While alternative energy is slowly emerging, its problems and limitations are also revealed. It used to be that the alternative energy badge outweighed the disadvantages, as going green was more important than the efficiency of “dirty” energy.
Experts are starting to compare all the characteristics of both forms of energy, the ones derived from fossil fuels and the alternative ones, especially wind energy, photovoltaics, and hydropower plants.
One of the critical problems of these three forms is dependence on nature. Windmills can work well only with the right amount of wind, which often occurs in the form of gusts. Many times, however, it is insufficient for efficient operation.Photovoltaics is highly dependent on the number of sunshine hours. Hydroelectric power plants depend entirely on river water levels, which must be neither too low nor too high.
In addition to the dubious latest hit, nuclear energy, there is another solution: generating electricity from waste wood biomass.
The first advantage of technology is a bigger number of working hours, not conditioned by the weather. With an expected operation of 8,100 hours a year, they operate seven times more than photovoltaics, four times more than wind energy, and twice the operating hours of hydropower plants.
At the same time, the electricity is stable and does not create spikes or jerky fluctuations, as is the case with the other listed technologies.
However, producing electricity from biomass is not ideal either, as the efficiency of the average factory is at the limit of profitability. European entrepreneur Roberto Hroval offers a solution to this global problem and seemingly unsolvable Gordian knot. His innovative solution comes in the form of the Themis Ecosystem (TE) business environment.
Biomass Ultima Plant as a Themis Ecosystem’s Driver
In a complex system that combines tangible and digital elements, so-called drivers play a leading role. Drivers are innovative but proven technologies that solve the world’s most pressing problems.
One of the drivers is Biomass Ultima, a newly designed plant for processing wood biomass. The technology is full of innovations and is considered the most advanced and efficient biomass technology worldwide. The factory is located in Slovenia, Europe, and is currently the only one of its kind.
After seven major innovations, the production process took on an entirely new form. With extensive filtering, separating, and cleaning of substances that would otherwise end up as waste, the production acquired four new byproducts.
While conventional biomass factories only generate electricity and heat, the Biomass Ultima factory (BUF) produces, in addition to green electricity, organic wood vinegar, organic tar, organic carbon, and organic fertilizer.
“Our key advantage lies in greater efficiency, a better approach to the market, a specific way of marketing, and greater CO2 emission reduction. As a result, we produce much higher added value per factory,” explained the founder.
However, the optimization doesn’t end there. With excess energy, the factory powers another, external Green Vertical Farming (GVF) module, which produces high-quality food in a separate facility.
For a more detailed explanation and analysis of the efficiency of the technology, we will use a special info board already wall-mounted in the factory. It summarizes the processes’ key characteristics and reveals the technology’s advantages and benefits. It also acts as a seal of quality and approval by Themis Ecosystem.
Explaining the Driver’s Info Board
Each driver earns its own info board, which is placed in a visible place in the facility. The info board can only be mounted after the driver is accepted into the Themis Ecosystem (TE) and adopts the required standards that are way above the general industry requirements.
Implementing TE standards alone gives the technology acompetitive advantage, as the end products are also of above-average quality, and the processes are highly optimized.
Let’s look at the markings on the driver’s info board.
The top row announces the primary technology used in the factory–Biomass Ultima technology, ensuring above-average utilization of wood biomass. Since BUF is a showroom model for all others that will be built according to the same model, Biomass Ultima is also the name of the factory.
In a second raw is the inscription Age Lab Europe, which represents the umbrella group under which the factory operates. Its status is laboratory and R&D. As a result, BUF also belongs to the R&D category.
To the right of this inscription is the designation of origin, which guarantees the quality of technology, certification, compliance with legislation, etc. In the case of BUF, it is Switzerland (Swiss Innovative Technology).
The info board’s middle part highlights the driver’s three main characteristics. The label on the left (Zero emissions) indicates that the factory operates without air and ground emissions. The central label, Green Electric Power, announces that the main product, electricity, belongs to the category of green fuel.
The label on the right, CO2 reducing, announces that the technology works far above environmental standards. CO2-negative production also brings additional income to the factory, thanks to the CO2 coupon approach. Besides, surplus energy that powers the GVF module is also counted in CO2 reduction since green farming is a CO2-negative process.
The line below is reserved for byproducts that the technologycreates. On the left is Green Vertical Farming (GVF), followedby organic carbon with a black badge, organic vinegar with a red badge, and organic tar with a yellow badge.
At the bottom of the info board are two very important fields. The left one announces that the driver is part of the Themis Ecosystem, ensuring that the technology includes proven modular solutions for optimizing processes, products, and conditions for higher-added value.
The right side of the bottom line shows that the driver also meets the conditions for placement on the Online Industrial Exchange (OIX). One of the conditions for becoming a part of the TE group is the commitment to digitizing the final products into special e-vouchers IRMU (Industrial RawMaterial Unit). This move gives the project a whole new dimension.
The buyer of IRMUs owns a fraction of all the products the driver creates, combined with a proportional part of the CO2 reduction. Namely, each IRMU consists of two parts: the proportional part of the final products and the proportional part of CO2 reduction.