• The Maresme Waste Consortium has awarded CENER (National Centre for Renewable Energy) the contract to carry out three tests to evaluate technologies for the production of synthesis gas and biochar

• The research is being carried out within the framework of the BIOFORIN project, in which Maresme Circular is participating alongside five other entities to develop a bioregional management model for forest resources for industrial use

Gasification unit located at CENER’s BIO2C (Biorefinery and Bioenergy Centre) / Maresme Circular

Maresme Circular, the brand name of the Maresme Waste Consortium, has awarded the CENER (National Renewable Energy Centre) gasification plant a pilot test to investigate the feasibility of creating renewable energy from forest biomass in the Montnegre Park and the Corredor.

Over the coming months, three tests will be carried out on the production of synthesis gas and biochar on both a laboratory and industrial scale. Synthesis gas (syngas), the renewable gas that remains as the main product of gasification, can be used as an alternative fuel to biogas and natural gas. The pilot test will estimate the potential for obtaining this biofuel from different types of biomass and will provide different types of biochar – the charcoal obtained during the gasification process – to study different applications: to improve composting and anaerobic digestion processes, as a biogas purification filter, for the treatment of aqueous effluents, or for the improvement of agricultural soils in the Maresme region.

Research within the framework of the BIOFORIN project

The research is being carried out within the framework of the BIOFORIN project, an initiative that involves all actors in the forestry value chain to create sustainable forest management, promoting the industrial use of available biomass and generating high value products.

Rural abandonment in recent decades, together with the impacts of climate change (drought, forest pests and fires), are making Mediterranean forests highly vulnerable and threatening the provision of ecosystem services of great value to the population of these areas, which in turn are exposed to a higher risk of high-intensity fires.

It is within this framework that the Bioenergy Cluster of Catalonia, the Eurecat Technology Centre, the Catalan Federation of Forest Owners’ Associations (BOSCAT), the Association of Owners of Montnegre and Corredor, the Vallès Oriental Waste Consortium and, finally, Maresme Circular, have joined forces to promote a circular bioeconomy in the forestry sector.

Raw material warehouse located at CENER’s BIO2C (Biorefinery and Bioenergy Centre) / Maresme Circular

Threefold objective of the pilot test

This pilot test has a threefold objective. Firstly, it seeks to study the technical feasibility of giving new energy value to forest biomass, consisting mainly of pine leaves and bark from forest management, protection and ecosystem improvement activities in the Montnegre and Corredor Park. Secondly, it aims to analyse the possibility of recovering municipal biomass, i.e. the bio stabilised material obtained from the treatment of organic matter from the remaining fraction of municipal waste treated at the Maresme Integral Centre for Waste Recovery.

Finally, the aim is to study the potential for using the biochar obtained during the gasification process.

To this end, the gasification unit located at CENER’s BIO2C (Biorefinery and Bioenergy Centre) will carry out three tests with three different mixtures of forest biomass and municipal biomass.

Promoting the regional bioeconomy and climate resilience

The ultimate goal of this research is to transform forest biomass, a product that currently has little value, into a sustainable energy source while promoting the generation of new bioproducts with innovative applications, thus contributing to a more sustainable, resilient and circular management model for the forest masses in our territory.

The pilot test, with an allocated budget of €316,440 (excluding VAT), has received 95% support through a grant awarded by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO) through the Plan for Recovery, Transformation and Resilience (PRTR), which is funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU.

BIOFORIN has the support of the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO) within the framework of the Plan for Recovery, Transformation and Resilience (PRTR), funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU