Co-pyrolysis of corn stover and waste tire: Pyrolysis behavior and kinetic study based on Fraser-Suzuki deconvolution procedure

Abstract

Co-pyrolysis of biomass with waste tire, a hydrogen-rich material, can both improve the quality of bio-oil and mitigate the environmental issue caused by the disposal of waste tires. In this study, co-pyrolysis of corn stover and waste tire was firstly performed in a micro pyrolyzer, and positive synergistic effects were observed, promoting the production of hydrocarbon compounds. Additionally, the kinetics of co-pyrolysis of corn stover and waste tire were investigated. Due to the complexities of the co-pyrolysis process, the global process was divided into reactions of seven pseudo-components using the Fraser-Suzuki deconvolution function. The deconvolution results presented a good fit with experimental results. The activation energy of each pseudo-component was calculated using Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose (KAS), Flynn-Wall-Ozawa (FWO), and Friedman methods. Activation energy of each pseudo-component calculated from above mentioned methods did not greatly varied. Pseudo-component additives in waste tire with low thermal stability had the lowest activation energy (118.21–127.10 kJ/mol), and lignin in corn stover and synthetic rubbers (SR) in waste tire showed high activation energies since they are more thermally stable. The reaction mechanism was then determined using the master plot method. The results of the study are expected to provide more accurate basic information for further scale-up of the co-pyrolysis process.