Bubbling fluidised bed gasification of wheat straw–gasifier performance using mullite as bed material

•Gasification of wheat straw is hindered by lack of experience and bed agglomeration.•A small scale, bubbling fluidised bed using mullite as bed material gasified straw.•Maximum lower heating value of the producer gas was approximately 3.6MJm−3.•Producer gas was considered for use in heat applications due to LHV of gas.•Equilibrium modelling calculated theoretical cold gas efficiency of 73% at 0.35 ER. The adoption of wheat straw as a fuel for gasification processes has been hindered due to a lack of experience and its propensity to cause bed agglomeration in fluidised bed gasifiers. In this study wheat straw was gasified in a small scale, air blown bubbling fluidised bed using mullite as bed material. The gasifier was successfully operated and isothermal bed conditions maintained at temperatures up to 750°C. Below this temperature, the gasifier was operated at equivalence ratios from 0.1 to 0.26. The maximum lower heating value of the producer gas was approximately 3.6MJm−3 at standard temperature and pressure (STP) conditions and was obtained at an equivalence ratio of 0.165. In general, a producer gas with a lower heating value of approximately 3MJm−3 at STP could be obtained across the entire range of equivalence ratios operated. The lower heating value tended to fluctuate, however, and it was considered more appropriate for use in heat applications than as a fuel for internal combustion engines. The concentration of combustibles in the producer gas was lower than that obtained from the gasification of wheat straw in a dual distributor type gasifier and a circulating fluidised bed. These differences were associated with reactor design and, in the case of the circulating fluidised bed, with higher temperatures. Equilibrium modelling at adiabatic conditions, which provides the maximum performance of the system, showed that the gasifier was operating at suboptimal equivalence ratios to achieve greatest efficiencies. The maximum calculated theoretical cold gas efficiency of 73% was obtained at an equivalence ratio of 0.35.