Process Design and Economic Assessment of Biomass-Based Hydrogen Production Processes

The development of hydrogen energy is in progress as one of the key paths for achieving net-zero and carbon–neutral society. Significant attention is currently being paid to pathways for biomass-based hydrogen production, as the utilization of biomass energy is more sustainable than that of fossil fuels. In this study, the production of hydrogen from biomass gasification and reforming is modeled with Aspen Plus®. This process model is built to simulate thermo-physical properties and operating characteristics of syngas production through the gasification of woodchip and tar reforming, and the conversion of syngas to hydrogen, based on steam reforming and water gas shifting reaction. The hydrogen production rate and production costs are evaluated considering biomass feedstock’s with different moisture content, ash content, and particle sizes.