An innovative mill that grinds wood using shock waves

Expobiomasa, the international bioenergy fair promoted by the Spanish Association for the Energy Valorization of Biomass (Avebiom), has awarded the 2019 Innovation Prize to the German company Pallmann for its EcoPulser project, an innovative mill that grinds wood using 'shock waves'.

Likewise, the jury —which valued the innovative character, originality and efficiency of the 32 finalist projects— awarded two runner-up prizes: one to the Valencian multinational Innergy, for its new Bio-Bloc generator; and another to the Finnish company Saalasti, for the innovation presented by its latest generation press, the 'Press 1803 Hippo' model.

Savings, efficiency and quality.
Pallmann's new EcoPulser wood chipper can grind around five tons of wood per hour, with only two 22 kW motors each, allowing for energy cost savings of 80% compared to conventional 'mills'.

Because it uses a chipping system that doesn't rely on physical contact between parts, maintenance costs are reduced by two-thirds. Furthermore, the chipping process doesn't produce wood dust, thus preventing the formation of ATEX (flammable gases or vapors), and the dust extraction system consumes between 10% and 20% less energy. EcoPulser is designed for producers of pellets, briquettes, wood chips, and power plants, as well as for wood recyclers.

As for the innovative Bio-Bloc from the Innergy group, which will be making its world debut at Expobiomasa, it is a new thermal energy generator using hot air turbine technology powered by biomass and waste. With its compact and transportable design, it eliminates the need for a boiler or pressurized equipment, as well as water or oil as the heat transfer fluid to drive the turbine.

The runner-up prize awarded to the Finnish company Saalasti recognizes the innovation of its latest-generation press, the 'Press 1803 Hippo', which is 35 times more efficient than previous models in the mechanical drying of biomass for energy purposes, drying one ton using approximately 25 kWh. Its use could result in annual savings of millions of eur, while also preventing the emission of thousands of tons of CO2₂.