| Basic facts about fuel pellets |
| A fuel pellet is as per definition a "short cylindrical piece" intended for combustion. Fuel pellets are produced by pressing a finely powdered dry fuel from waste products from the forest industry. The diameter of the fuel pellets on the Swedish market today varies between 6-8 mm. The effect on the outer environment is very low at combustion of pellets. At combustion in a pellet system like for example a pellet boiler or stove, the stored sun energy inside the raw material is released. The emissions of unburned hydrocarbon as well as dust are in most cases way under the limited value of the authorities. The carbon dioxide, that has been taken up and bounded during the growth of the trees, is released in the process to once again be taken up by nature. In other words, a circuitry. The combustion of pellets does not bring extra carbon dioxide to the atmosphere which is the case at combustion of fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal. |
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| Pellets are transported in large-scale in a bulk truck or on pick-up truck but for heating plants close to a harbour transportation with boat also exists. For distribution to house-owners there are more or less developed alternatives such as bags on pallets, big bags, bulk etc. |
The amount of energy used for transportation, drying and pelletizing is approx. six % of the energy content in the raw-material, provided that the raw-material is a dry by-product from the wood industry. The actual transportation makes less than one percent of the energy content in the fuel (at distances under 10 mil). Therefore you get out 18 times the energy put into the process. If the raw-material has to be dried the relation is approx. 1:7.
| Deliverers of Swedish standard pellets |
| The Pellet Industry's National Federation (PiR), has 16 member companies spread out around Sweden. Together they own 23 production plants of the approx. 25 larger plants there are in the country and stand for approx. 85% of the total production on the Swedish market. |
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