Bioenergy Industry

Due to high operating expenses in the biofuel industry, waste-to-energy, wood pellet, and plant-based biofuel manufacturers strive for efficiency. Weigh feeders and conveyor belt scales from Thayer Scale track raw ingredient amounts and monitor and control material inputs and outputs; these systems ensure bioenergy manufacturers meet or exceed their stated goals for cost efficiency and environmental compliance.

The following biomass projects employ Thayer Scale equipment today:

  • Municipal solid-waste-to-energy producers use Thayer conveyor belt scales to monitor incoming material stocks.
  • Wood pellet producers rely on Thayer Scale’s certified-for-trade conveyor belt scales to weigh materials for export.
  • Biofuel (ethanol) manufacturers employ Thayer Scale’s weigh belts to accurately meter fuel inputs, including corn stover, whole corn starch, germ, and bran.
  • Hybrid power plants use Thayer Scale’s conveyor belt scales to blend coal with waste wood to create a cleaner heat source and to reduce pollution.

Thayer Scale equipment for the biofuel industry includes:

Light- and heavy-duty weigh-belt feeders that are “Built to Survive” in harsh environments

Loss-in-weight feeders

  • Single- or twin-screw
  • Vibratory pan or rotary feeder
  • Feed rates from grams/minute to tons/hour

Flexible and easy-to-integrate conveyor belt scale designs

Hopper and silo discharge solutions

  • Created to ensure precise, uninterrupted flow of material

Remote process-control and instrumentation-monitoring packages

Biomass Energy: A Primer

What are the primary methods used to create clean energy from biomass products?

  1. Burning or gasifying biomass products to produce steam to turn turbines, which generate electricity
  2. Burning biomass products to generate heat in thermal systems (when combined with electricity generation this is known as “combined heat and power”)
  3. Processing biomass feed stocks to produce liquid fuels such as corn ethanol or biodiesel