(6eb) Kinetics and Chemistry of Fast Pyrolysis of Carbon-Based Material Using Novels Reactors Approaches

Fast pyrolysis of carbon-based material promises to be an effective and environmentally sustainable path to renewable energy and organic starting materials, i.e., a replacement for petroleum. In the fast pyrolysis process, the reactor is the performance-controlling process and a variety of alternatives have been considered at all scales: laboratory, pilot and pre-commercial/commercial. Yields and selectivity for pyrolysis is a function of numerous factors, including rates of heating and quenching (residence times for heterogeneous and homogeneous events) and condensed phase properties (such as the dynamic shrinkage of the materials). My Ph.D. thesis was focused on demonstrating a laboratory-scale fast pyrolysis technique (micro-particle micro-reactor system (MSMR)) using manufactured biomass microspheres. A unique single-particle (∼10 μg) microreactor technology coupled with a millisecond response flame ionization detector was used to investigate the effects of relevant particle and process parameters and to capture the dynamics of real-time microscale single-particle pyrolysis for the first time. Another of my Postdoctoral research projects was working with a new experimental technique capable of elucidating the kinetics and chemical intermediates of biopolymer chemistry during the pyrolysis process. The technique of PHASR (Pulsed Heated Analysis of Solid Reactions) kinetics enables a millisecond temporal analysis of solid/melt phase reactions. Based on my research background and my focus during my Ph.D. and Postdoctoral studies, I would like to introduce a new field of research on the following topics during my initial years:

(1)- New Technique for Enhanced Oil Recovery: Institute Fast Pyrolysis.

(2)- Fundamentals of the Kinetics and Chemistry of Heavy Crude Oil (including asphaltene) Pyrolysis.

(3)- Fast Pyrolysis of Biomass for Production of Deoxygenated Biofuel without Catalysts or Hydrogen.

Postdoctoral Projects: “Mechanism of xylose pyrolysis-NSF.”

“Methods and Mechanisms of Pyrolysis: Polyolefin Decomposition for a Circular Economy-ExxonMobil.”

“New Detector for Liquid chromatography (LC) analysis. Activated Research Company (Part-time).”

Under the supervision of Prof. Paul Dauenhauer, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota

Ph.D. Dissertation: “kinetics of biomass fast pyrolysis-NSF.”

Under the supervision of Prof. Joseph J. Biernacki, Chemical Engineering Department, Tennessee Tech University.

Master Dissertation: “Determination of Optimum Gas Injection Condition in EOR Process by Interfacial Tension Investigation.”

Under the supervision of Prof. Shahab Ayatollahi, Chemical and Petroleum Engineering Department, Shiraz University.

Research Experience:

My research over the last ten years has focused on the relationship between the surface and interface of fluids for the purpose of enhanced oil recovery and asphaltene behavior in petroleum reservoirs under different conditions and kinetics, and the chemistry of Fast Pyrolysis of Carbon-Based Material.

In the beginning, my research was about the effect of temperature and pressure on the kinetics of asphaltene deposition during the capturing of CO₂ as a global gas environment. Then I started my thesis on investigating the effects of temperatures, pressures and composition on CO₂ solubility and miscibility by measuring interfacial tension during CO₂ caption.

After finalizing my master thesis, I became a member of a group that is conducting research on modifying the Parachor model, neural network, and molecular dynamics simulation by interfacial tension technique to measure the solubility of the global gas environment (such as CO₂) at different pressures and temperatures.

Since I am so interested in research and development, particularly in regards to the problematic relationship between population and global warming, I was searching for a project to help the environment and ultimately benefit all humankind. I was searching the internet, and, interestingly enough, I found the project titled “A multi-scale environmental and kinetic study on the pyrolysis of sustainable biomass feedstock” at Tennessee Tech University. During my Ph.D. research, a novel laboratory-scale fast pyrolysis technique is demonstrated using biomass microspheres and a unique single-particle micro-reactor technology. During my postdoctoral research, I had the opportunity to work under the supervision of Prof. Paul Dauenhauer and use unique isothermal techniques (PHASER reactor) to obtain the fundamental information of material during the pyrolysis process.

Teaching Interests:

I believe in the real and complex engineering and science environment, the principle key for solving sophisticated problems and engineering obstacles is creativity and how to learn the problem-solving process. During my first mathematics and chemical engineering design courses in university, I made a great effort to improve my creativity skills along with learning the problem-solving process. That became a fundamental motivation for me during graduate school. Therefore, as a teacher, I will strive to teach my students with these two essential factors to motivate them and provide them with extensive understanding. I believe it will encourage students learning challenging topics, guide them to recognize and completely understand the fundamental concepts in chemical engineering and build confidence in their abilities. I would like to make my students capable of analyzing and evaluating on their own to become an independent learner.

Chemical engineering is one of a fascinating major among all engineering disciplines with distinct theoretical and experimental aspects. From the theoretical point of view, strong knowledge and deep understanding of applied mathematics are ineluctable specifically at senior and graduate levels. Applied mathematics brings about great insight for the student to trust their intuition and problem-solving skills to assess and investigate widespread problems. In my Thermodynamic course, I encouraged students to focus on conceptual aspects of each problem by solving selected practical problems in class and providing alternative approaches to express different perspectives at each problem. This strategy of teaching will give rise to more motivation, satisfaction, and self-confidence.

Additionally, my experience as a teaching assistant in Thermodynamic course enabled me to realize the importance of practical and experimental aspects of chemical engineering by suggesting different methodologies for involving students in practical perspectives of materials and problems. First, I will present the theories for each section concisely and will spend more time on technical and practical examples. As an example, in Fluid mechanics course, I provided lab demonstration and placed students in groups to work with experimental setups and software to build their practical skills. Second, I will take advantage of visual demonstrations and graphs. Finally, I will involve my students in practical discussions and by offering them the opportunity to experience challenging concepts. During my teaching experience, I recognized that a proper evaluation method was to assign students homework problems which required comprehensive work throughout the semester. Homework assignments and examinations helped students demonstrate their knowledge and problem-solving skills and analyze solutions properly. In most chemical engineering courses, results can be reached by more than one method. I require my students to verify their analysis by computer simulation, as well. Moreover, individual and group assignments or final projects can help students acquire deeper and conceptual understanding. Projects should be flexible enough to serve different student as interests and to evaluate each student as skill and expertise. I take advantage of various types of exams and projects, such as problem-solving and take home exams. Additionally, I welcome feedback from students which allow me to evaluate my performance during a semester by conducting teacher evaluation survey in my class to assure what my students expect of me to improve my teaching skills and methods.

Teaching Experience:

Instructor

University of Applied Sciences and technology

1-Industrial security and safety

2-Thermodynamic

3-Fluid mechanics

Assistant Instructor

Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

Fluid and rock properties Lab: spring 2011- Fall 2014.

Willing to teach the following courses: (1) Unit Operations Laboratory, (2) Chemical Process Design.

Selected Publications:

Zolghadr, Ali, Matthew D. Kelley, Ghazal Sokhansefat, Masoud Moradian, Brianna Sullins, Tyler Ley, and Joseph J. Biernacki. "Biomass microspheres–A new method for characterization of biomass pyrolysis and shrinkage." Bioresource technology 273 (2019): 16-24.

Zolghadr, Ali, Joseph J. Biernacki, and Ronald J. Moore. "Biomass Fast Pyrolysis Using a Novel Microparticle Microreactor Approach: Effect of Particles Size, Biomass Type, and Temperature." Energy & fuels 33, no. 2 (2018): 1146-1156.

Haghbakhsh, Reza, Ali Zolghadr, Sona Raeissi, and Shahab Ayatollahi. "Investigation of volumetric fluid properties of (heptane+ hexadecane) at reservoir conditions." Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 22 (2015): 377-394.

Zolghadr, Amin Reza, Mohammad Hadi Ghatee, and Ali Zolghadr. "Adsorption and orientation of ionic liquids and ionic surfactants at heptane/water interface." The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 118, no. 34 (2014): 19889-19903.

Zolghadr, Ali, Mehdi Escrochi, and Shahab Ayatollahi. "Temperature and composition effect on CO2 miscibility by interfacial tension measurement." Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data 58, no. 5 (2013): 1168-1175.

Zolghadr, Ali, Masoud Riazi, Mehdi Escrochi, and Shahab Ayatollahi. "Investigating the effects of temperature, pressure, and paraffin groups on the N2 miscibility in hydrocarbon liquids using the interfacial tension measurement method." Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research 52, no. 29 (2013): 9851-9857.

Reviews:

Zolghadr A, C. Templeton, Biernacki, J. J. Biomass fast pyrolysis using a novel micro-sphere micro-reactor approach: Model-based interpretations. (Summited to the Energy & Fuels)

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5atMn1EAAAAJ&hl=en