The scope of work for the current triennium is built upon the progress made in the previous triennia. In the previous years, information exchange, investigation of selected subtask studies, promotion of coordinated RD&D among participating countries, selected plant visits, and industrial involvement in technical workshops at Task meetings have been very effective. These remain the basic foundations for developing and implementing a programme of work that addresses the needs of the participating countries.

The Task monitors the current status of the critical unit operations and unit processes that constitute biomass and waste gasification (BMG) process, and identifies hurdles to advance further development, operational reliability, and reducing the capital cost of BMG systems. The Task meetings provide a forum to discuss the technological advances and issues critical to scale-up, system integration, and commercial implementation of BMG processes. Generally, these discussions lead to selection of subtask studies and/or technical workshops that focus on advancing the state-of-the-art technology and identify the options to resolve barriers to technology commercialisation.

The Task has continued the practice of inviting industrial experts to the Task workshops to present their practical experiences and to discuss the options for development of critical process components to advance state-of-the-art BMG systems. The interaction with industry provides the opportunity for the National Team Leaders (NTLs) to evaluate refinements to existing product lines and/or processes. Academic experts are also invited and when the need arises to seek information and cooperation in order to address basic and support research needs.
 

 The current work programme includes the following elements:
• Plan and conduct semi-annual Task meetings including workshops on subtask studies selected by the NTLs, and address matters related to the Task mission and objectives. Details are:

• Survey the current global biomass and waste gasification RD&D programmes, commercial operations and market opportunities for BMG, and identify the technical and non-technical barriers to commercialisation of the technology. Use the survey results to prepare and update Country Reports for information dissemination.
• Conduct joint studies, conferences, and workshops with related Tasks, Annexes, and other international activities to address issues of common interest to advance BMG systems.
• Identify research and technology development needs based on the results from the work described above as a part of the workshop reports.
• Publish results of the work programme on the Task 33 website (www.task33.ieabionenergy.com) for information dissemination. Maintain the website with Task updates.

The Task deliverables included planning and conducting six semi-annual Task meetings focused on the workshops selected by the Task participants, involving academic and industrial experts, the preparation and distribution of workshop reports; updating and publishing Country Reports; conducting joint studies, conferences, and workshops with related Tasks, Annexes, and other international activities to address mutually beneficial issues; and preparation of periodic progress, financial, technology, and annual reports as required by the ExCo.