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About Bixby Biomass
What is Biomass?
Simply explained, biomass is vegetation such as trees, grasses, plant parts such as leaves, agricultural waste products, and ocean plants. Being extremely efficient solarcollection systems, plants produce and store energy in the form of carbon as they grow.
During photosynthesis, plants combine carbon dioxide from the air and water from the ground to form carbohydrates, which form the building blocks of biomass. The solar energy that drives photosynthesis is stored in the chemical bonds of the structural components of biomass. If we burn biomass efficiently (which extracts the energy stored in the chemical bonds), then oxygen from the atmosphere combines with the carbon in plants to produce carbon dioxide and water.
Before 1875, the United States' primary energy supply was biomass. And back then, an acre of native grass provided the energy to fuel a horse, then the country's only means of transportation. (That's roughly what it took to pasture one.) Today, using that same quantity of native grass as a biomass resource, enough fuel can be created to drive a car 10,000 miles.
| Fuel Source |
BTU Value Per Unit |
Units Required To Produce 1,000,000 BTUs at Typical Cost |
Deliverable Cost for Usable Heat |
Heat Cost Ratio Using Dry Shelled Corn in Bixby MaxFire™ |
| Dry Shelled Corn |
392,000 BTUs
Per Bushel
(7,000 Per Pound) |
2.55 Bushels
@ $2.25 / Bushel |
$7.17 |
100.0%
(Base) |
| Coal |
20,500,000 BTUs Per ton
(10,250 Per Pound) |
.0488 Tons
@ $150 / Ton |
$9.17 |
136% |
| Firewood |
16,800,000 BTUs Per Cord |
.0595 Cords @ $130 / Cord |
$11.54 |
161% |
| Natural Gas |
1,000 BTUs
Per Cubic Foot |
1,000 Cubic Feet
@ $0.0122 / Cu. Ft. |
$12.84 |
179% |
| Wood Pellets |
16,000 BTUs
Per Ton
(8,000 Per Pound) |
.0625 Tons
@ $200 / Ton |
$15.63 |
218% |
| Heating Oil #2 |
138,000 BTUs
Per Gallon |
7.25 Gallons
@ $1.75 / Gallon |
$15.86 |
221% |
| Liquid Propane |
91,690 BTUs
Per Gallon |
10.9 Gallons
@ $1.53 / Gallon |
$17.55 |
245% |
| Electricity |
3,415 BTUs
Per KwH |
293 KwH
@ $0.093 / kWh |
$27.25 |
380% |
Source: Bixby Energy Systems, Inc. on the basis of published U.S. federal and state government data.
Note: It is important to realize that, even within a state, average energy or fuel prices can vary widely. It is important to use your customer’s energy bill to determine the savings. |
Pellet Solutions
Here's what we see for the future.
Working with the Agricultural Utilization research Institute (AURI), Bixby scientists are developing Bixby Certified Biomass Pellets. These pellets will, for the first time, allow a wide variety of biomass materials to be converted and used as a single uniform fuel source. Pelletizing biomass materials creates a fuel with a very high BTU per pound value.
Bixby Certified Biomass Pellets will be easy to use and transport and represent an improvement over currently available wood pellets. Made from America's vast and almost unlimited supply of quickly renewable biomass materials, economical Bixby Certified Biomass Pellets are designed to provide a consistent BTU value every time.
Fuels
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Dry Shelled Corn
Dry shelled corn in its natural state is unique because it contains all the ideal elements found in a perfect biomass pellet. It does not require further processing and is plentiful, cheap and delivers a very high BTU (heat energy) value. |
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Wood Pellets
Wood pellets are a compressed sawdust fuel. The fiber is formed into pellets using moisture and pressure without additives. As the cost of corn continues to rise due to increasing ethanol demand, wood pellets are a very cost-effective alternative. |
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Venting
Direct vent appliances are sealed combustion systems. That means the air for combustion is delivered to the appliance through the venting system from the outside. As a result, direct vent appliances do not consume warm indoor air for combustion, and they are not subject to oxygen starvation, poor draft and other problems associated with "tight" energy efficient homes.
With sealed direct vent systems, all combustion by-products are safely vented out through the venting system, eliminating fumes, water moisture and indoor air contamination. Direct venting is ideal for both side-wall venting, as well as conventional through-the-roof vent installations.
Bixby's direct venting solution, DirectVent GS, offers exceptional engineering and easy, flexible installation configurations. Unitized construction eliminates field assembly of inner and outer flues. Precision pipe and fittings have been engineered for optimum appliance performance. And it's backed by a one-year warranty.
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