SURFACE AREA, VOLUME, MASS, AND DENSITY DISTRIBUTIONS FOR SIZED BIOMASS PARTICLES

This semi-annual technical progress report describes work performed at Morehouse College under DOE Grant No. DE-FC26-04NT42130 during the period July 01, 2005 to December 31, 2005 which covers the third six months of the project. Presently work is in progress to characterize surface area, volume, mass, and density distributions for sized biomass particles. During this reporting period, Morehouse continued to obtain additional mean mass measurements for biomass particles employing the gravimetric technique measurement system that was set up in the last reporting period. Simultaneously, REM, our subcontractor, has obtained raw data for surface area, volume, and drag coefficient to mass ratio (C{sub d}/m) information for several biomass particles employing the electrodynamic balance (EDB) measurement system that was calibrated in the last reporting period. Preliminary results of the mean mass and the shape data obtained are reported here, and more data collection is in progress