Biomass heating systems burn plant or other organic matter - such as wood chips, agricultural residues or even municipal waste - to generate heat. This heat can be transported and used wherever it is needed-for the ventilation and space heating requirements of buildings or whole communities, or for industrial processes. Biomass heating systems differ from conventional wood-burning stoves and fireplaces in that they typically control the mix of air and fuel in order to maximize efficiency and minimize emissions, and they include a heat distribution system to transport heat from the site of combustion to the heat load. Many biomass heating systems incorporate a sophisticated automatic fuel handling system.

The energy performance of a biomass heating system is influenced by a number of factors such as the type of biomass fuel, the boiler capacity and seasonal efficiency and the boiler type. For steam boilers, these factors may include the boiler operating pressure, the steam temperature and the feedwater temperature. Other factors include the size and the type of the heating load (i.e. space and/or process heating, single or multiple zones, single or multiple buildings). And the energy performance of a district heating (multiple buildings) system will also be influenced by the design supply and return temperatures, and the distribution line pipe sizing. Refer to the Biomass Heating System Description for more information.

Software & Data
The RETScreen Software Biomass Heating Model can be used worldwide to evaluate the energy production and savings, costs, emission reductions, financial viability and risk for biomass heating projects, ranging in size from individual building biomass heating systems for houses, schools, hospitals, factories, hotels and agricultural buildings such as greenhouses, to community district heating systems for residential (e.g. houses, apartments), commercial (e.g. offices, warehouses, stores) and institutional (e.g. hospitals, schools, sports complexes, cultural centres) buildings and industrial facilities, to process heating using biomass waste in sawmills, sugar plants, alcohol plants, furniture manufacturing plants, and agricultural drying processes. The software (available in multiple languages) also includes product, project and climate databases, and a detailed user manual.

Click here to download RETScreen 4 (46 MB).

Training material
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - Presentation slides (3.33 MB)
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - Voice & slides - 1/3 (1.88 MB)
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - Voice & slides - 2/3 (1.87 MB)
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - Voice & slides - 3/3 (2.24 MB)
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - Speaker's notes

e-Textbook / Guides
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Analysis - e-Textbook chapter (1.09 MB)
RETScreen - Biomass Heating Project Model (Version 3) - User manual (995 KB)

Case studies / Templates
Heating - Biomass system - District energy / Canada
Heating - Biomass system - District heating
Heating - Biomass system - Industrial / Canada (Ottawa)
Heating - Biomass system - Industrial / Canada (Penticton)
Heating - Biomass syst. - Multiple buildings / Canada (Chibougamau-Chapais)
Heating - Biomass system - Multiple buildings / Canada (Kapuskasing)
Heating - Biomass system - Multiple buildings / Slovenia
Heating - Biomass system - School
Heating - Biomass system - School / United Kingdom