Mineralized Biomass as Energy Carrier

as compared to all other current techniques of biomass/energy conversion, is not only rather simple and fast (down to 90 minutes) but also converts practically all the carbon atoms of biomass into the final coal powder (i.e. CE is close to 1). At the same time, relevant salts (e.g. K+) stay in the aqueous phase and can be back-donated to the ecosystem. 

All three conversions are, of course, exothermic and spontaneous and store about the same level of energy in the final products. The energy loss explains the simplicity of conversion, independent of its biological or chemical origin. HTC generates water instead of CO2 as a side product coalification in these terms is just the elimination of water under preservation of the carbon scaffolds. 

using the HTC process to convert biomass into coal could represent a most efficient tool for valozation of the energy content [7], The already technically realized acceleration of the coalification down to the hour range and operation of continuous processes makes it a technically attractive, realistic instrument for generating a transportable, dense, stable, and rather safe chemical energy carrier. 

Current medium-scale operations for HTC calculate operating expenses on the order of 200/ton biocoal, not including a forthcoming economy of scale and further technical optimization. Even at this premature level, this corresponds to 2.7 (euro) cents/kWh heat (i.e. it can nicely compete with current energy media, being carbon neutral at the same time). 

However, what needs to be considered is the societal convenience of liquid fuels, which makes them a preferred choice even when coming with a high markup. Science on energy storage also has to consider such issues (e.g. how to create convenience with solid energy carriers). 

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