The Short and Simple: Why Gasify

The short and simple reasons to gasify stuff are first, to eliminate or reduce pollution and second or lastly to create energy. Some useful products can be created from pyrolysis or gasification.  Some byproducts of these processes can be disposed of with greater safety and using less landfill than with leaving the biomass or biosolids in standard treatment mode.

The two different processes of dealing with biomass and biosolids are pyrolysis and gasification.  Pyrolysis is at a lower temperature range and results in tars, biochar and syngas.  Gasification is at a higher temperature range.  This latter process results in more syngas because the biochar and tar are consumed  (or cracked ) by the higher temperatures.   

Both processes produce ash.  In pyrolysis the ash is mixed with biochar.  In gasification the biochar is mostly consumed.  

Well, what if we really raised the temperature as high as humanly possible?  Apparently,  plasma gasifiers do exactly that leaving no ash, biochar, or waste gas.  (No, I didn't mention waste gas in the pyrolysis or gasification processes for brevity 'so sake).  Plasma gasifiers do leave a glass like substance that appears almost inert and occupies very little space. 

Well, why not use that?  Now,  we get into less simple concerns and observations. 

I'm looking for something residential scale or small business scale.  When I look up the higher tech solutions suddenly the only people who build or by the best solutions are governments and big businesses.  

Plasma gasifiers and biofuel synthsizers, get real big and real expensive, real quick.   The Fischer Tropsch method of synthesizing coal to liquid fuels can actually be used on anything that burns.  Unfortunately,  the only people using Fischer Tropsch are governments and big business.  They're not interested in developing that process for use in your backyard or mom and pop business. 

Incidentally,  the Fischer Tropsch fuel synthesis system was developed in Germany due to the First World War.  The allies effectively blockaded Germany from accessing oil imports.  With little or no domestic oil the German economy was destroyed and people were starving.  The German empire's ability to wage war was also destroyed.  

Despite ending hostilities the Allies continued the embargo.  More later.