Codex Energy Gasifier

Gasifier

The Gasifier turns solid fuel and steam into syngas, a fuel gas, and leaves ash behind. Syngas can be piped, stored in tanks and burnt where it is needed: in a Gas Turbine, a Gas Engine or, poorly, in an Industrial Boiler. The Gasifier uses no energy. It is a tier I plant.

How it works

1. Fuel and steam come in: fuel through the Item Input Port into nine fuel slots, steam through the Fluid Input Port.
2. All chambers start together. When no batch is running, each Reaction Chamber starts one batch, as long as there is fuel and 250 mB of steam for it. Each batch takes one piece of fuel and that steam.
3. A batch takes 160 ticks. Then the syngas of all batches goes into the syngas tank. If the tank is full, the rest waits, and no new batch starts until everything is out.
4. Ash: every 4 pieces of fuel leave one Ash in the four ash slots.
5. Syngas leaves through the Gas Output Port; ash through the Item Output Port.

Fuel and yield

Fuel (item tag)	Syngas per piece
Coal, Charcoal (qnet:gasifier_fuel/coal)	34,000 mB
Block of Coal (qnet:gasifier_fuel/coal_block)	306,000 mB
Biomass (qnet:gasifier_fuel/biomass)	7,000 mB

Only items in these three tags are accepted. The yield is 85 % of the heat the same fuel gives in a boiler, counted with the 4 HU per mB that syngas has in a gas turbine. The server's volt.fuelConsumptionMultiplier (default 1.0, allowed 0.01–100.0) divides the yield (2 = half the syngas).

Tip

Data packs A data pack can add items to the three tags, for example other mods' coal or plant fuels.

Throughput

One chamber with coal makes 34,000 mB of syngas per batch of 160 ticks, about 210 per tick on average. A Gas Turbine burns up to 150 mB/t per Combustion Liner: so one chamber feeds a bit more than one liner. The steam need is tiny: 250 mB per chamber and batch.

Building

Shown size: 3 wide, 4 high, 3 deep (adjustable: Width 3–16, Height 4–16, Depth 3–16).

One example of many: within the rules on this page, size and arrangement are up to you; the Build Projector shows the plan in every allowed size.

	Key	Block	Count
	A	Industrial Casing	28
	D	Reaction Chamber	2
	E	Fluid Input Port	1
	F	Gas Output Port	1
	B	Industrial Sight Glass	1
	C	Item Input Port	1
	G	Item Output Port	1
	0	Gasifier Controller	1

Step by step

Each picture adds one layer, from the bottom up; the newest layer is bright. The controller wall faces you on the left.

Step 1: Layer 1

Parts in this step: Industrial Casing (A) ×9

Step 2: Layer 2

Parts in this step: Industrial Casing (A) ×4, Fluid Input Port (E) ×1, Reaction Chamber (D) ×1, Gasifier Controller (0) ×1, Item Input Port (C) ×1, Item Output Port (G) ×1

Step 3: Layer 3

Parts in this step: Industrial Casing (A) ×7, Reaction Chamber (D) ×1, Industrial Sight Glass (B) ×1

Step 4: Layer 4

Parts in this step: Industrial Casing (A) ×8, Gas Output Port (F) ×1

Rules

• Size: at least 3 wide, 4 high and 3 deep, at most perf.maxStructureSize (default 16, allowed 5–32) in every direction.
• Edges and corners: only Industrial Casing.
• Walls: Industrial Casing, Industrial Sight Glass, Inspection Hatches, the ports and the controller.
• Inside: air and Reaction Chambers, anywhere; at least one chamber.
• Controller: in a wall face, front facing out, with the inside behind it.
• Ports: Item Input Port (fuel), Fluid Input Port (steam), Gas Output Port (syngas), Item Output Port (ash).

Operation in depth

• Steam tank: 16,000 mB, or enough for one start of all chambers if that is more. Any steam works: QNet steam and the tag #qnet:steam.
• Syngas tank: syngas waits there until pipes pull it. A full syngas tank stops the Gasifier after the running batches.
• Ash that does not fit into the full ash slots is kept and added later; it never stops the plant.
• Batches are not interrupted: a batch that has started finishes even if fuel or steam run out.

The screen

• Status: "Formed" or the structure error.
• Bars for Steam and Syngas.
• Batch progress (ticks of the running batch), Active batches, Reaction chambers and Ash (ash in the slots).
• The diagram: fuel and steam → reaction chamber → syngas and ash.

Automation

• Pipes bring fuel to the Item Input Port (only accepted fuels) and steam to the Fluid Input Port.
• Syngas is pulled from the Gas Output Port, ash from the Item Output Port. Nothing else can be taken out.

Error messages

Message	What to do
The controller must sit in a wall, front facing out	Put the controller into a wall face, front outwards, with the inside behind it.
Structure too small (…)	Build at least 3 wide, 4 high and 3 deep.
Structure too large or not closed near …	Close the wall at the position shown, or build smaller.
Wrong block at … (expected: Industrial Casing)	Only Industrial Casing on edges and corners.
Wrong block at … (expected: Industrial Casing, Industrial Sight Glass, Inspection Hatch)	Only these parts, the ports and the controller in the walls.
Wrong block at … (expected: Air, Reaction Chamber)	Only air and Reaction Chambers inside.
Missing parts: Reaction Chamber ×1	Add at least one Reaction Chamber.
Port not allowed here: …	Only the four port kinds above work.
Second controller at …	Remove the other controller.

Building the parts

	Redstone Dust
	Redstone Comparator		→ Gasifier Controller

	Blast Furnace
Blast Furnace	Magma Block	Blast Furnace	→ Reaction Chamber
	Blast Furnace

When you break the controller, fuel and ash drop. Steam, syngas and running batches are lost.

In the world

Flames burn behind the glass while batches run, and the Reaction Chambers glow with the share of chambers at work. Flue smoke rises from the roof.

Note

Is gasifying worth it? One piece of coal gives 34,000 mB of syngas. A Gas Turbine turns about 0.45 of its heat into energy and hands 0.5 as hot exhaust to a boiler. Together that is a little less than the same coal burnt straight in a boiler with a steam turbine. Gasify for what the gas offers: fuel you can pipe and store, a compact high-power turbine, and a fast engine that follows the demand.