Price Winner: Josef Fuchs

His research focuses on an innovative process based on the so called Dual Fluidized Bed (DFB) Steam Gasification. The DFB Steam Gasification is a well-known process for the thermochemical conversion of biomass into a valuable product gas. Industrial plant have already been built in Güssing, Villach, Senden and Gothenburg. Most plants aim at the production of heat and electricity from woody biomass. Unfortunately, the price for woody biomass increased significantly the last decade. Therefore, Josef Fuchs research focus is the so-called "Sorption Enhanced Reforming" (SER) process. This process is a further development of the DFB Steam Gasification and is based on the usage of limestone as bed material. Proper process conditions allow the in-situ removal of carbon dioxide from the product gas, which leads to a shift in the product gas composition and leads to a hydrogen content in the product gas up tu 75 vol.-%db. Combined with the usage of pure oxygen in the combustion reactor of the process a valuble product gas can be obtained on the one hand. On the other hand a pure flue gas stream consisting of nearly pure carbon dioxide could be gained.

Josef Fuchs will use the price for participation in international conferences (e.g. SEEP2018 in Paisley) and hardware for kinetic modelling of the process.