Peanut shells, corn stalks and even tree bark can be dried, ground and re-purposed to form Biomass pellets that can be used as a replacement for coal. (Our illustration shows the raw material being collected.)Shengchang Bioenergy makes a line of stoves and boilers in which the pellets can be burned. The company says the stoves are up to five times more energy efficient than traditional coal boilers and are slightly cheaper to operate.
New stoves are being issued as part of a test project with Shengchang Bioenergy and the Ministry of Agriculture. The Shengchang boilers are one small-scale example of how China can make a large-scale transition to becoming a low-carbon economy.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) – China’s top economic planner – has pledged to cut carbon intensity 40 to 45% below 2005 levels by 2020. Carbon intensity is the amount of carbon released per unit of gross domestic product.
CNN World reports that Shengchang Bioenergy has manufactured 12,000 stoves since opening in 2006. Many of them now belong to low-income families in the neighborhood around the plant outside Beijing, but many more are needed throughout China.