In the United States (US), the Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) has announced US$1.35 million in Phase 2 funding for three projects to accelerate wood heater innovation and develop the next generation of efficient and clean wood heaters.
Funded by BETO and administered by Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), the Wood Heater Innovation Collaboration (WHIC) will oversee the FY24 Wood Heater Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA).
WHIC will leverage the expertise of national laboratories to collaborate with award recipients on developing and validating innovative wood heater technologies.
According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), millions of American households use wood heater technology for home heat, and it remains a vital way to affordably heat homes with a low-carbon renewable fuel.
To ensure that wood heating continues as an affordable and safe energy option, this CRADA funding will help the wood heater industry accelerate the modernization of wood heating stoves to be cleaner and more efficient, with the potential to reduce household costs associated with thermal energy.
Each of the following selected projects was awarded US$450,000:
- Applied Ceramics, Laurens, South Carolina (SC). Applied Ceramics will work with BNL to develop and test novel catalytic combustors for improved particulate matter reduction in woodstoves. Many wood stoves sold today utilize catalysts to reduce wood smoke and findings from this study will inform the design of catalysts with increased efficiency, durability and performance.
- ISB Marketing Inc., and Stove Builder International, South Bend, Indiana (IN). ISB Marketing Inc., in conjunction with Stove Builder International, will work with LBNL to create an autonomous, low-power combustion control system for affordable wood heaters by simplifying a previously designed high-end system. This collaboration with LBNL will use cost-effective solutions to optimize combustion and enhance heater performance across various operational phases. The end goal is to develop a market-ready solution.
- MF Fire Inc., Baltimore, Maryland (MD). MF Fire Inc. will work with LBNL to validate Fire MAPS, an emissions reduction technology for wood heaters that can be easily added to any of the 12 million wood heaters in the US. In initial consumer trials, the technology demonstrated a significant reduction in user-contributed emissions. This project will rigorously test and quantify the real-world emissions reduction capabilities of Fire MAPS, enabling a large-scale consumer rollout with significant air quality improvements.
