(712d) Themogravimetric Analysis of Press Mud for Energy Generation

Press mud is a solid waste obtained from the cane sugar mills in India. It has the potential for energy generation. The paper presents physico-chemical properties of press mud and its thermal degradation in nitrogen atmosphere. The thermal degradation was carried out in a thermogravimetric analyzer from room temperature to 900 °C at heating rates of 20 and 40 ºC/min. The thermogravimetric, derivative thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyses were carried out to determine the rate of volatiles evolution, the effect of heating rates on the thermal degradation characteristics and to determine the kinetics of thermal degradation. The thermal degradation was found to occur in several distinct phases: each phase giving volatile evolution in an independent parallel lump. Each decomposition phase was modeled by a single irreversible reaction with respect to the solid mass. The kinetic analysis has also been done for the entire decomposition process, as if occurring in one single step.