Koksnes gazifikācija Ugandas elektroapdāges attīstībai

"Walking along most streets in Kampala today, one is struck by the invariable whining sounds from small generators in merchandise shops- a reminder of the country's struggling economy and the fact that the energy sector is facing a severe shortage of electricity.
Early in 2006, the government said hydroelectricity production would be reduced in a bid to check the water outflow from Lake Victoria. Thus, from an operating capacity of 380MW, a mere 135 MW output was allowed to be produced.
Thermal generators have been installed to produce an extra 100MW and there are plans to construct more hydropower stations along the Nile apart from the already started Bujagali. The Ministry of Energy is concerned about energy saving techniques, as well as renewable energies. Among the latter is gasification of biomass.
There is urgent need to increase Uganda's electricity supply and more importantly reduce the country's dependence on the presently meager hydro electric power generation and on the expensive fossil fuels which power our thermo-plants.
To generate those 100 MW thermal we burn more than half a million litres of diesel per month.
Is it possible to get electricity by burning other fuels apart from fossil derived ones? Yes! We can burn biomass. A certain tea estate is already getting most of its power from burning eucalyptus wood in Fort Portal. Their system is a gasification one.
If one has well trained technical people and the fuel supply is available, a company could produce its own power without paying electricity bills or buying the now expensive diesel.
In an attempt to provide Uganda with such expertise in the fuel chain and gasification techniques, CREEC (Centre for Research in Energy and Energy Conservation) has developed a programme to work with this pioneer and help other private sector players to join the renewable energy group.
Simply put, gasification is a conversion of solid fuels into a combustible gas. Wood-gas generators, called gasogene, were used to power motor vehicles in Europe during World War II fuel shortages.
Essentially, the process of biomass gasification converts the carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in the cellulose, hemi-cellulose, and lignin that constitute biomass into a mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide, water vapour and small amounts of more complex organic species.
The solution for Uganda, in the short term, is the simple gasification process to supply small scale electricity generation based on indigenous fuels. By proper design of the components of the system it should be possible to manufacture all the components of the gasifier in Uganda. Generators to be attached to the gasifier are standard products that are commercially available from many local suppliers.
Uganda has a high potential for energy biomass production, with large amounts of land that could be used to produce sustainable yields with Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) systems on steep slopes, degraded land or agricultural fallows. The SRC systems have dense tree or shrub plantations that are harvested at 1-4 year intervals. You never cut the tree but just trim it. These systems can contribute to soil conservation, biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
Nitrogen-fixing species, such as Acacia ssp or the native Sesbania sesban, enhance soil fertility over the long run and build up organic matter. Agricultural residues can also be an excellent alternative to using woody biomass because they are abundant and renewable and normally available for free. Examples of these are coffee and rice husks, maize cobs, saw dust, etc.
Gasification is worth looking into as an option for rural electrification. Gasifiers can be built in Uganda and the zero or negative value agricultural residues can replace diesel as fuel for those engines."

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