Two technologies that seem to be made for each other.

On October 24th the Danish Minister for the Environment Troels Lund Poulsen officially inaugurated the new pyrolysis plant at Barritskov Gods supplied by Stirling Denmark. The plant is the worlds first pyrolysis plant based on a Stirling engine and will provide heat and power to the facilities. Furthermore, the plant will produce a valuable charcoal for soil improvement and CO2 sequestration. The plant has been designed by Stirling Denmark based on the SD4 engine and on research on pyrolysis at DTU, Denmark. The plant will initially run on wood chips from recycled wooden crates, but the plant is expected to be able to handle many different types of biomass.

I wasn't very clear about the details presented on the Danish page. Translation still seems to require human effort. But the ideas are compelling.

After some initial input heat the gases given off by pyrolysis can more than sustain the reaction. The extra gases can be used a number of ways - from firing a conventional steam turbine for electricity generation, to production of liquid fuels or fertilizer. Using a Stirling heat engine is elegant. They are theoretically very efficient, and though none yet achieve theoretical limits the designs seem to get ever better.