Dr. Thomas B. Reed wrote on his Biomass Energy Foundation website:
Biomass fuels are characterized by what is called the "Proximate and Ultimate analyses". The "proximate analysis" gives moisture content, volatile content (when heated to 950 C), the free carbon remaining at that point, the ash (mineral) in the sample and the high heating value (HHV) based on the complete combustion of the sample to carbon dioxide and liquid water. (The low heating value, LHV, gives the heat released when the hydrogen is burned to gaseous water, corresponding to most heating applications and can be calculated from the HHV and H2 fraction.)
The "ultimate analysis" gives the composition of the biomass in wt% of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen (the major components) as well as sulfur and nitrogen (if any).
The table below, showing Proximate and Ultimate analyses, is from Appendix A of our book1, and gives analyses of over 140 fuels, including biomass components, natural biomass (woods, agricultural products), processed biomass, other solid and liquid fuels. For ease of reading, download to a spreadsheet file.
The Proximate Analysis (D-3175) gives the fixed carbon, volatile and ash content of biomass. The Ultimate Analysis gives the elemental (C, H, O, S, N) analysis. The Gross heating value. The data is often published with various articles in widely scattered journals. The data have been brought together for convenience in this one place. These standard ASTM tests and are performed by many laboratories in the country, routinely on coal, but competently on biomass. They typically cost $100-$200 so it is good to be able to find collected results for various biomass materials.
Our book "Thermal Data for Natural and Synthetic Fuels", Marcel Dekker, 1998, gives an extended list of the Prox and Ult analyses of about 300 forms of biomass, most of which were collected in the thesis of S. A. Channiwala from the Indian Institute of Technology, 1992.
I have long been fascinated with the close relationship between the heat of combustion (high heating value, HHV) and the elemental composition as given in the ultimate analysis. This was first noticed by DuLong in the 19th century and brought up to date by other scientists. Most recently a Mr. S. A. Channiwala 1992 thesis, The Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay) collected data on over 200 species of biomass and fitted the following equation to the data:
HHV (in kJ/g) = 0.3491C + 1.1783 H – 0.1034 O – 0.0211 A + 0.1005 S -0.0151 N
(where C is the weight fraction of carbon; H of hydrogen; O of oxygen; A of ash; S of sulfur and N of nitrogen appearing in the ultimate analysis.)
He found that this equation fitted the experimental data with an average error of 1.45%, typical of the error of most measurements. This equation permits using heat values in calculations and models of biomass processes.
Other analyses can be found at the following websites:
The Energy Center of the Netherlands,
IEA, The International Energy Agency,
|
Name |
Fixed |
Volatiles |
Ash |
C |
H |
O |
N |
S |
HHV |
HHV |
|
Carbon |
MEAS |
CALC |
||||||||
|
% |
% |
% |
% |
% |
% |
% |
% |
kJ/g |
kJ/g |
|
|
WOOD |
||||||||||
|
Beech |
– |
– |
0.65 |
51.64 |
6.26 |
41.45 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
20.38 |
21.10 |
|
Black |
18.26 |
80.94 |
0.80 |
50.73 |
5.71 |
41.93 |
0.57 |
0.01 |
19.71 |
20.12 |
|
Douglas |
17.70 |
81.50 |
0.80 |
52.30 |
6.30 |
40.50 |
0.10 |
0.00 |
21.05 |
21.48 |
|
Hickory |
– |
– |
0.73 |
47.67 |
6.49 |
43.11 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
20.17 |
19.82 |
|
Maple |
– |
– |
1.35 |
50.64 |
6.02 |
41.74 |
0.25 |
0.00 |
19.96 |
20.42 |
|
Ponderosa |
17.17 |
82.54 |
0.29 |
49.25 |
5.99 |
44.36 |
0.06 |
0.03 |
20.02 |
19.66 |
|
Poplar |
– |
– |
0.65 |
51.64 |
6.26 |
41.45 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
20.75 |
21.10 |
|
Red |
12.50 |
87.10 |
0.40 |
49.55 |
6.06 |
43.78 |
0.13 |
0.07 |
19.30 |
19.91 |
|
Redwood |
16.10 |
83.50 |
0.40 |
53.50 |
5.90 |
40.30 |
0.10 |
0.00 |
21.03 |
21.45 |
|
Western |
15.20 |
84.80 |
2.20 |
50.40 |
5.80 |
41.10 |
0.10 |
0.10 |
20.05 |
20.14 |
|
Yellow |
– |
– |
1.31 |
52.60 |
7.00 |
40.10 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
22.30 |
22.44 |
|
White |
16.58 |
83.17 |
0.25 |
49.00 |
5.98 |
44.75 |
0.05 |
0.01 |
19.95 |
19.52 |
|
White |
17.20 |
81.28 |
1.52 |
49.48 |
5.38 |
43.13 |
0.35 |
0.01 |
19.42 |
19.12 |
|
Madrone |
12.00 |
87.80 |
0.20 |
48.94 |
6.03 |
44.75 |
0.05 |
0.02 |
19.51 |
19.56 |
|
Mango |
11.36 |
85.64 |
2.98 |
46.24 |
6.08 |
44.42 |
0.28 |
19.17 |
18.65 |
|
|
BARK |
||||||||||
|
Douglas |
25.80 |
73.00 |
1.20 |
56.20 |
5.90 |
36.70 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
22.10 |
22.75 |
|
Loblolly |
33.90 |
54.70 |
0.40 |
56.30 |
5.60 |
37.70 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
21.78 |
22.35 |
|
ENERGY |
||||||||||
|
Eucalyptus |
17.82 |
81.42 |
0.76 |
49.00 |
5.87 |
43.97 |
0.30 |
0.01 |
19.42 |
19.46 |
|
Casuarina |
19.58 |
78.58 |
1.83 |
48.50 |
6.04 |
43.32 |
0.31 |
0.00 |
18.77 |
19.53 |
|
Poplar |
16.35 |
82.32 |
1.33 |
48.45 |
5.85 |
43.69 |
0.47 |
0.01 |
19.38 |
19.26 |
|
Sudan |
18.60 |
72.75 |
8.65 |
44.58 |
5.35 |
39.18 |
1.21 |
0.01 |
17.39 |
17.62 |
|
PROCESSED |
||||||||||
|
Plywood |
15.77 |
82.14 |
2.09 |
48.13 |
5.87 |
42.46 |
1.45 |
0.00 |
18.96 |
19.26 |
|
AGRICULTURAL |
||||||||||
|
Peach |
19.85 |
79.12 |
1.03 |
53.00 |
5.90 |
39.14 |
0.32 |
0.05 |
20.82 |
21.39 |
|
Walnut |
21.16 |
78.28 |
0.56 |
49.98 |
5.71 |
43.35 |
0.21 |
0.01 |
20.18 |
19.68 |
|
Almond |
21.54 |
76.83 |
1.63 |
51.30 |
5.29 |
40.90 |
0.66 |
0.01 |
20.01 |
19.87 |
|
Black |
18.56 |
80.69 |
0.78 |
49.80 |
5.82 |
43.25 |
0.22 |
0.01 |
19.83 |
19.75 |
|
Corncobs |
18.54 |
80.10 |
1.36 |
46.58 |
5.87 |
45.46 |
0.47 |
0.01 |
18.77 |
18.44 |
|
Wheat |
19.80 |
71.30 |
8.90 |
43.20 |
5.00 |
39.40 |
0.61 |
0.11 |
17.51 |
16.71 |
|
Cotton |
22.43 |
70.89 |
6.68 |
43.64 |
5.81 |
43.87 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
18.26 |
17.40 |
|
Corn |
19.25 |
75.17 |
5.58 |
43.65 |
5.56 |
43.31 |
0.61 |
0.01 |
17.65 |
17.19 |
|
Sugarcane |
14.95 |
73.78 |
11.27 |
44.80 |
5.35 |
39.55 |
0.38 |
0.01 |
17.33 |
17.61 |
|
Rice |
15.80 |
63.60 |
20.60 |
38.30 |
4.36 |
35.45 |
0.83 |
0.06 |
14.89 |
14.40 |
|
Pine |
26.12 |
72.38 |
1.50 |
48.21 |
6.57 |
43.72 |
20.12 |
20.02 |
||
|
Cotton |
15.10 |
67.30 |
17.60 |
39.59 |
5.26 |
36.38 |
2.09 |
0.00 |
16.42 |
15.85 |
|
AQUATIC |
||||||||||
|
Water |
– |
80.40 |
19.60 |
40.30 |
4.60 |
33.99 |
1.51 |
0.00 |
14.86 |
15.54 |
|
Brown |
– |
57.90 |
42.10 |
27.80 |
3.77 |
23.69 |
4.63 |
1.05 |
10.75 |
10.85 |
|
AVERAGE |
47.91 |
5.74 |
40.98 |
0.52 |
0.05 |
19.11 |
19.15 |
|||
|
LIQUID |
||||||||||
|
n-octane |
0.00 |
– |
0.00 |
84.10 |
15.90 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
47.80 |
48.09 |
|
Benzene, |
0.00 |
92.25 |
7.75 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
41.79 |
41.34 |
||
|
Motor |
0.00 |
85.50 |
14.40 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.10 |
46.88 |
46.83 |
||
|
Kerosene |
0.00 |
0.01 |
85.80 |
14.10 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.10 |
46.50 |
46.58 |
|
|
Methanol, |
0.00 |
0.00 |
37.50 |
12.50 |
50.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
22.69 |
22.65 |
|
|
Ethanol, |
0.00 |
0.00 |
52.20 |
13.00 |
34.80 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
30.15 |
29.94 |
|
|
PYROLYSIS |
||||||||||
|
LBL |
0.78 |
72.30 |
8.60 |
17.60 |
0.20 |
0.01 |
33.70 |
33.53 |
||
|
BOM |
0.66 |
82.00 |
8.80 |
9.20 |
0.60 |
0.00 |
36.80 |
38.02 |
||
|
Coke-oven |
0.25 |
91.75 |
5.50 |
0.80 |
0.90 |
0.80 |
38.20 |
38.49 |
||
|
Low |
83.00 |
8.20 |
7.40 |
0.60 |
0.80 |
38.75 |
37.94 |
|||
|
SOLID |
||||||||||
|
Coal |
55.80 |
33.90 |
10.30 |
75.50 |
5.00 |
4.90 |
1.20 |
3.10 |
31.75 |
31.82 |
|
Peat, |
26.87 |
70.13 |
3.00 |
54.81 |
5.38 |
35.81 |
0.89 |
0.11 |
22.00 |
21.70 |
|
Charcoal |
89.31 |
93.88 |
1.02 |
92.04 |
2.45 |
2.96 |
0.53 |
1.00 |
34.39 |
34.78 |
|
Oak |
55.60 |
27.10 |
17.30 |
64.60 |
2.10 |
15.50 |
0.40 |
0.10 |
23.05 |
23.06 |
|
Casuarina |
71.53 |
15.23 |
13.24 |
77.54 |
0.93 |
5.62 |
2.67 |
0.00 |
27.12 |
27.26 |
|
Coconut |
87.17 |
9393.00 |
2.90 |
88.95 |
0.73 |
6.04 |
1.38 |
0.00 |
31.12 |
31.21 |
|
Eucalyptus |
70.32 |
19.22 |
10.45 |
76.10 |
1.33 |
11.10 |
1.02 |
0.00 |
27.60 |
26.75 |
|
ORGANIC |
M |
cal/mo |
cal/g |
kJ/g |
||||||
|
Acetone; |
58 |
62.07 |
10.34 |
27.59 |
428 |
7.38 |
30.9 |
31.01 |
||
|
Acetic |
60 |
40.00 |
6.67 |
53.33 |
209 |
3.48 |
14.6 |
16.30 |
||
|
D-Glucose; |
180 |
40.00 |
6.67 |
53.33 |
670 |
3.72 |
15.6 |
16.30 |
||
|
Phenol; |
94 |
76.60 |
6.38 |
17.02 |
730 |
7.76 |
32.5 |
32.50 |
||
|
Cellulose; |
162 |
44.44 |
6.17 |
49.38 |
17.68 |
|||||
|
Lignin |
63.8 |
6.30 |
29.90 |
26.60 |
||||||
|
Lignin |
59.8 |
6.40 |
33.70 |
24.93 |
||||||
|
EXCEPTIONS |
||||||||||
|
Hydrogen, |
0.00 |
100.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
141.26 |
117.83 |
|||
|
Carbon |
42.86 |
0.00 |
57.14 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
10.16 |
9.05 |
|||
|
Acetylene |
92.25 |
7.75 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
49.60 |
41.34 |
|||
|
Carbon |
100.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
32.81 |
34.91 |
|||||
|
Carbon |
27.27 |
0.00 |
72.7% |
0.00 |
9.45 |
|||||
|
Water |
0.00 |
11.11 |
88.89 |
0.00 |
3.90 |
(1) "Thermal Data for Natural and Synthetic Fuels", S. Gaur and T. Reed, Marcel Dekker, 1998. See revised and updated publication (click here).