Das Projekt "FRACTIO - Fraktionierte Schwermetallabscheidung in Biomasse-Heizwerken" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Technische Universität Graz, Institut für Grundlagen der Verfahrenstechnik und Anlagentechnik durchgeführt. This project is carried out in co-operation with an Austrian factory, producing biomass combustion units and has the aim to examine the material fluxes of heavy metals taking place in the combustion plants and their influencing variables (temperature, gaseous atmosphere). Based on the results achieved, a new biomass combustion technology meeting the requirements of an efficient heavy metal fractionation should be developed and built. By means of this technique it should be possible to recycle the biggest amount of ash produced (about 90 per cent) in an ecological way and to concentrate the heavy metals in a small ash fraction that can be industrially utilized (heavy metal recovery) or has to be disposed of.