests need thinning, appropriate biomass removals are a critical step in the longleaf restoration process and for wildlife habitat improvement. This year Enviva will also assist in the conservation of 3,500+ acres of bottomland hardwood (BLHW) forests to meet Enviva’s 10-year goal of conserving 35,000 acres of BLHW forests by 2030. Bottomland hardwoods are critical to supporting biodiversity, community resiliency, outdoor recreation and clean water and also act as a buffer to infrastructure during storms.

ENCE Teams Up With SENER Again The new ENCE low-emission, 50 MW renewable biomass energy plant was opened in Puertollano (Ciudad Real), Spain—developed as a turnkey project by the engineering company SENER Engineering. The event was led by the President of the Board of Castilla-La Mancha, Emiliano García-Page, and was attended by the Mayor of Puertollano, Isabel Rodríguez García, as well as by the CEO of ENCE, Ignacio Colmenares, and its Honorary CEO, Juan Luis Arregui. Representing SENER were

the Group’s CEO, Jorge Unda, the General Manager of SENER Engineering, Jorge Sendagorta Cudós, among others. The speeches remarked how this renewable biomass energy plant provides an example of a just energy transition that contributes very positively to the environment. Also significant is the large number of direct, indirect and induced jobs it has created (nearly 27 jobs per installed MW). It will produce an estimated 325,000 MWh/year, enough to supply the energy needs of more than 60,000 people. It will do so by consuming some 238,000 tons of biomass a year, including woody biomass, olive mill waste, vine shoots, olive leaves and agricultural waste. The Puertollano facility is the third turnkey or EPC project that SENER has done for ENCE in Spain, after the successful construction of the biomass plants in Mérida—currently in operation— and in Huelva (in commissioning and startup stage). In all cases, the contract covers the design, supply, construction and commissioning of the plant, as well as the operation and maintenance during the first two years of operation. All three power plants apply SENER technology, a highly-efficient, regenerative thermodynamic cycle with reheating capability, which includes a furnace with a reheater and a turbine with two bodies—high and low pressure—as well as several extractions. Also, the plant is refrigerated using cooling towers. All of this will contribute to bringing the plant’s gross output to over 35%.

Drax Reaches Milestone Mark Drax has received the 100th cargo of sustainable biomass wood pellets from its U.S. export facility at The Port of Greater Baton Rouge in Louisiana, marking an important milestone in five years at the final deepwater port on the Mississippi River and the closest

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in the news ■

to Drax’s three pellet plants in the U.S. South. In 2015, Drax completed work on its export facility at the port to process and ship biomass to its power station in the UK. Ultrabulk’s MV Ultra Jaguar vessel carried 62,846 tonnes of pellets from Baton Rouge to the UK for Drax. The cargo is enough fuel to generate electricity for around 1.3 million homes. The landmark shipment arrived at ABP’s Port of Immingham on March 25. Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, comments, “We’re very proud of what Drax has achieved since we started using sustainable biomass instead of coal at the power station. By developing a global supply chain for sustainable biomass, our operations support thousands of jobs and have delivered economic growth across the North of England and in the U.S. South.” Baton Rouge Transit has shipped more than 5 million tonnes of sustainable biomass to ports on the UK’s east and west coast in the five years since the first vessel was dispatched on April 6, 2015. Once in the UK, the wood pellets are loaded onto bespoke biomass freight trains bound for Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire, where they are used to generate the renewable electricity. The UK government has identified Drax as critical national infrastructure. This includes the infrastructure and logistics related to the transportation of biomass to the power station, such as ports and rail. Around two-thirds of the 7.5 million tonnes of pellets Drax uses each year comes from the U.S. where Drax owns and operates three pellet mills in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi. The pellets are sent by rail and truck from the plants in Louisiana and Mississippi to Drax’s Baton Rouge facility before being loaded onto ships for their transatlantic journey.

In addition to its own wood pellet production, Drax also has agreements with a number of other suppliers in the U.S. and elsewhere around the world including in Canada, the Baltics and Portugal as well as multiple trading relationships.

Drax Donates $30,000 Toward Relief Efforts Drax Biomass is donating $30,000 to help families and businesses in northeastern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi who have been impacted by the COVID-19

June 2020 / Wood Bioenergy

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■ in the news

crisis and the tornadoes that struck the Monroe area in mid April. The funds donated include $20,000 from Drax Biomass to COVID-related relief efforts in Ouachita, Morehouse and LaSalle parishes in Louisiana and Amite County in Mississippi. Focus areas include Food Banks, United Way, Salvation Army, Rays of Sonshine, The Wellspring, Ouachita Council on Aging, West Ouachita Senior Center, Ronald McDonald House, The Children’s Coalition, Liberty Community Living Center, Wilkinson County Nursing Center, Field Health System, St. Francis Medical Center, Hardtner Medical Center, Morehouse General Hospital, Care and Hope Ministry and the Morehouse United Fund. Drax is also contributing $10,000 to help communities hit by the tornadoes in the Monroe and West Monroe area. Headquartered in Monroe, La., with operations in the Southeastern U.S., Drax Biomass is committed to supporting the communities in which it operates by promoting sustainable forestry and investing in local economic development.

PRODESA Will Supply Plants To Belarus PRODESA has signed an agreement to provide two turnkey pellet plants in Belarus. The projects expect to come online in early 2021 and deliver up to 20 ton/hour of industrial wood pellets. The plants will be located near Vitebsk and Polotsk cities in the northeast part of the country. The facilities consist of a wet line, which includes debarking, chipping and milling line; a belt dryer; and the pelleting line, storage and product output. The new plants will have a 240 m belt dryer. PRODESA will be responsible for the complete design, procurement and construction of the plants. This full integrated service covers all the engineering, manufacture and purchase processes, the supervision of the erection, train-

ing, startup and commissioning. In order to ensure the best performance, PRODESA, through its operations branch Smart Operations, will establish a workshop in Belarus to provide after-sales assistance.

Combilift Steps Up With Combi-Ventilate Irish manufacturer Combilift, best known for its range of spacesaving forklifts and other handling solutions, has drawn on its expertise in engineering and software design to develop the Combi-Ventilate, a splitter device which turns one ventilator into multiple ventilation stations. Designed to address the requirements of medical professionals in the current COVID-19 emergency, the Combi-Ventilate was developed by a team of mechatronic and software engineers in the past five weeks with a unit currently undergoing laboratory tests with Ger Curley, Professor of Anaesthesia & Critical Care at Royal College of Surgeon’s in Beaumont Hospital. Martin McVicar, CEO and cofounder, Combilift, comments, “Certain countries and cities are struggling to get enough ventilators and many governments and

health authorities are encouraging manufacturers to come up with a solution, as did the HSE in Ireland. Instead of actually developing ventilators we analyzed what is really required, as we do in our usual business models.” The Combi-Ventilate uses standard pipes and fittings for easy assembly and its individual patient filters prevent cross contamination. Each patient has a dedicated screen that allows medical professionals to individually monitor their vital information. This includes live values, data on patient history and statistics and adjustable alarm settings. Features include non-return valves, HEPA filters, flow sensors and an automatic flow control valve. Any abnormalities that occur are detected and will only trigger that specific patient’s alarm. The Combi-Ventilate has automatically adjustable flow control valves that allow the health service professional to control the tidal volume to each patient electronically without having to make manual adjustments. McVicar adds, “We have undertaken this non-profit endeavor in order to meet and facilitate the demands of the global crisis for health services around the world, namely the lack or shortage of ventilators.

At the launch of the Combilift-Ventilate, left to right, Antonio Patacho, Combilift engineer; Martin McVicar, Co-Founder & CEO, Combilift; Dr. Michael Power, National Clinical Lead, Critical Care Programme, Irish Health Service; and Christopher Carragher, Combilift engineer

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in the news ■

The medical device sector is not our core business but making critical equipment which keeps people safe and alive has always been our focus and this latest project, driven by our desire to help during these difficult times, mirrors what our research and development has done for the last 20 years.” Dr Michael Power, National Clinical Lead, Critical Care Programme Irish Health Service, comments, “The Combi-Ventilate is a safe and reliable attachment for ventilators for use in an ICU setting in that unwanted scenario where you have one ventilator for multiple patients. It removes that horrible dilemma. The CombiVentilate is safe and reliable. It is an engineered solution which delivers the correct volume of air to each patient and actually delivers the required amounts of air to each patient safely and reliably.”

Northwest Deal Brings Parties To The Table Oregon forest products industry companies and conservation groups have entered a Cooperating Parties agreement to hold a series of meetings over the next two years geared toward making changes to Oregon’s Forest Practices Act and implementing regulations that will provide a rational basis for an approvable Habitat Conservation Plan. The agreement to cooperate stems from several current, competing petitions that could bog down state forestry and environmental operations such as aerial pesticide spraying. The ensuing meetings will seek to provide a greater level of certainty to forest landowners and industries that depend on Oregon forests without compromising the

viability of Oregon’s manufacturing infrastructure; and provide a greater level of certainty for the survival and recovery of threatened and endangered species, and ensure that drinking water and aquatic resources are protected. “The Cooperating Parties will pursue a science-informed policy development process, rooted in compromise, to evaluate and jointly recommend substantive and procedural changes to Oregon forest practice laws,” the agreement states. For example the mediated meetings will include discussion of forest practices that impact waters of the state and at risk species including, but not limited to, forest roads, near-stream operations, and steep/ unstable slope activities affecting streams. Forest products industry companies that signed the agree- ➤ 35

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■ pellet production

The South’s

Newest Player

By Jessica Johnson

ALICEVILLE, Ala. n late 2018, Pinnacle Renewable Energy announced the purchase of the majority of The Westervelt Co.’s wood pellet production facility in Aliceville, Ala., while also entering into a long-term partnership agreement with Westervelt. For Pinnacle it represented a continuation of its focus on building partnerships with wood products companies who operate sawmills. Westervelt had long been known in the region for its high production sawmill and vast timberland holdings, when it built and started up a high production wood pellet mill at Aliceville in 2013.

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pellet production ■

Last year, Pinnacle and Westervelt deepened their relationship and added Two Rivers Lumber into the partnership. The group announced they would build a greenfield wood pellet mill in Demopolis, Ala., adjacent the new Two Rivers Lumber sawmill. Under the latest partnership agreement, Pinnacle owns 70% of the existing Aliceville and planned Demopolis facilities, while Westervelt retains 20%, and Two Rivers Lumber owns 10%. With the Aliceville acquisition, Demopolis build and subsequent partnership, the Canadian pellet titan has entered the fertile Southern U.S. market in a big way. While the Aliceville mill is just 45 miles from

Tuscaloosa, Ala. where Westervelt Co. is headquartered, it’s a bit farther of a trek for Pinnacle’s central operations team—Aliceville is 2,100 miles from Prince George, British Columbia. Chief Operations Officer Scott Bax says the distance hasn’t been an issue since the 2018 purchase; frequent visits and technology make it feel much closer. The team in Alabama has been one the most resilient he’s seen as they transitioned to Pinnacle’s leadership and worked together on cultural growth throughout the mill. He says the team was looking for support and expertise, and they found that and more with both Pinnacle’s Canadian team and new

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Like other Pinnacle pellet plants, Aliceville’s raw material intake is dominated by sawmill residuals— most coming from partner mills The Westervelt Co. and Two Rivers Lumber.

Plant Manager Ritu Linhart. Linhart, a veteran of the biomass industry joining Pinnacle from another operator, says the first three months after she was brought on in December 2018 were not without challenges, but watching the safety and operations consistently improve and become more resilient made the challenges worth it. Pinnacle believes the partnership and acquisition were a perfect fit. The Westervelt Co. was in many ways like looking in a mirror, with both companies incredibly focused on the health and safety of employees and efficient operations. What Westervelt lacked in pellet expertise, Pinnacle brought to the table and what Pinnacle lacked in local knowledge, Westervelt filled in the gap. This included the biggest cultural change—implementing a new, more stringent housekeeping stan-

dard that was unlike anything the plant had before. Pinnacle’s standard is any dust anywhere is not dust they want. If it’s there Bax wants his teams to deal with it, not let it accumulate. “It is not a risk to be addressed next week, it’s a risk to be addressed right now,” he reiterates. “Address the dust risk now and together we will work together to understand where it came from and how to prevent reoccurrences.” Once the news of the acquisition was widely known, but the deal not yet done, Bax met with the plant’s employees. One topic was housekeeping. Bax said, “‘If the facility looks like it does now, on the date of close, October 15, we will shut down and not start up again until it is clean.’ With no prompting, no mill manager, the leads and the crew took it upon themselves to make it clean.” The employees showing ownership was remarkable,

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according to Bax. “I was blown away; it was awesome. I didn’t need to tell them that this is also how we’re going to keep it; they realized the value and committed to clean being our standard. The team here is remarkable, a testament to both how much they care and the work by Westervelt.” But, as the saying goes, the devil is in the details. The employees did a great job cleaning the high risk areas, the enclosed spaces —the press room floor, for example—but further progress was needed in other areas like the green infeed. So, for the first three months that Linhart was the plant manager, she implemented an even deeper cleaning regime, trying to deliver on the challenge of keeping the place spotless. “If we are not all committed to keeping the plant clean, it’s going to get to that point again in a month,” she sagely says. Culturally it is easy to say some areas are just always going to be dusty and of course, if dust is subject to heat or there’s a spark there will be a fire. “If it’s bare concrete, there’s nothing to ignite. I didn’t want to burden them and have them feel like I was unaware of the magnitude of the challenge,” Linhart says. Instead, she got creative. Pinnacle hired a contracting company to come in every weekend for 12 weekends to deep clean a specifi-

cally identified area of the plant. After the weekend was over and the area was spotless, it was up to the employees to maintain it. “Now every shift cleans up and it never gets to that point.”

Investment A cleaner plant wasn’t the only thing Pin- Pinnacle compliments Dieffenbacher and nacle wanted to Westervelt for engineering a really great change about plant before the acquisition. the Aliceville plant. Dubbed “phase one” and “phase two,” the Aliceville plant is undergoing $10 million in capital proj-

June 2020 / Wood Bioenergy

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■ pellet production

Aliceville has four dry storage silos with capacities of 9,000 tons each.

ects since the acquisition and there may be plans for more, a “phase three.” Bax remarks, “When we went through the facility, we saw that it had more potential than it was experiencing at the time. There were a few opportunities to invest in the facility, to improve safety and productivity. 2019 was the most production the facility has ever produced, it was a record year. In 2020, we will shatter that.” Linhart says the facility’s nameplate at 7,500 hours of run time is 300,000 tons. The plant team’s goal for 2020 is to break that barrier. Phase one was completed in 2019: exchanging the existing Classisizer, which was inefficient, challenging to maintain and presented a production bottleneck. The project had a fast turnaround time with the Board approval coming in early 2019, and the outage happening in May. Aliceville installed three CSE Bliss hammermills, going from 2000 HP to 1200 HP but increasing throughput by 50%. “At least,” Bax adds emphatically. Linhart says the plant didn’t realize the Dieffenbacher dryer could push as hard as it has. “Before we got the new hammermills, we ran the dryer at about 40% infeed,” she explains. “We started running the dryer at 40% immediately after the switch, today we are running closer to 65% infeed.” The second portion of the phase one investment was replacing an old baghouse—another bottleneck for the plant that the management team felt inefficient, additionally it was creating other hazards as it was a manual purge that didn’t perform automatically. Allied Blower provided a new baghouse aspiration system that selfpurges reducing the exposure risk. Phase two, which begins in 2020, is adding a second large-scale Bruks truck tipper to handle only dry material and improve the onsite roads. Currently, the mill handles both dry and wet material the same—separating the products at delivery will make a material difference. Phase three, still in the works is focused on allowing dryer material to bypass the dryer and still feed the pelleting process— when Westervelt first built the mill it was built to handle pulpwood logs. As Westervelt shifted to residuals a few years ago, there was still no way to input dry shavings in the process without going

through the dryer. The additional tipper will create the foundation for phase three, a dryer bypass feed system for Aliceville to better handle the input mix of green sawdust, green chips and dry shavings. Linhart estimates nearly 30-50% of material is dry already and with the new tipper, a delivery bottleneck will be addressed making way for a future dryer bypass project. While Pinnacle mills are known for being residuals-focused mills, Bax notes that Aliceville also has an existing on-site chipping facility that can be used to reduce fiber supply risk. As sawmill capacity in Alabama and Mississippi skyrockets, and chip and pulp mills scale back or shutter, it may become more cost effective to purchase green chips instead of making them in-house.

Improvements Linhart is excited to see how the phase two improvement helps the plant surpass nameplate before considering phase three or other capital project suggestions. Bax on the other hand says the natural next opportunity may be a dryer bypass linked to adding additional pelleting capacity. “I’d like to see what the core of the plant can really achieve after phase two is complete,” he adds. But all of the pieces of the puzzle have always been on-site in Aliceville, it’s just been up to Linhart and her team to untangle them and hit nameplate. She and Bax both compliment The Westervelt Co. and Dieffenbacher in engineering a really great plant. “When we took over, our goal was we’re not the experts here, we may make a lot of pellets elsewhere but the inherent knowledge in the facility is with the team here and we are going to rely on them. It was more a systematic process to optimize parts of the process, address bottlenecks and support the team on site,” Bax says. For Linhart, the last two years have been about developing the plant’s team to get it done better than ever before with support from the Pinnacle portfolio of other plant managers and central operations team. “We are all going to develop as a team, us together,” she believes. The support she receives is akin to being an only child that suddenly got nine siblings. In the past, a lot of services were contracted out. Now, Aliceville is able to

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pellet production ■

Aliceville gets it done with eight CPM presses.

take full advantage of past learnings from other Pinnacle plants, as well as an in-house automation team. For Linhart, having the in-house automation team has been a game changer. Previously, Aliceville was making adjustments on four presses a shift—because they were running blind. The automation team came down, did all the work for Aliceville’s HMI adjustments and gave the control room operator a screen that has all eight presses’ main specs in easy to view formats. Now, the control room operator can see what the throughput is with each machine, so a conscious decision is made on which machine to take down for maintenance instead of just guessing. “Before it was I’ll do four today and you do four tonight and maybe they needed adjustments but maybe they didn’t,” Linhart reports. “Some of the presses were run on manual because the guys said the press would jam. The automation team was able to program based on the throughput on the presses to adjust the amperage to keep the uptime going.” Small improvements in automation, coupled with the capital investments, have made big advancements in overall quality over the last two years.

Pellet Process Aliceville’s pelleting process is fairly straightforward. The residual mix is about 90% southern yellow pine, 10% hardwood. Upon entry, every truck is sampled to confirm moisture content, weighed and dumped via one of two Bruks tippers. Walking floors meter material into the silos, with a capacity of 2,000 tons. Material either goes into the process directly or is stored. Sawdust, shavings and chips are run in a specified ratio into the plant. A wet silo before the dryer allows a consistent feed into the dryer accounting for different products and moisture contents. As phase three has not been completed, all material processes through the Dieffenbacher dryer and then to a firelock silo. This silo is new to Pinnacle and serves basically as isolation for fiber out of the dryer, allow-

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milling, material flows to the dry product silo. There material is conditioned. There are four ripening bins ahead of the eight CPM presses, making two presses with 6.5 mm dies for each ripening bin. From the CPM presses, pellets are cooled, pass Rotex screens for fines, before being conveyed to the finished storage silos. Aliceville has 9,000 tons in each of the four finished pellet storage silos. Finished pellets are checked for metal by multiple Eriez electromagnets then are loaded onto barges on the Tombigbee River at a rate of a little less than one barge a day. Loaded barges are sent down river to Mobile, Ala. where a vessel is loaded midstream and sent every five weeks with approximately 33,000 tons of pellets from Aliceville. Plant Manager Ritu Linhart performs a general housekeeping check as part Bax says, “It is exciting to see the team of the focus on dust control and overall cleanliness. succeed. They have achieved a lot: Two years ing equalization before proceeding through the rest of lost time incident free, producing great pellets at never bethe process. fore seen rates, under a new ownership team. I am so apMaterial passes two Acrowood diamond roll screens. preciative to have a leader like Ritu working with them, Fines fall and convey to the dry silo, larger particles along with the support and expertise of our partners, The flow to the CSE Bliss hammermills. After hammerWestervelt Co. and Two Rivers Lumber.”

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Brunette Machinery was one of 46 equipment technology exhibitors at the Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo.

Wood Bio Part Two:

Projects, Air Emissions EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part two of a three part series on the coverage of the Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo held March 10-11 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta. Part one, which appeared in the April issue, focused on 14 presentations from speakers representing the producer, consultant and academia sectors of the industry. Part two here reviews the presentations of speakers in project development, air emissions technology and process maintenance. The biennial event, hosted by Wood Bioenergy magazine, featured 29 speakers, 46 equipment exhibitors, three university exhibitors and a total attendance of 200. The next Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo will be held at the Omni Hotel in Atlanta on March 29-30, 2022.

By Dan Shell and Rich Donnell ATLANTA, Ga. roject implementation has always been a major focus of the Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo and indeed one of the event’s many sessions was so named. Harold Arnold, president of major industrial

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wood pellet producer, Fram Renewable Fuels, served as moderator for the presentations and panel discussion involving representatives from Evergreen Engineering, Mid-South Engineering and Casey Industrial. Justin Price, Principal of Evergreen Engineering, spoke on Using Knowledge Management Initiatives to Achieve Successful Project Implementation. First he delivered some hard statistics. Failure rates for meeting budgets and schedules worldwide are estimated at 66%. A similar proportion of projects are viewed as failing to meet the objectives for which they were constructed. Projects implemented after an insufficient front-end phase showed a success rate of about 35% Are there explanations? Price asked. He pointed to several. Technical: imperfect forecast, inadequate data, honest mistakes, inherent problem in predicting the future, lack of experience. Psychological: Optimism bias is a planning fallacy described as the tendency to underestimate the time, costs and risk of future actions while overestimating the benefits of the same action. Political-economic explanations: Deliberate underestimation of cost by planners and promoters to increase the likeli-

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hood of project approval and funding; strategic misrepresentation or manipulation of forecasts. How can we fix it? Price asked. He described Knowledge Management Systems as a discipline that promotes an approach to identifying, capturing, evaluating, retrieving and sharing all of an enterprise’s information assets. It includes databases, documents, policies, procedures, and previously uncaptured expertise and experience in individual workers. Price emphasized knowledge perspective: A great deal of emphasis is given to understanding the differences among data (raw numbers), information (processed data), and Mid-South Engineering’s Scott Stamey has the podium while, left to right, Evergreen Engineering’s Justin Price and Casey Industrial’s Tom Lepak listen in. knowledge (authenticated information). “For individuals to arrive at the same understanding of data or information, they must share a ing, it is important to know what is critical with 100% certain knowledge base,” Price said. accuracy, and what can be shown as representative to He reviewed the knowledge management (entry and complete the model. retrieval) infrastructure, and pointed to resource growth, Once you have a 3D model of your project, take it to knowledge content development, project survival and the next level by importing it into a Virtual Reality sysfinal returns as indicators of success. tem, which provides a much more detailed and immerBut the process requires enablers of success to get sive environment. This can be a huge benefit not only there, Price said, citing organizational structure, knowlto the project design and construction teams, but also to edge-friendly culture, senior management support and the plant operations and maintenance personnel. commitment, trustworthy teamwork, employee empowStamey added that a VR rendering is excellent simerment, benchmarking and social interaction. ply for visualization, when many people don’t read enThe importance of the front-end phase can’t be emgineering drawings on a regular basis and find 3D phasized enough with regard to project success, Price renderings easier to understand. Operators and maintesaid. There are many complexities, burdens, but also ponance personnel can see a huge benefit to first person tential resources, and the skilled project manager going views of equipment and structures. in must be totally visible and appreciate challenge. Stamey then addressed the usage of drones for high “The role of knowledge management is to create the definition imagery, orthomosaic maps, construction capability for the organization to establish excellent sitmonitoring and inspections. Initial drone flight can be uational awareness to make right decisions,” Price said. good for gaining preliminary layout data from a site Scott Stamey, VP/Sr. Project Manager at Mid-South with no reliable drawings. Flight paths and photo can be Engineering, spoke on Project Execution—Modern pre-programmed and are repeatable, so you have the Tools and Classic Principles. option of providing good progress photos. He first hit upon 3D Services, and more specifically Tom Lepak, Senior Market Analyst with Casey Inwhat he called “reality capture,” which is 3D scanning dustrial, presented We Know a Thing or Two Because or data collection; and “virtual reality,” which is the We’ve Seen a Thing or Two. Lepak noted Casey’s U.S.rendering and presentation of the design. wide project experience and emphasized the company’s A single laser scanner can capture up to 2 million 3D devotion to safety, trust and performance. data points per second, Stamey said, obviously lending Lepak addressed project documentation and said itself to accuracy, cost efficiency, complete information, while electronic files have virtually replaced paperless downtime and enhanced safety. work, they have not reduced processing times or adminHe referred to the “point cloud,” a pixel-based image istrative duties. associated with x, y and z positions data. Besides just He noted the good and bad traits for superintendents, virtual field measurements, it can be overlaid with new project managers, contractors and owners. A good suequipment and structures during the planning phase. perintendent is a mentor to his or her people, delegates “This allows us to see exactly how interfaces with new but maintains command, plans ahead, maintains a clean and existing equipment will look,” he said. “You can jobsite, has strong craft technical skills and approaches move around with the model and look for clearances each challenge as an opportunity. and other constructability issues.” It also allows for A good project manager demonstrates timely commuclash detection and the elimination of interferences benication, fully understands the scope and the contract, fore they become an RFI and field rework. For modelsupports accurate schedules, invoice and reports, is a

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good communicator, proactive problem solver, spends time in the field and is ready to present solutions. Asking the right questions is a necessary trait for a good contractor, such as: Do we have all the owner and/or contractor materials we need? Do we have the correct tools and equipment? What are the safety issues for our work and how do we deal with them? How do we measure progress? Did we complete the task? A good owner, Lepak said, knows the scope and contract, is active on-site, deals with issues regularly, maintains a logic-based schedule, shares schedule float and and communicates in a timely manner. Lepak said a client’s review metrics for a Casey project should include safety, quality, project controls, leadership, overall satisfaction with Casey and finally would you recommend Casey?

Shams Goes Digital Detailing how panel plant operators can better utilize data not only during project planning and construction but also during operations to make better decisions quicker, Bijan Shams, President of Cogent Industrial Technologies, illustrated how Executing Projects In the Digital Age can deliver the highest efficiency Cogent’s Bijan Shams from assets, people and processes. Digital transformation is affecting every facet of society and business, Shams said, and providing ever more opportunity to improve plant operations by utilizing better technology such as artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, 5G infrastructure and the convergence of information and operational technologies. According to Shams, making the digital transformation in operations is all about using these emerging and powerful technologies to sustain high performance while quickly responding and managing any events or disruptions that impede efficiency. He showed how digital transformation boosts performance when managing a manufacturing event: All manufacturing or process-oriented systems undergo the same process. First, an event occurs. (Shams used a lack of process water as an example.) There’s an alarm or event notification, then a technician with skills, tools and knowledge assesses and analyzes the event. Then event recovery solutions are developed, then executed properly, thus ending the event and returning to high performance. Shams said that powerful new technologies can be used to compress each step of the event recovery process, thus minimizing the impact to system or facil-

ity performance and a quicker return to normal operating conditions. Developing the agility to respond and remediate any situation more quickly and efficiently requires good communication between all stakeholders; sharing of documents and information in real time to see that issues are quickly recognized and dealt with; and any knowledge generating from the event is captured forever. To facilitate digital transformation into operations, Shams showed examples of creating file servers to share information, and systems to track, assign and prioritize operational issues. Process data and collection systems can show process history and trends along with system analytics. A Wikipedia-like system knowledge database can also be created, Shams said, that would show best practices, SOPs and policies, plus shift logs and production reports and be widely available to personnel to increase awareness. Digital transformation, Shams said, enables more consistent high performance while helping create a fully connected, safe, reliable and data-driven facility that’s more efficient and more profitable.

Air Emissions Treatment Speaking on the Catalytic Removal of HAPS and VOCs at Wood Pellet Plants, Dr. Grigori Bunimovich, CEO of Matros Technologies, Inc., told show visitors about the benefits of using base metal catalysts in regenerative catalytic oxidizers (RCOs) to accomplish VOC control. In doing so, Bunimovich explored RCO technology and its benefits and related catalyst maintenance with such a system, plus related a case study of a Southern U.S. pellet plant that converted its emissions control from regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) to RCO seven years ago. Bunimovich noted the Z-2 5/8 in. ring base metal catalyst developed by Matros Technologies was designed to be more Grigori Bunimovich active, themally stable and less expensive than other catalyst options. The Z-2 catalyst is made of aluminum and manganese oxides and can withstand thermal treatment of up to 900-1,000 ºC (1,650-1,800 ºF). Thermal tolerance is roughly 400° higher than precious metal catalysts. Improved several years ago, the new generation Z-2i catalyst has decreased pellet thickness, plus double the crush strength with 10% increased catalytic activity, Bunimovich said. He added that the increased thermal stability extends catalyst service time and enables regeneration via bakeout depending on type of pollutant.

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The bakeout can restore activity up to 70%-100% of initial installation and is easily performed, with no need for oxidizer shutdown. Bunimovich cited a case study of a pellet plant producing 750,000 tonnes annually and operating two RCOs. One RCO is after two hammermill lines, handling 110,000 SCFM, under 410 PPM VOC and HAPs as C3H8. The other RCO handles emissions from five pellet mill lines at 160,000 SCFM, under 200 PPM. He concluded that the base-metal catalyst has demonstrated satisfactory performance in two large RCOs operated since 2013 and offers high temperature tolerance, simple regeneration via bakeout and competitive price. “Catalyst sample testing coupled with RCO mathematical model indicate that there is a potential for the catalyst to serve for five or seven years more,” Bunimovich said. Discussing some of the concerns and ideas his company developed during the design phase for a new wet ESP design for dryer particulates, Rodney Schwartz, Vice President Sales & Business Development Americas, Dürr Systems, gave a presentation on Advancements in WESP Design for Dryer Particulate Control. In coming up with a new WESP design and features, Schwartz said, Durr was looking to reduce engineering time and cost on a per-project basis (such as standardize the chassis sizes) and reduce field installation time for the product since current WESP designs tend to be a “construction project” in the field, Schwartz said. The project included pursuit of a modular shipping design with maximum prefabrication, better fabrication techniques, innovative features and flexible sizing options. Additional goals for the redesign were to move the needle on collection performance; improve airflow distribution; develop a vastly improved cleaning (flushing) system; reduce mist carryover; and improve water treatment. Doing market research, Schwartz said the team talked with many system operators, and the biggest issues are capital costs are too high and installation time too long. On the operation side, producers Rodney Schwartz say tubes and electrodes get dirty and are difficult to clean, and if they stay dirty, then collection performance drops. Other issues include too much caustic, foaming problems and mist carryover into the RTO. The Durr team built multiple testing models, including systems to gauge flow distribution, a spray test stand, wash testing and electrode testing before moving into a full-scale pilot test. The team eventually built a to-scale 25,000 ACFM pilot WESP that was installed

on an OSB plant in the South, tested for 10 months downstream of rotary flake dryers. Schwartz reported that the new design achieved enhanced filterable particulate removal; enhanced organic condensable particulate removal; optimized electrode and tube design; and enhanced spray system cleaning performance. The new design is still being finalized, Schwartz added, noting that testing showed significant improvements in filterable particulate removal efficiency and organic condensable particulate removal efficiency. ● Offering guidelines for design based on his wealth of experience, Rodney Pennington, Senior Director, NESTEC, gave a presentation on the Quest for the Best in Pellet Mill Air Emission Control. He noted that any project, whether a whole new system or upgrade-expansion, requires an upfront total evaluation of the plant production equipment design and configuration. Before making any decisions, Pennington said, plant operators need to establish the location of air emission sources and establish the total plantprojected VOC and HAP emissions and determine the percentage of softwood versus hardwood used in production. Project managers should develop a list of Rodney Pennington potential options to meet the specific needs of the plant while trying to utilize proven VOC and HAP control features for pellet mill operation. The evaluation also requires analyzing the capital and operating cost for the various system options. Noting that Nestec developed the first total control system at a pellet plant in 2013 that included two wet ESPs and RTOs and two RCOs, Pennington urged plant managers to consider a single combined VOC/HAP control system versus multiple individual separate systems. He added that in the case of the total control system, a single system approach offered a capital equipment savings of more than $750,000 over a multiple system while also providing more than $28,000/yr. in energy savings. As one of several examples of savings, Pennington cited the use of single-stack redundant four chamber RCOs that allow for a single stack compliance testing, and allows the shutdown of one RCO unit while still maintaining 70%-90% of total sources. Such a system also provides full flow online bakeout capabilities that allow a high temperature bakeout of each heat recovery chamber, but without disruption to the process operation. This means no scheduled downtime to complete the bakeout function and allows bakeouts to be scheduled on a frequency requirement based on catalyst need

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After winning the cash prize drawing, Paul Jenkins, senior project manager with Civil & Environmental Consultants, receives a handshake from Conference Promotions Director Jessica Johnson, center, while Conference Manager Dianne Sullivan, right, hands off the loot.

rather than available process downtime. Additional operational savings include gradual temperature increase to minimize thermal expansion issues, plus, all the bakeout energy is reused in the process operation. Pennington added that with any project, attention to wet ESP and RTO and RCO detail should include the latest proven design features that allow maximum uniform air flow distribution. Projects should eliminate heat exchange media support failures due to thermal expansion process exposure while minimizing chlorideinduced stress corrosion cracking failure by using an external beam support outside of the process air. Flow control valve reliability, ground level access to components and forced draft fans are additional ways to reduce operating costs, Pennington added.

Oil Lifeblood Speaking on the critical nature of oil in manufacturing and how it is The Lifeblood of Your Plant, Peter Smyth, Industry Sales Manager for oil specialist C.C. Jensen, urged plant operators to “treat it like an asset, not a consumable.” Noting that 85% of all machinery breakdowns are oil-related, and 40% of maintenance time is spent reacting to problems, Smyth said owners and operators of facilities that are undergoing frequent oil or in-line filter changes, frequent repairs due to valve and pump problems, and have dirty or wet oil that contributes to all these issues, need to develop and implement a proactive oil and lubricant management program. A big step for implementing a Clean Oil Program is to appoint a “lube champion” at the mill who has responsibility for lubricant performance and the authority to make changes where needed, Smyth said. They need

to be trained, given the authority and tools they need to implement the program, and also educate others at the mill about the program. “Start with the correct oil that is quality, clean and properly handled and aggressively keep contaminants out,” he added. “Test your oil because if you don’t measure it you can’t manage it.” A big part of such a program is starting with the right oil for the application, in a specified mineral or synthetic blend, with correct viscosity from a quality supplier, Smyth said. All new oil should be tested before it’s used, and the lube champion should establish best practices for oil handling from delivery to application to disposal. Key ways to keep contaminants out of oil include: having desiccant breathers on all reservoirs; avoid cross contamination; keep environmental contaminants out during maintenance; and always fix faulty seals while keeping a close eye on condensation, Smyth said. Any oil analysis program should include testing for particle count, water and viscosity levels, Smyth said, noting that a testing plan should be monthly, quarterly or yearly depending on how critical the machine is and recommended maintenance. “Keep an oil log and monitor trends on all equipment and have cleanliness goals for all equipment,” he emphasized. General Clean Oil Program goals should maintain viscosity within 5% of spec and water under 100 parts per million. Lubricant management for hydraulics, gears and bearings and thermal oil systems should follow ISO standards, Smyth added. He also urged confer- Peter Smyth ence visitors to take a close look at off-line lubricant filtering systems to maintain optimum oil performance. Specialized offline systems are able to remove much smaller particles, Smyth said, noting that 70% of particles in oil are smaller than five microns. The benefits of developing an oil management program and including an off-line filtering system are that machines and equipment last much longer, the oil filters in those systems last longer and the oil itself lasts longer—and those factors all save money, Smyth said. He pointed to one plant’s example of increased oil cleanliness as a main contributor to boosting hydraulic component life by a factor of four. Improved oil performance means better running equipment, which means less money-losing downtime, and there’s also less money spent on repair parts and labor, Smyth added. “This way, your maintenance team actually works on maintenance and not firefighting.”

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â&#x2013; conveyor considerations

Choosing The Right Conveyors

For Biomass

SMART conveyors from Biomass Engineering & Equipment transfer wood chips to a gasification tower at Lockheed Martin in Owego, New York. The drag conveyors receive material from mobile containers with push-pull floors.

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By Joel Dulin

f you want to make money in the long haul, you must keep your operational costs low. You know this, of course. You’re smart. That’s why you’ve compared production equipment and researched feedstock prices. But have you done the same for your conveyors? Too often, engineers and operations personnel consider conveyors only at the end of a capital project or when the machines are failing. In new builds, personnel focus on the system as a whole and the islands of production. Their neglect to give material handling proper attention ultimately reveals a misunderstanding of the importance of conveyors and how they affect an operation’s efficiency—one conveyor goes down, and production halts until someone fixes it. Conveyors are thus required for a vibrant operation. Neglecting them will cost you significantly.

Engineering Your operation, however, doesn’t have to suffer from conveyors that perform poorly. After all, you know what it takes to make a Galvanized M-Series SMART conveyors from BE&E buck with biomass, and you know that won’t happen you pay forever in increased operating costs. without good conveyors. You’re keen enough, too, to Rather than risking this scenario, we recommend you know you’ll need to hire an engineer who knows what specify the requirements for your conveyors up front so they’re doing because a conveyor system is not somecontractors understand your expectations when they bid. thing you can, want to, or should design yourself. Of course, you “can” purchase a chain-in-a-box conveyor Choosing Conveyors and have your maintenance technicians install it, but you’ll encounter problems by doing so (the potential list When looking over conveyor proposals, take more of which is too long for this article), and you’re smarter into account than up-front price. Consider how much than this. the equipment will cost on an ongoing basis. Consider: When scouting engineers, it’s best if you work with a l Energy consumption firm experienced with your material and industry. Biol Material degradation mass Engineering & Equipment is one such company l Carryback and dust (we are happy to recommend others). You risk mistakes l Maintenance costs (time and parts) when you opt for inexperienced engineers, and engineerl Potential downtime ing mistakes are costly. Always make sure to research l Longevity those whom you hire before signing an agreement. To increase longevity, you’ll have to consider the overIt’s a good idea, too, to enter this relationship as inall quality of the conveyor. You’ll also need to take into formed as possible. You need to know if your engineers account the ability of the conveyor to resist corrosion. propose sub-par solutions for your project. Even the It’s a good idea to galvanize conveyors handling wet, acidic material like biomass, especially in higher-volume best engineering firms make mistakes, and EPC firms applications. For applications in which the material is often do not present the best solutions. EPC contractors also hot, as with fresh pellets, you’ll need stainless steel. are generalists; they do not specialize in every aspect of the systems they design. Plus, they commonly deal with conveyors at the end of a project when their budget has What You Don’t Want been mostly spent, which can result in the conveyors getting less than adequate funding. Almost always, they As for the type of conveyor, avoid screw conveyors will use the cheapest solution because they’re on a and pneumatic conveyance systems for biomass and fixed price contract. They save on the initial cost, and pellets, as they do not work well for these materials. In

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screw conveyors, biomass gets caught on the hanger bearings, backs up, and forms a mess. The screws also wear through the bottom pans. And they decrease overall quality of pellets by grinding them as they pass under the flights. Pneumatic conveyance systems are likewise a poor choice for biomass and pellets. They require much more horsepower to operate than other systems. High-quality drag conveyors, for instance, can require 10% or less power of a pneumatic system. Also, in applications in which the user blows material into a trailer, the pneumatic system turns into a sandblaster due to the abrasiveness of the material. The abrasive nature of wood increases maintenance, too, and wood fiber makes a mess when a hole forms in the pneumatic tubing. And as with screws, pneumatic systems do not handle materials gently. They increase woody fines and will degrade pellet quality. You will likewise want to avoid bucket elevators for handling biomass. While buckets excel at elevating material in confined spaces and can gently handle material, they work best for granular, free-flowing material, which biomass is not. They do work well for pellets in most cases, though. If you’re considering bucket elevators, keep in mind that advances in drag conveyor technology have enabled drag systems to move material at steep or vertical inclines as well, which undercuts a bucket elevator’s biggest advantage. There are general downsides to bucket elevators worth considering, too. These include high installation costs, difficult-to-clean pits, risk of cascade failure, and a need for significant head room. Bucket elevators also require consistent, preventative maintenance. Trouble occurs when maintenance personnel neglect these machines. You must, therefore, be realistic with your expectations and commitment regarding their upkeep.

Belt Conveyors Belt conveyors are the only viable option in applications for large volumes (above 400 tons per hour). For any volume, belt conveyors are advantageous in that they require less maintenance than other conveyance systems, and they will gently handle material, thereby minimizing degradation. Belts also require less maintenance than drag conveyors and bucket elevators. Carryback is always an issue with belt conveyors, though. Even with scrapers or beaters, a certain amount of material will stick to a belt, especially when the material is wet. This stuck-on material falls off and piles up under the belt as it passes over rollers. Similarly, belt conveyors, even when covered, are notorious for leaking dust. You will deal with more mess and cleanup with belts than with an enclosed drag system. Other issues with belts are that they aren’t able to elevate material at steep angles, and they can have issues at transfer points where the material falling to the receiving conveyor lacks sufficient horizontal velocity. In such situations, the material will bounce until it gains momentum in the direction of the belt. (This is more so a problem with pellets than biomass.)

Drag Conveyors Below volumes of 400 tons an hour, you can utilize drag conveyors to transfer material. Drag systems have been around since the mid-to-late 1800s, and though many appear little different since their inception, others have advanced dramatically. Old-style, chain-in-a-box drag conveyors remain popular because they’re cheap and easy to operate. But cheap and easy doesn’t get a good reputation. Chain conveyors are less efficient than

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more advanced drag systems, create a mess like belt conveyors, cannot elevate material at steep angles, and wear quickly. Advanced drag conveyors address many of the drawbacks of older-style chain systems. They can be made dust tight, for example, and carryback is minimal to nonexistent. They’re also able to elevate material at steeper angles. Advances in drag conveyor design have furthermore increased efficiency and decreased the maintenance needed on these systems. For someone looking to lower their operational expenses, these machines require consideration. Changes certain manufacturers have made to their design make them especially suited for handling biomass and pellets. For example, in our conveyor, twin chains hold the paddles off the floors and sidewalls, which reduces friction and

wear. The chains run on UHMW strips outside the material path to further decrease these issues, and the paddles are designed with “fingers” between which material packs to ensure it doesn’t wedge under the paddles. The conveyors you install will impact your bottom line. Maintenance, corrosion, downtime, and energy usage all cost you something. You can either save money short-term with a cheap system, or you can reap long-term benefit with a good investment. Because you’re smart, we know you won’t inflict your mill with cruddy material handling system. But take it a step further. Choose the conveyor that will ensure your operation will run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Joel Dulin is Marketing Manager, Biomass Engineering & Equipment, biomassengineeringequipment.com.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: The following companies provided these editorial profiles and images to complement their advertisements throughout this issue. All statements and claims are attributable to the companies.

BANDIT INDUSTRIES

tem, and related elements. Bandit has your back when it comes to supporting your demand for more durable, reliable equipment for any chipping or grinding application. If you’re in the land clearing or biomass markets, you need to consider the Bandit 3590XL whole tree chipper. See advertisement, page 2

BIOMASS ENGINEERING & EQUIPMENT

Bandit Industries 3590XL is big chips producer.

Engineered to be the most efficient in-woods solution for land clearing companies and biomass suppliers chipping whole trees and tops, the Bandit 3590XL reigns at the forefront of the industry. With more uniform chip production and improved fuel economy, the 3590XL is capable of packing more chips into each trailer faster and reducing the amount of trips to the dump site. Innovative design, high-quality materials, and proven assembly techniques are key for the long-lasting performance of the 3590XL. At its heart, Bandit’s legendary drum is virtually indestructible with its oversized shafts and bearings, thick skin, and rigid internal baffling. Supplying that drum, the powerful feed system with a sloped infeed conveyor and limb-compressing slide box is a convenience rather than a hindrance, as operators will not have to struggle to get material into the chipper. The wide throat opening means more material can be fed, and once the machine grips it, it will be guided swiftly and smoothly so operators can then focus on getting their next grapple load to keep up. The discharge finalizes the course of the created chips by directing their natural path and velocity without the need for horsepower-robbing chip accelerators. The optional Rotobec cab and loader eliminates the need for a separate machine to feed, providing a comfortable office for the operator. The cab contains amenities such as air conditioning, heater, radio, and ergonomic controls. The cab will also swivel with the loader, making anything in a 20 ft. radius within reach. Rotobec loaders are dubbed as the quickest, toughest and most versatile in the industry, offering the reach and strength to lift and pull trees and logs from any angle. Extensive welded construction and superior components are the foundation for Bandit’s standard, industry-leading, five-year GUTS warranty that covers the drum, feed sys-

A roller debarker from Biomass Engineering & Equipment receives a load of pulpwood in Brazil.

Biomass Engineering & Equipment supplies state-ofthe-art engineering, material handling solutions, and complete EPC-level pellet mill services. BE&E’s first-in-class log handling and processing equipment for green end mill processes provides reliable performance with low operational cost. We have the knowledge and experience you need to design a mill with maximum uptime before, during, and after raw materials processing. Our log decks and strands boast low-horsepower operation and smaller, segmented components for easier maintenance: independent strands, no couplings, minimal bolts, and components small enough to be handled without a crane. Our log troughs are designed for faster assembly with laser-cut parts for maximum accuracy and consistency. When building troughs, we add alignment and locking tabs to minimize variation in the weldments, and we consider little details like using through bolts rather than tapped holes when designing our log trough because bolts in tapped holes rust in place, whereas bolts with nuts allow technicians to easily cut off the nut and replace the bolt. Roller debarkers from BE&E provide en-masse loading capabilities for high-volume debarking. These debarkers excel at debarking wood with frozen or stringy bark and can process stems with a wide range of diameters. They outperform drum debarkers in that they’re quieter, cost less to install, are more flexible in terms of materials they can process, and fiber loss from roller debarkers is minimal. Our debarker will process up to 150 tons per hour with three modules in line. We also offer complete chipping lines with metal detection that are capable of producing microchips. Our FHI (fixed-height infeed) and VHI (variable-height infeed) model chippers come with a unique control system that

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monitors the load on the drum and changes the feed rate accordingly. The chippers are available in horizontal or top feed and rear or bottom discharge configurations. See advertisement, page 29

CW MILL EQUIPMENT

Fulghum Industries front-loading knife clamps CW Mill offers the HogZilla industrial grinder and custom grinder parts.

CW Mill Equipment Co., Inc., a diversified company, began building alfalfa pelleting plants and hay grinding equipment in the 1970s, adding wood grinders in the 1980s, which evolved into the production of the Monster of all industrial grinders, HogZilla. CW has developed brands for both Rigid hammer style and Swing hammer style grinder parts, ArmorHog and DynaHog. Custom hammermill screens, hammers, tips, belts, and grinder service for all brands of tub and horizontal grinders are available. Solid waste reduction, wood recycling, land clearing, construction demolition, mulch making and tire processing are just some of the industry sectors that CW serves. In working with CW Mill, whether it is purchasing a new custom HogZilla grinder, or a variety of grinder wear parts or service, it has always been and always will be, customer first. CW Mill is located in Sabetha, Kans., which anchors it close to the center of the nation it serves. It is the superior products and that customer-first approach that keeps CW Mill going strong. “We are always trying to provide the best customer service. Our priority is to get the customer up and going,” says Tim Wenger, Vice President & Sales Manager, of CW Mill Equipment Co., Inc. See advertisement, page 35

FULGHUM INDUSTRIES Fulghum Industries, a Georgia-based manufacturing company, has been serving the forest products industry for more than 60 years, and continues to develop and improve the technology on which the industry relies. Fulghum has developed a new knife clamp design to aid those utilizing disc chippers. These new, front-loading clamps will lead to a safer, more efficient chipper operation. Traditionally, knife clamps and their hardware are located on opposite sides of the chipper disc, requiring two workers just to change knives. With Fulghum’s new de-

sign, the clamps and their mounting hardware are located on the same side as the knives, meaning that one worker can now change the knives in the same amount of time that it takes two workers with a traditional clamp. Also, with fewer people having to physically interact with the clamps, there is a reduced chance of accidents due to miscommunication or inexperience. In addition to greater efficiency and safety, Fulghum’s front-loading clamps are engineered to resist chip packing and unwanted stud releasing that can occur with traditional clamps. See advertisement, page 29

MORBARK

Morbark drum chipper lineup includes this 50/48 whole tree drum chipper.

With a focus on minimizing downtime, increasing production, and overall customer success, Morbark drum chippers have long been considered the industry standard for high-production mobile fuel and micro-chip applications. The company’s full line of whole tree drum chippers, including the 50/48, 40/36, 30/36, and M20 Forestry, are offered in several configurations—with cab and loader (WCL) or no cab and loader (NCL), on tracks or tires, diesel or electric powered. Morbark drum chippers feature a reverse pivot yoke that produces more down pressure than the conventional style yoke for aggressive feeding of a variety of material. Morbark’s Advantage 3 drum produces more consistent chips, while the heat-treated, AR-450 steel drum skin

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provides longer wear life for lower replacement costs and less downtime. The Advantage 3 drum assembly can come as 10-knives for fuel chip or 20-knives for microchip applications. Performing routine, daily maintenance is easy, too. All drum chippers are equipped with a hydraulic hinged door, hood locking system, and extended work platform for greater accessibility to the drum for inspections and knife changes. Accessible from both the ground and maintenance platforms, oil and hydraulic filters are consolidated in the same area. There is additional room between the engine and chipper base for easy access during general engine inspection and belly band removal, as well as an independent drum drive tensioning system. A worldwide, authorized dealer network supports Morbark’s complete line of drum chippers.

PETERSON PACIFIC

Peterson Pacific 4310B drum chipper

Peterson Pacific Corp. is a manufacturer of grinders, disc and drum chippers, debarkers, screens and blower trucks that serve a wide variety of markets. The company has 110,000 square feet of modern manufacturing space. Peterson machines are sold and supported through a worldwide network of distributors and direct sales and service representatives. Peterson horizontal grinders reduce wood, low value logs and other organic materials; the reduced material is used in the compost, mulch and biomass energy markets. Peterson grinders can also reduce certain construction and demolition materials, such as asphalt shingles, that can then be recycled and used in hot mix asphalt paving. Peterson drum and disc chippers and debarkers are used to produce wood chips for pulp and paper production, as well as biomass energy markets. Peterson blower trucks and trailers are used to broadcast compost and mulch for landscaping and erosion control. Peterson also represents Terra Select screens for North America, which are used for classifying materials to maximize the value of each product. Many Peterson machines are available in either electric or diesel power, depending on the application. For increased mobility at a job site, both tracked and wheeled versions of many of their products are available. Peterson is a subsidiary of Astec Industries, Inc. of Chattanooga, Tenn., and a proud member of their 15-company family. See advertisement, page 39

PRECISION HUSKY

Precision Husky log handling and chipping technology

Precision Husky builds equipment to work as hard as you do, and for years to come. Our fuel-efficient, low maintenance and high production chippers and grinders are used worldwide to manufacture high-quality chips, mulch, compost, boiler fuel and to clear and clean jobsites. If you need high-speed productivity and a low cost per ton, you’ve come to the right place. l Whole tree chippers for micro-chips Precision Husky did not invent the whole tree chipper, but we do make the best chipper you can buy, especially when it comes to in-woods processing of micro-chips, which dry much quicker in pellet production applications. The latest generation of Precision-built, in-woods chippers pushes the envelope of technology to include a 66 in., five-knife option (and up to eight knives), which allows the chipper engine to operate at a lower rpm with the same production of other units on the market operating at higher rpm’s. This not only saves on component wear and tear, it produces the most valuable chip and micro-chip quality you can find. l ProGrind horizontal grinders For working with long limbs, our high-speed ProGrind horizontal grinders can’t be topped. We have three models (H-3045, H-3060 and H-4060) to choose from, each with a rugged diesel engine and offering you from 520 HP up to 1050 HP. The dual cutting surfaces at various depths help eliminate jams. When fitted with an optional chipping drum, the ProGrind also does an excellent job producing micro-chips for pellet producing applications. Precision Husky is showing the industry just how outstanding one company can be. We work from a 165,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in Leeds, Ala. Our president, Scott Smith, is a second-generation innovator like his father, company founder and CEO Bob Smith. Together they have helped Precision go from a small regional provider to a worldwide leader in timber processing technology. Schedule a demo, tour our facility or simply talk shop with one of our team members. See advertisement, page 9

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PROGRESS INDUSTRIES

Rawlings horizontal grinder

Progress chippers for heavy duty

Progress Industries has chippers ranging from 48 in. to 135 in. with several types of infeeds—horizontal and drop feed—and discharges—chips can be discharged either through the bottom, side, back, or blown out the top through a pipe. Chippers were designed with 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 knife configurations depending on the volume of wood and size of machine. The consistent relationship with customers helps us improve our chippers. We are using more hi-grade steel and carbide. Knife changing has been simplified with the “Quick Change System.” This allows one person to exchange knives compared to the traditional two person process and without stepping up on the machine. We at Progress strive to build a heavy and well-designed machine to give years of trouble free service and the lowest maintenance cost in the chipper industry. This is accomplished by design, accuracy, quality, and ease of replaceable wear liners throughout each machine. See advertisement, page 19

higher BTU values than others when burned. The dense Eastern hardwoods such as hickory and oak rivals coal in heat values. So depending on the wood mix, the BTU output from the feedstock mixture can vary. The fuel size is also important. Most boilers can accept a chip or hog fuel up to 2.5 in. in size. Separation screening is generally used to ensure that only fuel up to this size is burned. However, occasionally a larger size piece of wood manages to fit into a screen opening, which can disrupt fuel flow. Fuel cleanliness is also important. Fuel suppliers are expected to ensure that any pieces of debris, particularly metal, are removed. Many clients use magnets to catch any metal pieces before they enter the production flow With more than 40 years of experience in the forest, biomass and sawmill related industries, Rawlings offers a complete lineup of wood processing equipment to convert and utilize wood residuals into valuable wood fiber products. As a proven leader in size reduction technology, Rawlings builds custom wood recovery systems meeting our clients’ specific processing needs and budget. Each system can be designed with work platform decks, choice of belt, chain, vibrating infeed and outfeed conveyors. Metal or magnet protection, product screening and separation—all customizable for your specific operation. Stationary, portable and skid mount models are available. See advertisement, page 37

VECOPLAN

RAWLINGS Preparation of fuel for biomass gasification is a crucial step in a successful operation. There are many factors that need be considered when designing and purchasing the proper equipment to get the required results specific to each client’s operation. One of the items that needs to be considered is what type of biomass boilers will be utilized? Many boiler or gasifier manufacturers have specific requirements for the type of fuel that is burned to determine the BTU content that will be produced. Such factors include species of wood, moisture content, size of wood fuel and ash content. For example some wood species have

Vecoplan VTH 450 biomass chipper

Good things come in small packages. Vecoplan’s VTH 450 Biomass Chipper delivers substantial power in a compact machine, delivering output material from 0.8 to 2 in.

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in size for bioenergy fuel or mulch. This chipper accepts material of varying size including logs up to 18 in., sawmill waste, wood production waste and slash, with a capacity of up to 30 tons/hour. Featuring Vecoplan’s signature engineering that focuses on the operator, the machine offers flexibility inherent to the Vecoplan design where changeovers for different inputs and outputs are painless and quick. The lift-up rotor cover and drop-down screen are hydraulically powered. Knives are changed easily with accessibility from outside the machine. Maintenance and cleaning time is reduced. The VTH 450’s small footprint still delivers key characteristics including: —Robust infeed area with a large top feed roller and four powered adjustable feed rollers at the bottom —Large intake area and separate counter knives for cutting efficiency —Chipper blades, counter knives and screens fabricated from wear-resistant hardened steel —Powerful V-belt drive system —Blades and counter knives and can be sharpened once the need arises. —A footprint of 123 in. L x 163 in. W x 71.25 in. H Vecoplan machines and biomass systems are benchmarks in the industry. Used by large and small to midsized businesses, Vecoplan chippers are known for their durability, optimized high throughput, quality output and longevity. With the VTH 450 biomass chipper, reliability meets economic sense. See advertisement, page 36

VERMEER “Total devastation” are the words many community leaders used to describe the aftermath of Hurricane Michael back in October 2018. Michael will be best remembered for the sheer volume of vegetation destruction it caused up and down the coastal communities of Florida and Georgia. Handling a good chunk of the initial and long-term recovery efforts for Hurricane Michael was Ceres Environmental Services Inc. Their crews were responsible for clearing the roadways so emergency vehicles and others aiding with the cleanup efforts could access the area, as well as hauling away all of the green waste collected.

Vermeer grinders tackle Hurricane Michael aftermath.

The collected organic material was hauled away to a 120-acre (48.6-ha) lot in Jackson County, Fla., where it was stacked high for further processing. Ceres brought in nine grinders to reduce the waste volume by roughly 75%—taking essentially 120 acres of material down to just five acres (two ha). The equipment crews used to tackle the mountains of material included two Vermeer HG6000 horizontal grinders, four Vermeer HG6800TX horizontal grinders on tracks, two Vermeer HG8000 horizontal grinders and one Vermeer TG7000 tub grinder. The Ceres team selected these units because of their mobility and production levels. With 120 acres of material to process, the team determined it was more efficient to reposition the grinders than having to carry material to the machines. With the four tracked HG6800TX grinders, in particular, crews could quickly move them from one pile to the next, which helped reduce cycle times and save on fuel costs. While eight units onsite were horizontal grinders, the lone Vermeer TG7000 tub grinder played a vital role in the process. High-speed winds knocked trees over at their roots, leaving huge root balls to contend with. The TG7000 has a 10 ft. (3 m) wide tub that makes quick work of those larger and odd-sized pieces of material. Ceres grinding crews went through all the organic waste in a little over a month. The material produced onsite is now being reused as biofuel, landscaping material and organic matter for farm fields. See advertisement, page 7

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11 ➤ ment include Hampton Lumber, Weyerhaeuser, Roseburg Forest Products, Seneca Sawmill Company and Stimson Lumber. Numerous environmental groups also signed the agreement, which puts the current petitions in question on hold.

Sun Bio Pulls Out Of Pulp Mill Project The $1.8 billion Chinese pulp mill anticipated for a site near Arkadelphia, Ark. is officially terminated. Andrzej Bednarski, International Project Director of Shandong Sun Paper Co., Ltd., confirmed the development in a letter to the state of Arkansas AEDC and Governor Hutchinson. The mill was expected to consume 3.5 million tons of southern pine chips per year and produce

600,000 tons of dissolving pulp. “The current situation related to the coronavirus outbreak and continued political friction and economic instability make it impossible for us to proceed with the project within the timelines set forth in the environmental permit,” he stated. “With the likelihood of the project uncertain, it is also fair to allow the State of Arkansas to use its resources for other ventures that have less uncertainty in the medium term. At this moment, the collective uncertainties make it a better choice for both of us to abandon the project.” Bednarski noted that over the past several years, the State of Arkansas and AEDC team and the Sun Bio team have worked tirelessly on the project, both investing large amounts of capital and labor. “Personally, we greatly ap-

preciate your continued support for the project during the negotiation, site selection and environmental permitting phase. It is with regret and a heavy heart that we have reached the decision to terminate the project.”

OSU’s Waring Shares Wallenberg Prize Richard Waring, professor emeritus in the Oregon State University College of Forestry at Corvallis, is one of three researchers sharing this year’s international Marcus Wallenberg Prize for developing a revolutionary computer model to predict forest growth in a changing climate. The annual prize, one of the highest honors in the field of forestry, was announced in Falun, Sweden, and is named for the late

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Marcus Wallenberg Jr., a banker, industrialist and member of Sweden’s long-influential Wallenberg family. Waring and co-honorees Joe Landsberg and Nicholas Coops, both of Australia, will each receive 2 million kronor, about $200,000,

when they are presented with the prize in October by Swedish King Carl Gustav XVI. “Dick Waring’s impact on forest science is clear,” says Anthony Davis, interim dean of the OSU College of Forestry. “He and his col-

leagues are well-deserved recipients of this incredible honor. Perhaps the only thing to eclipse his scientific contribution has been his commitment to the students, researchers and colleagues who have worked with him throughout his career.” Waring joined the OSU College of Forestry faculty in 1963 and remained active in forest science teaching and research until 2018. The model created by Waring and his colleagues includes use of satellite imagery to show how different environmental conditions affect the world’s forests. Established in 1980, the Marcus Wallenberg Prize goes to an individual researcher or a small group of researchers for “a groundbreaking discovery or development in an area of importance to the forest industry,” according to the Marcus Wallenberg Foundation. Waring and Landsberg are pioneers in forest growth modeling under changing environmental conditions. They first presented their 3PG model—Physiological Principles Predicting Growth—in 1997. In 1998, Coops added satellite imagery to the model, enabling large areas of forest to be surveyed and forest growth and carbon storage to be predicted on a greater scale. Waring, Landsberg and Coops have allowed researchers and landowners open access to the model, leading to its rapid and widespread adoption, use and improvement. “That’s exactly how science is supposed to work,” Waring says, noting the model can be applied to a range of tree species around the world, in mixed-species stands, and in monocultures.

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product news ■ Sugimat Will Supply Biomass Steam Boiler Sugimat is supplying a turnkey biomass boiler for the San Miguel Arcángel factory in Jaén, southern Spain. The aquatubular steam boiler is for the combustion of olive marc. The biomass steam heater, with a production of 15 Tn/h and an equivalent thermal power of 11 MW, will be designed by the German firm ERK, of which Sugimat is the only licensee in Spain. In addition to the heater, Sugimat will supply other components for the complete installation of the plant. The big agro-industrial companies continue to trust Sugimat when contracting their equipment for energy generation with biomass. In this case, it is the largest olive marc producer in Europe, San Miguel Arcángel, which has contracted Sugimat for the design, manufacture and turnkey installation of an aquatubular steam boiler for burning grape marc. This biomass, derived from the process of extracting oil from olives, is characterized by its high calorific value. In addition to the heater, Sugimat will supply the combustion system with pusher grate, the company’s own technology, the control system and the smoke treatment to guarantee the quality of the emissions into the atmosphere. The plant will have the new system of computer vision applied to combustion developed by Sugimat that allows adaptation in real time to the changes in the characteristics of the fuel. This heater, with an operating guarantee of 8,000 hours per year, will replace current equipment and will also allow to save on the current consumption of diesel oil.

New Loggers-Truckers App Follows Loads Axe Timber Transportation is a new app for loggers and truckers to move loads daily. Loggers post available loads so wood moves faster to the mills. Truckers search for available loads resulting in more loaded miles. Together loggers and truckers, using this app designed specifically for the logging industry, could increase their efficiency and profits. Recent studies show that log truck drivers spend the majority of miles unloaded. Use Axe Timber Transportation to become the exception to the rule—drive more loaded miles:

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l Create more backhaul miles by scheduling loading sites and mill destinations to decrease deadheads. l Find new loads when weather or equipment delays prevent you from hauling for your primary logger. l Shorten your work week by getting more loads in less time and in fewer miles. l Reduce unnecessary wear and tear on trucks by reducing unloaded miles. l Increase your opportunities to locate loads outside your normal contacts. Axe Timber Transportation provides loggers access to local trucking anywhere in the region. Find available trucking for your loads wherever you are logging: l Pre-schedule trucking needs to distribute truck arrivals throughout the day. l Move additional loads beyond your current trucking capacity. l Increase your opportunities to locate haulers outside your normal

contacts. l Increase loaded miles of your company-owned trucks with backhauls. It takes just a few moments to post and find loads. Use the app for just $1.99 per load. Android users can download the Axe Timber Transportation App on GooglePlay. iPhone users can download the app directly from the website: www.axetimbertransportation.com.

Husqvarna Appoints President Of NA Div. Husqvarna appointed Robert McCutcheon as President of North America for Husqvarna Div., effective June 1. Prior to joining Husqvarna North America, McCutcheon served as president and managing director of the Americas for Britax Child Safety Inc. in Fort Mill, SC. Bringing more than 23 years of experience and expertise in consumer products, he has

led successful business growth initiatives through innovation, marketing and operational excellence. McCutcheon’s background includes positions with Conagra Brands, Walmart and Britax. “We are pleased to welcome Robert to the North American team and believe that he is uniquely qualified to lead Husqvarna during and beyond these challenging social and economic times,” comments Sascha Menges, Global President Husqvarna Div. “His leadership style, broad international business background, and proven understanding of the customer experience will be vital assets for building an even stronger foundation for our business partnerships with our customers.” McCutcheon succeeds Earl Bennett, who served the company both as Legal Counsel and president of the North American division. He has been instrumental in building a strong organizational and business platform for the future growth.

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VISIT US ONLINE: woodbioenergymag.com 3779

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