Not so long ago, Time Magazine introduced its list of The Best Inventions of 2023, divided into various categories: AI, Apps, Robotics, Productivity, Outdoors, Parenting, etc. There were twenty-two categories altogether. A fair share of sections went to preserving nature and living green: Sustainability, Green Energy, and Reuse & Recycle.
Nonetheless, here is our winner. It comes from a well-known business platform, Themis Ecosystem. The technology is called Biomass Ultima Micro and was only slightly introduced to the public. The company didn’t give it more significant consideration because it is only a tiny part of a much bigger project called Biomass Ultima.
If the name rings a bell with you, you are right. We have covered several articles about the Biomass Ultima plant, also known as Themis Ecosystem’s ground zero facility, which is already being built in the EU.
Introducing Biomass Ultima Micro
Biomass Ultima emerges as a pioneering beacon of sustainability in the renewable energy domain, showcasing a notable departure from conventional biomass technologies. Engineered by the visionary Roberto Hroval himself and his international team, the Biomass Ultima project is a testament to innovation and efficiency, offering a stable, utterly green technology that achieves an impressive energy efficiency surpassing 85%.
What sets it apart is its ability to generate electricity and its capacity to do so without generating waste water, ash, or any unpleasant odors. Its impact extends beyond electricity generation, yielding valuable byproducts, such as organic carbon, organic tar, and wood vinegar.
A Biomass Ultima Micro, a U-shaped mini-plant or “baby Biomass Ultima,” is precisely what it sounds like–an exact small copy of that technology. Serving as a kind of laboratory, it operates on the same cutting-edge technology as its larger counterpart, yet it fits a middle-sized room. There are only two such machines in the world.
It is designed to take a small portion of wood waste and transform it into gas and organic carbon, which are then converted into electricity, organic tar, and organic vinegar. The most important fact is that the technology creates the exact same proportion of output materials as the big plant–which is very valuable.
The input material, waste wood, is driven by a gas engine, which drives an electric generator. “You can indicate the energy released and the ratio of the output raw materials–electricity, wood vinegar, organic carbon, and organic tar. This gives you a real and accurate energy balance and the exact amounts of outputs,” the funder explained.
So far, calculations have been the only way to determine the ratio of products and how much of them you will get out of biomass plants. Not only is this not the most accurate way, but sometimes you would need a whole bunch of predictions since every combination and condition of wood creates different outputs.
Now, no calculations are required anymore. You just put the small sample of wood waste in the microreactor and see what emerges. Then, you apply the result to larger input material and multiply the numbers you get by the exact input. For example, if the daily input is a thousand times larger than the tested sample, you multiply the final numbers by a thousand.
Pioneering Biomass Advancements: The Versatility and Practicality
In other words, Biomass Ultima Micro addresses a central concern within biomass technology–the uncertainty surrounding the technology’s performance when using the user’s specific wood inputs.
This scaled-down version empowers users to conduct real-world testing using about 10 kilograms (22 lbs.) of their wood, providing comprehensive energy and byproduct output data.
Namely, the inherent risk associated with adopting biomass technology is the uncertainty about its performance when utilizing the buyer’s wood inputs. Biomass Ultima Micro offers a never-seen-before solution: it enables potential buyers of the Biomass Ultima plant to experience the accurate results firsthand using their own–or local–wood inputs.
It is a technologically unique way to support the plat customers in testing their specific input materials in real-time by scanning output parameters in practice. It also gives them a particular advantage in analyzing, predicting, monitoring, and better understanding business processes in the long run.
The value of this information, emphasizing how it equips buyers with crucial insights to make informed decisions about their future buying of a power plant, effectively nullifies the typical uncertainties associated with adopting such technology.
This is the only laboratory of its kind in existence used for commercial purposes. The other one is used for academic-university purposes.
Looking Ahead
Biomass Ultima Micro saves time, is more accurate than calculations, and gives the sound foundations for mass production planning. Also, this kind of approach is future-proof. The Biomass Ultima Micro will provide accurate data no matter what type of wood waste combination you want to exploit.
Let’s assume that someone uses classic wood waste, which is usually a combination of many kinds of wood, and their specifics and characteristics should be considered. The easiest way to plan the output is to divide wood waste into meaningful samples. That means not only by type of wood but also other significant factors like the moisture content of the wood or the ratio between different types of wood wastes.
How many of these kinds of samples would you create? The more, the better–If you want to get the best approximation of the outputs. Then, you need to calculate the outcomes of every combination or sample individually to get the correct data. Or, you can “feed the machine” with samples and get the most accurate output.
This could be priceless and even a deal-saving move. Imagine a new investor about to buy a Biomass Ultima plant. He needs to know the exact ROI data. With calculations alone, he can miss the point–which could be lethal financially. Using Biomass Ultima Micro to help him plan the actual revenue gives a realistic picture that can lead to exact business and financial predictions.
With ambitions to deploy the maiden Biomass Ultima Micro unit within the European Union, the company aims to meet the burgeoning demand for their traditional power plants. The innovation heralded by Biomass Ultima Micro marks a significant leap forward in biomass technology, promising both efficacy and certainty in an industry historically rife with uncertainties and risks.
This groundbreaking endeavor underlines the company’s commitment to sustainability and signifies a transformative milestone in the renewable energy landscape.
