Biomass versus diesel and LPG for industrial drying
Where biomass wins, and where it does not.
Biomass, diesel and LPG all deliver process heat across the same 200,000–900,000 kcal/h range. They differ on four things that decide the choice: cost per unit of delivered heat, what currency that cost is denominated in, how much operator time the system consumes, and what the fuel supply chain actually looks like at your site.
Specification
These are the platform figures every configuration on this page is built from. The values specific to your product and volume are fixed at the sizing stage.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Biomass burner | 200,000–900,000 kcal/h, PLC-controlled staged combustion |
| Accepted fuels | Pellets, 90 × 90 mm briquettes, cashew shell, crop residue |
| Hot air generator | Double chamber, three-pass, 2,500–3,000 m³/h |
| Delivered air temperature | 50–150 °C, controlled |
| Heat transfer | Indirect — combustion gases never touch the product |
| Drying chamber | 40–100 °C, 2.0–3.0 m/s, 1,500 kg per batch |
| Construction | 100 mm rockwool-core sandwich panel, 120-minute fire rating |
| Trays and wagons | SS304 stainless steel |
| Control | Delta PLC with recipe management, HMI, VFDs |
| Warranty | 12 months from date of shipment |
| Manufacturing lead time | 10–18 weeks from confirmed order and receipt of advance payment |
In prose: the burner runs from 200,000 to 900,000 kcal/h under PLC-controlled staged combustion, firing pellets, 90 × 90 mm briquettes, cashew shell or crop residue. The three-pass double-chamber generator moves 2,500 to 3,000 m³/h and delivers air between 50 and 150 °C, transferred indirectly so combustion gases never touch the product. Drying chambers hold 40 to 100 °C at 2.0 to 3.0 m/s with 1,500 kg per batch, built from 100 mm rockwool-core sandwich panel to a 120-minute fire rating, with SS304 trays and wagons. Manufacturing takes 10 to 18 weeks from confirmed order and receipt of advance payment, and the warranty runs 12 months from date of shipment.
Where this equipment is used
The same equipment is specified across several product classes. These are the ones it is configured for most often:
industrial mango drying system and fish and seafood drying.
Each of those pages carries the drying parameters, cycle times and quality targets for that product class.
The honest comparison
| Biomass (pellets / briquettes / residue) | Diesel | LPG | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel cost per unit heat | Lowest where residue is local | High | High |
| Currency exposure | Local | Usually FX-linked | Usually FX-linked |
| Price volatility | Low to moderate | High | High |
| Operator workload | Highest — feed, ash, cleaning | Low | Lowest |
| Fuel storage | Substantial, must stay dry | Tank | Tank / cylinders |
| Capital cost | Higher | Lower | Lower |
| Supply-chain risk | Local supply must exist or be built | Established | Established |
| Response to load change | Slower — thermal mass | Fast | Fastest |
| Fossil CO₂ | Displaced | Full | Full |
Where biomass wins
You already generate residue, or a local supply exists; fuel cost is a large share of your processing cost; and FX exposure on imported fuel is a real planning problem.
Where it does not
You have no reliable fuel supply and no residue of your own; your duty cycles rapidly rather than running steady-state; or you have no operator capacity for a daily ash and cleaning routine. We would rather say this now than after commissioning.
How to calculate your own figure
We do not quote a headline percentage, because the honest answer is a method rather than a number. Published reduction figures for residue substitution are indicative planning ranges, not quotations.
- 01Take your current annual fuel spend on the drying stage.
- 02Establish the delivered calorific value of the biomass fuel available to you, at its delivered moisture.
- 03Calculate the mass of biomass needed for the same delivered heat, allowing for system efficiency.
- 04Price that mass at your local delivered fuel price.
- 05Add the operational cost of the ash and cleaning routine.
- 06Compare — then sensitivity-test against a fuel price movement in both directions.
The number that matters is the one calculated from your fuel prices, your throughput and your site. We run this calculation with you at the sizing stage, from your line data.
The equipment either way
Whichever fuel you choose, the heat has to reach the product without contaminating it. Our biomass hot air generator transfers heat indirectly at 2,500–3,000 m³/h and a controlled 50–150 °C, fired by a biomass pellet burner or a multi-fuel biomass burner across the 200,000–900,000 kcal/h range.
Frequently asked questions
How much cheaper is biomass than diesel in practice?
It depends entirely on your local delivered fuel prices, and any single figure quoted without them is marketing. Residue substitution is generally reported as reducing drying fuel cost substantially, but the honest number comes from the six-step calculation above, run on your own prices and throughput, against a burner somewhere in the 200,000 to 900,000 kcal/h range.
What is the real hidden cost of switching to biomass?
Operator time. Daily ash removal, a fuel handling routine and a scheduled heat-exchanger cleaning interval are all new tasks that a diesel or LPG burner does not create. Budget the labour honestly: on most fuels that is a daily task, and a plant that skips it loses rated output across the whole 200,000 to 900,000 kcal/h range before it shows any fault.
Can I keep a gas burner as backup?
Yes, and on a critical line it is often sensible. A dual arrangement lets biomass carry the steady-state duty while gas covers a fuel supply interruption or a rapid-response requirement. It has to be designed in from the start rather than added afterwards, because the duct network and the control have to carry both sources across the same 50 to 150 °C delivered range.
Run the numbers on your line
Send us your current fuel spend on drying, your throughput and the residue available locally. We come back with a like-for-like comparison built on your figures, not ours.
Request a comparison