24 research outputs found
Enhancement of fast pyrolysis oil fuel properties through co-pyrolysis and improved analysis
Fast pyrolysis is a thermochemical process converting biomass into fast pyrolysis biooil
(FPBO, 50-75 wt%), non-condensable gases (13-16 wt%), and biochar (12-20 wt%)
at 450-550°C in an inert atmosphere with short residence times and high heating rates.
FPBO is a complex organic mixture of lignocellulose degradation products with high
water (20-30 wt%) and oxygen content (35-40 wt%) causing chemical instability and
corrosion to storage tanks and burners. In this work, the improvement of FPBO quality
was investigated through co-pyrolysis of forestry residues with waste mussel shells and
through improved understanding of phase behaviour and composition of forestry based
FPBO using an advanced distillation curve analysis. Co-pyrolysis with waste mussel
shells was studied by: (1) direct contact with the forestry residues in the reactor and (2)
contacting only the hot vapours with the mussel shells at the reactor exit. The impact of
temperature, residence time, mussel shell loading, and type of contact (operational
mode) on the FPBO and biochar were studied. There was a reduction in FPBO oxygen
and acid content through dehydration and decarboxylation with mussel shell addition
and an increase in biochar pH and functionality (O- and N-containing functional
groups) for soil amendment and adsorption applications, respectively. The FPBO phase
behaviour was studied using an advanced distillation method and a model developed to
simulate the distillation curves of the whole FPBO. The 17 surrogates used in the model
to represent the range of functional groups and boiling points of FPBO components showed a good fit of simulated and experimental distillation curves and some bulk properties.
GC analysis of the vacuum distillate fractions concluded six distillable steps as a
basis for chemical separation procedures
Validating the applicability of vapor-liquid phase equilibria models for fast pyrolysis bio-oils through Advanced Distillation Curves
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