Technical Notes: Estimation of Gross Heating Values of Biomass Fuels

ABSTRACT EXPERIMENTAL data reported in the literature for gross heating values of various types of biomass were correlated with heating values that were estimated using the Boie equation. This equation was originally developed to estimate the gross heating values of fossil fuels from their respective compositions of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur. The estimated heating values agreed within 50% of the experimental data for 47 types of plants and crop residues and within 8% for cattle feedlot manure of normal quality. This correlation makes it possible to accurately predict the gross heating values of most biomass fuels of known ultimate composition and ash content.