The work demonstrates the performance of the optical extinction technique for real-time diagnostics of the fluctuations in biomass particle flows. The online measurements of fluctuations of density were used to determine the biomass particle mass flow fluctuations. Biomass flows were produced using laboratory biomass particle feeder (mass flux up to 10 g/min) and the hopper-screw feeding system of the pilot-scale entrained flow rector, mass flux up to 500 g/min, located at SP ETC in Pita The experiments showed that the time-averaged extinction appeared to be linearly related to the real particle mass flow. The relatively fast variations in biomass feeding rates measured using the extinction technique were confirmed by fast balance measurements (in laboratory feeder experiments) and by real-time tunable diode laser CO and H2O concentrations measured in the reactor core of the entrained flow gasifier. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.