specic
1. Introduction
Drying is an important step in biomass thermochemical
conversion technologies, either as fuel pretreatment
carried out through specic units or as a stage of
the conversion process, which precedes or takes place
simultaneously with chemical reactions. Moisture in
wood can exist [1] as free water in the cell cavities,
bound water which is hygroscopically held by the cell
walls, water vapors in the void space and, nally, constitutive
water in the chemical composition within the