Keywords

co-milling, biofuel, steam explosion, renewable energy, fuel particle size distribution, green technology

Abstract

The mill behavior of a 312 Combustion Engineering Raymond Bowl Mill was studied with five blends of Utah bituminous coal and steam-exploded woody biomass, ranging from 100 % coal to 100 % biomass. Mill power consumption increased with biomass content, peaking at 187 % of the power required for 100 % coal before the mill faulted at 100 % biomass. After repositioning the rollers, power consumption for 100 % biomass decreased by 13 % compared to 100 % coal. SEM images revealed that milled biomass particles were non-spherical, indicating some fibrous structure remained post steam-explosion. The particle size distribution (PSD) of the blends broadened and skewed towards larger particles with more biomass, yet blends with 50 % coal met industrial standards, with 70 % passing through a 200 mesh sieve and less than 1 % retained on a 50 mesh sieve. These findings indicate that coal mills can effectively process blends of coal and biomass with minimal adjustments.

Original Publication Citation

Schooff, B.*, Rajarshi, R., Kuttler, R.†, Montgomery, S., Tuttle, J., Bennett, G., Iverson, B. D., & Fry, A.§, 2025, “Mill power consumption and fuel particle size distribution while co-milling bituminous coal with steam exploded woody biomass in a conventional bowl mill,” Powder Technology, Vol. 453, p. 120678. DOI: 10.1016/j.powtec.2025.120678

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2025

Publisher

Powder Technology

Language

English

College

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering

Department

Mechanical Engineering

University Standing at Time of Publication

Full Professor

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