Bob Rummer
Forest Operations Research
 Some
context
 Logging residues
 Fuelwood harvesting
 Understory harvesting
 Transportation
Short Rotation
Woody Crops
Logging Residues
Fuel Reduction or
Forest Health thinning
Plantation Fuelwood
Harvest
Cellulosic Ethanol
Co-firing with Coal
?
Advanced
Biofuels
Densified Biomass
Felling
Extracting
Processing
Loading
Transportation
 Cost
of feedstock is biggest single cost
Operating & Maint
Recovery
1 bdt = $70-80Capital
electricity
Profit
Hog Fuel = $36 to 40 bdt delivered
 $35 - $45 odt
by 2012
 $60 - $70 odt
pulpwood
 $40 - $50 odt
fuelchips
Existing
conditions
Desired Outcome
Range of Forest Values
 Social
acceptance of forest mgmt
 Multiple values of forests
 Public, private, industrial forests
 Ecological effects of forest mgmt
Current debate about the definition of
“renewable biomass.”
Soils
Water
Wildlife
Residual Stand
 Woody
biomass utilization is
complicated by forest resource issues
 Impacts must be addressed
 Get the right tool for the job
 Different jobs need different
operations
 10
to 20% of stand volume left behind
conventional product removals
 Limbs, tops, culls, butt cuts and defect
 At roadside? In-woods? Concentrated?
 Large potential existing source
 Disposal issue
“The low hanging fruit”
 Conventional
 One-pass
w/e-wood
 Two-pass w/e-wood
Rec. Vol
50%
Cost
$10/gt
85%
$7.50/gt
84%
$9/gt
 Separate
biomass from other (Delimb)
 Piling, handling, storage for processing
 Processing for transport
• Chipping/grinding
• Baling/bundling
• Other conversions
 Loading
and hauling
Clean Chips
Roundwood
Fuel Chips
 Chipping
or grinding capacity
•140 hp
•14,000 lbs
•Towable
•17” infeed



1000 hp
Up to 200 tons/hr
Swappable rotor for variation in chip dimension
www.forestconcepts.com
26 pcf
JD B380 Biomass Bundler
 Transport
density
 Separates processing and hauling
 Drying/storage characteristics
 Production operations in Europe
Payload = 1/3 solid wood
 Cheapest
and easiest to get
 Co-product of another operation and
biomass is NOT the main event
 Scattered residues are too costly to
collect for energy
 Densifying logging residues is key to
reducing costs of handling and
transport
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

Cutting trees specifically for energy
product
Thinning or plantation clearcut
Short Rotation Woody Crops (SRWC)
BCAP Phase II
Cost
$25.00
Cost ($/odt)
$20.00
$15.00
$10.00
$5.00
$0.00
0
5
10
15
DBH (in)
20
25
 High
utilization of biomass
 Simplified operations
 Smaller equipment possible
 Full cost of operation charged to
biomass
 Piece size
 Emphasis on high production




Brushlands (TX, MN, NV)
Understory biomass (coastal plain)
Lower volumes per acre
Management value in addition to
product value
Photo: BLM, Alturas



Recovery volumes are relatively low
per acre
Material is mixed
Questions about nutrient impacts
 Generally
half the delivered cost
 Payload is key
 Product form and system affect
loading
 Accessibility with large cube
transport can be limiting
 Getting
to the biomass
 Compatibility with other mat’ls
 Maximize payload to reduce cost
 Logistics efficiency
 Wide
range of technical solutions
 Requirements of user and the forest
are the constraints
 Systems engineering problems
 Not everything works