(446c) Fast Pyrolysis Kinetic Study for Ten Ecuadorian Agricultural Residual Biomass Samples

Fast pyrolysis of biomass is a promising technology to produce fuels, commodity chemicals as well as fine chemical from renewable sources. Due to its CO2 neutrality replacing fossil resources by biomass helps to mitigate global warming. The thermochemical route of biomass conversion has the advantage that any type of organic matter can be used. Ecuador’s economy is mainly based on the export of primary agricultural products, which creates large amounts of currently unused waste streams. In order to assess the feasibility of these waste materials for thermal conversion to valuable products, laboratory fast pyrolysis data are needed. Although numerous TGA studies are available in the literature, detailed product composition analyses obtained for pyrolysis at high heating rates are scarce. A new micro-pyrolysis setup was built to address this gap. The setup consists of a single-stage Frontier micro-pyrolyzer reactor which is connected to a comprehensive GCxGC coupled to a flame ionization detector (FID) and a time-off-flight mass spectrometer (TOF-MS). This configuration allows for the simultaneously identification and quantification of large molecules. In addition to the GCxGC, a customized GC is used to detect permanent gases, light oxygenated hydrocarbons, water and C2 hydrocarbon molecules.

The product spectra of fast pyrolysis of 10 biomass residues selected from the main agricultural processes in Ecuador are reported. These residues are: forestry residues from wood processing, palm oil production wastes (rachis, fiber and kernel shells), cocoa recollection (fresh and rotten cocoa kernel), coffee husks, banana stem, rice husk and sugar cane bagasse. The chosen set of biomass sample covers a wide range of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin contents. Three pyrolysis temperatures are studied (500 ^oC, 550 ^oC and 600 ^oC) and quantitative products yields are obtained using either calibration factors of pure compounds or the effective carbon number approximation. The obtained experimental product distributions are compared to predictions using a literature biomass pyrolysis mechanism.

Acknowledgements

The SBO proposal “Bioleum” supported by the Institute for promotion of Innovation through Science and Technology in Flanders (IWT) is acknowledged. SG acknowledges the financial support from the Research Board of Ghent University (BOF). This research has been supported by the Belgian Development Cooperation through VLIR-UOS. VLIR-UOS supports partnerships between universities and university colleges in Flanders (Belgium) and the South looking for innovative responses to global and local challenges. Visit www.vliruos.be for more information. The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) / ERC grant agreement n° 290793.