Research and Development Partnership with University of British Columbia
WPAC and UBC are partners in the Biomass and Bioenergy Research Group ("BBRG"). Sample research topics include:
- Self-heating and spontaneous combustion of wood pellets
- Wood dust explosibility
- Hygiene effects of airborne dust
- Bark as feedstock
- Wood pellet lifecycle analysis
- Ventilation, storage, and cooling
- Oxygen depletion during sea transportation
- Off-gassing phenomena
- Materials safety data sheets
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Examples of equipment in the BBRG laboratory at UBC |
Other WPAC Development Initiatives
- WPAC's research director, Staffan Melin was a contributing author of the Pellet Handbook published in 2010 by Earthscan.
- WPAC is developing a best practices handbook, audit process, and certification program to improve the design, operation, and maintenance of wood pellet manufacturing facilities.
- WPAC's research director, Staffan Melin is chair of a committee of the International Organization for Standardization that is developing standard testing procedures for wood pellets.
- Together with Natural Resources Canada, FPInnovations, Premium Pellet Ltd., and BC Bioenergy Network, WPAC is developing a commercial scale pellet torrefaction facility. Torrefaction is a process that improves the quality of wood pellets by increasing energy density, making them waterproof, and increasing friability so that they can be puliverized directly with coal.
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These pictures show wood pellets (left) and pellets of torrefied wood (right).
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Other resources
Please refer to these white papers for more information on wood pellet research on health, safety, and transport issues.
Research on off-gassing and self heating of wood pellets during bulk storage
Modelling of off-gassing during marine transport - wood pellets
Review of off-gassing from wood pellets - Canadian perspective
Emissions during transport
Off-gassing during transport
Expolsibility of dust from pellets
Airborne dust evaluation - wood pellets
Oxygen depletion during sea transport - wood pellets
Airflow for bulk wood pellets