(117l) Effect of Biomass Composition on Products Yield Speciation in Fast Pyrolysis

Fast pyrolysis is the rapid thermal decomposition of biomass with liquids, gases and char as products. The formation and composition of these gases and liquids is directly related to the composition of the original biomass feedstock, but the exact chemistry is not well understood. Six different biomasses feed stocks were selected for five different types of biomass herbaceous, softwood, hardwood, processes by-product and agricultural residues. Using ASTM procedures for biomass characterization all the species were analyzed, showing unusual compositions from 33% of ash in corn stover and 60% of lignin content in pine. Techniques and analytical methods like Thermo-Gravimetrical Analysis (TGA) and Pyrolysis Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (Py-GC-MS) were use for the study of the thermal decomposition of biomass and the speciation of the product yield during pyrolysis respectively. It was observed that samples with higher ash content also had the highest char yield values. Wheat straw with the highest ash content produced the lowest fraction of levoglucosan and the highest fraction of acetone proving that ash promotes the formation of low molecular weight compounds. Also, corn fiber, with a high lignin and low ash content had the highest levoglucosan formation during the pyrolysis.