Rice husk has been recognized as a potential source of energy. Thus, t
he main objective of this work was to develop a rice husk gasification
process. Diffuse reflectance infrared spectra reveal that partial oxi
dation of rice husk at reaction temperatures below 1000 K would also a
llow recover valuable of amorphous silica materials. In the laboratory
-scale fixed-bed and bench-scale downdraft experimental approaches, ga
sification of rice husk was accompanied by a substantial production of
syngas at 760-900 K, It appears that in order to generate 10 kW elect
ric power, approximately 28 kg/h of rice husk must be gasified. The ri
ce husk gasification process, in terms of heat requirements, can be se
lf-sustaining. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.