UNIQUE is well harmonised with the main issues of the European energy policy here summarised in brief. The objectives and the content of this project are seen to be exactly in line with the overall objective for the cooperation theme 5 (ENERGY) of FP7: “Adapting the current energy system into a more sustainable one. less dependent on imported fuels and based on a diverse mix of energy sources. in particular renewables. energy carriers and non polluting sources; enhancing energy efficiency. including by rationalising use and storage of energy; addressing the pressing challenges of security of supply and climate change. whilst increasing the competitiveness of Europe's industries”. More specifically. the following issues. among those set in the Work Programme. are addressed directly:
- Improve energy efficiency
- Accelerate the penetration of renewable energy sources
- Enhance the competitiveness of European industry. including through a better involvement of SMEs.
With reference to the activity ENERGY.2 “renewable electricity generation”. it is worth stressing that the proposed research activities are aimed at the development of an integrated technology for electricity production from renewables. able to provide the means to raise substantially the share of renewable electricity. by increasing the overall conversion efficiency. the cost efficiency. and contributing to drive down the cost of electricity production from indigenous renewable energy resources.
With reference to the area ENERGY.2.2 “biomass”. the project is addressing technical challenges for advanced biomass gasification systems. for efficient power production from a variety of sustainably produced feedstocks. contributing in this way to allow power generation costs below 0.04 €/kWh in 2020.
With reference to the topic ENERGY.2007.2.2.1 “Advanced gas cleaning technologies for biomass”. the overall project objective is the development of an advanced gas conditioning and gas cleaning technology including tar conversion and abatement of detrimental trace elements and particulate emissions. in order to obtain a high purity syngas for the requirements of high-efficiency conversion technologies; it is expected that this technology will have a noticeable impact to allow the production of a gas with the specifications required for use in fuel cells in a cost-effective way. In addition. UNIQUE aims at integrating. in one reactor vessel. the fluidized bed steam gasification of biomass and the hot gas cleaning and conditioning system. reducing thermal losses and allowing for a very compact system. so that the objective of this FP7 topic is tackled in a cost-effective way. by increasing the effectiveness of catalysts and sorbents. while keeping high the thermal efficiency of the whole conversion process and avoiding particle entrainment in the producer gas at the reactor outlet. a remarkable process simplification and intensification. The final output of this technology will be the delivery of clean syngas. suitable to assure a high share of power generation even in small- to medium-scale (few MWth) CHP and power plants. and to increase the overall economic revenue. in line with the FP7 energy directives recalled above.
In relation to the environmental issues cast into FP7. the integrated gasification system that will be developed not only is favouring the penetration of renewable biomass in the electricity market. but is also aimed at reducing the environmental impact of energy generation plants. by minimising wastes and emissions. increasing conversion efficiency. allowing biomass feedstocks to be used locally. improving safety of operation (less equipment. smaller materials inventory).
As far as industrial competitiveness is concerned. the UNIQUE consortium includes partners directly involved in designing and operating biomass gasification plants that are at the forefront of the technology in Europe. and a primary world leader in gas cleaning and conditioning systems. together with universities and research centres either well recognised for their distinguished record of scientific contributions to the field. and having the potential to develop first class research and innovation: an important and well balanced competence network. fully qualified to perform the ambitious research programme and provide technological enhancement worthy of commercial exploitation in the medium term.
UNIQUE is addressed to the field of distributed power generation from renewables that is characterised by an important and increasing role of SMEs. either involved as end users of the relevant technologies. and as technology developers (“spin off” enterprises born from universities and research centres): for such reason. dissemination actions are envisaged in the project work plan. particularly addressed to SMEs. and the implementation of an “user-friendly” design tool for the exploitation of the innovation in practical applications will greatly help its utilization in small- to medium-scale “energy from biomass” initiatives.
Finally. a major general goal in the FP7 is to contribute to the creation of a critical mass of resources and the integration and coherence of research efforts on the European scale. These are in fact the primary objectives of this consortium. which is made of applicants established in seven EU different countries. spanning from EU founder Members to States who joined the Union very recently; in addition. some of the partners are co-operating in this field of research since many years. and others are new-comers contributing to better address the original expertise to the specific topics of this project: a well assorted and established partnership. with the purpose to bring together academic. industrial and research organizations at the EU level. to integrate them in a specific project well fitted into the FP7 priorities. and to contribute to enlarge the European research area up to the new frontiers of the Union.
In more general terms. development of efficient biomass energy conversion to fuels and electricity can also provide a contribution to the agriculture sector. especially at this stage of the European policy that is considering and applying radical changes in the criteria to sustain food crops with financial incentives. A substantial increase in biomass energy production would require the development of energy crops which could contribute towards a solution of the agricultural over-production crisis. Energy cropping is seen as a means of maintaining a healthy agricultural sector of the economy. whilst avoiding the massive over-production of foodstuffs.
Viability of renewable energy sources is very sensitive to price and volume. On average. electricity from renewables is more expensive than wholesale electricity. but the best biomass conversion technologies are indeed able to generate electricity at a competitive price. Among these. the Fast Internally Circulating Fluidized Bed (FICFB) gasification technology represents current state of the art in the production of clean fuel gas for conversion to electricity in a distributed power generation market. and it has been widely tested in the Güssing plant that is included in this project for advanced experimentation campaigns. The improvements to this gasification technology. brought about by the development of a chemical and catalytic system including novel hot gas cleaning done directly in the gasifier. at the gasification temperature. are seen as a substantial contribution towards achieving the targets set out in EC Directives. with a significant potential impact.
In the context of the exponential growth of the renewable energy market. there is a very strong interest world-wide in the development of reliable and cost-effective gasification systems and new methods for the production of high purity syngas to be used in highly efficient power generation systems. such as the technology pursued in UNIQUE. With many research programs presently in progress in U.S.A.. with funding from the DOE and private companies. and other countries such as Japan. it is therefore extremely important and urgent to combine the efforts and capabilities available in Europe in order to maintain competitiveness on the global market.
Due to the variety and complexity of the problems. capabilities and know-how. either scientific or technological. which are necessary for implementation of the technology. the project aims can only be fulfilled by the active collaboration of all the members of this consortium. The level of excellence in the consortium cannot be found at a single national level and is an example of the importance of an integrated European research area.
