DRAX coal fired power stations used to use lumps of coal to burn to heat water to create steam for the steam turbines that turned the generators. Those were the power stations with big cooling towers, many of which have been demolished now.
Then DRAX improved the system and used powdered coal to burn. That coal dust burnt very fiercely and efficiently. Also the output gasses were filtered, and by products were used to make plasterboard etc.
Now, due to government subsidies biomass wood pellets are burnt in the power stations. Many of these are imported from America.
Biomass wood pellets have problems with storage. There have been silo fires due to self heating in storage when the biomass pellets naturally reach a high critical temperature in storage.
So, using biomass pellets is not so simple and green after all.
Have a little look at this video on the matters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc_jRyhlYRU
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