The influence of drum chipper configuration on the quality of wood chips

• Drum chipper configuration is investigated to get desired quality of wood chips.
• Desired properties of the wood chips are set by monitoring the combustion plant.
• Relations between three complex interdependent production parameters were researched.
• Mechanical adjustments of the chipper have a minor effect on the geometry of the chips.
• The aim of this research is to build a decision model for various input parameters.

The efficiency of adequately chosen and monitored technology during the production of wood chips is shown by the quantity of energy stored within the wood fuel, and in the manufacture and preparation costs per product unit. Several influential material, construction, and technological parameters have to be encountered during the production of wood chips when using a mobile drum chipper. A set of different experiments regarding the production of wood chips using a drum chipper were made in order to find the more suitable combinations of production parameters (technological and constructional) for different types of inputted materials (hard round wood, soft round wood, and branches).By monitoring the energy contents within different kinds of wood chips, it was determined that soft wood biomass having rougher structures and hard wood biomass having finer structures are more suitable for larger systems. Dust particles within the wood fractions are undesirable; however constant forms and size–structures regarding wood chips are welcome.The aim of our research was to build a decision model that would help a user to choose the right combination of parameters on a drum chipper, thus ensuring the production of wood fuel with characteristics close to the desired optimum, yet at minimum production costs.