The Basel based IWB has realized the first climate-neutral district heating project in Switzerland. Using our newly developed PX1500, IWB is now feeding an annual heating capacity of around 1.5 gigawatt hours into the district heating network. That covers the energy needs of about 170 Basel households. IWB uses only regional, untreated biomass such as wood and green waste from a maximum radius of 40 kilometers. In the PYREG plant, this high-quality biomass is carbonized into biochar at 500 to 700 degrees Celsius in the absence of oxygen. In this biochar, CO₂ is safely bound. Subsequently dispersed into the earth it ends up in a permanent carbon sink.

IWB sells premium biochar and closes the loop

Through the advanced temperature-controlled Pyreg carbonization, IWB produces a premium biochar certified as the internationally accepted “EBC-AgroBio“. That biochar complies with the requirements for EU-wide use as a soil conditioner – even in organic farming. IWB sells the biochar – ca. 550 metric tons per year – to both, agricultural enterprises, and private customers. By doing so, IWB is also setting new standards for circular economy in the municipal sector.

A flagship project

“IWB is a pioneer in climate protection and living proof of the enormous climate protection value that lies in CO₂-negative district heating,” says Helmut Gerber, CTO and founder of PYREG GmbH, adding, “We are convinced that flagship projects like this one in Switzerland will follow worldwide. They are important as we have no more time to lose on the way to achieving the Paris climate protection goals.”
“With this, our first biochar plant IWB emphasizes our leading role as a service provider for renewable energy. Decarbonizing the heat supply is one of our most important tasks, and not just in Basel. We carry this mission throughout Switzerland. The plant is a showcase project in terms of decarbonization and energy efficiency. Also, our customers gain from the ecological benefits of the biochar,” says Dr. Arthur Janssen, Head of Strategy & Innovation at IWB.

Der Beitrag Flagship project: Climate-neutral district heating in Basel erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

In order to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, as called for by the EU, two fundamentally different strands of action are required: on the one hand, the reduction of carbon emissions, and on the other, the creation of carbon sinks.

(source: Glen peters @ https://www.cicero.oslo.no/en/posts/climate-news/stylised-pathways-to-well-below-2c)

In the EU, this would require sequestering a carbon quantity on the order of 15% of 1990 emissions, or about 850 million metric tons of CO₂ equivalent. Without carbon sinks, also known as negative emissions, climate neutrality and thus the Paris climate goals cannot be achieved.

There are a number of viable methods for creating carbon sinks, also known as Negative Emission Technologies (NET), that actively remove CO₂ from the atmosphere. The key to carbon efficiency is sequestration (i.e., storage) over as long a period of time as possible.

(source: EBI White Paper adjusted from MCC)

The European Biochar Certificate (EBC) for quality control was supplemented in June 2020 with a new standard for carbon sink certification (EBC, 2020). This provided a scientifically sound basis for quantifying the overall carbon sink performance of biochar applications. Key elements include:

1. Biomass production must be carbon neutral, i.e., it must not impact existing carbon sinks.
2. Emissions from the entire charring process (pyrolysis) must be subtracted. In particular, this includes emissions associated with the transport and processing of the biomass, any post-treatment, and the energy required to start the pyrolysis process.
3. Emissions from transporting the biochar to the point of use and, if applicable, emissions from further processing of the biochar must also be subtracted.
4. The final use of the biochar determines the durability of the carbon sink. For example, for soil applications, a scientifically based annual decay must be assumed. However, if the biochar is used as a sand replacement in concrete, for example, this is not necessary because the biochar cannot oxidize in the absence of air.

Der Beitrag Biochar as Negative Emission Technology (NET) erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.