Effect of activated carbon catalyst on the cracking of biomass molecules into light hydrocarbons in biomass pyrolysis

Abstract

Syngas which is rich in methane and hydrogen gas can be produced through the biomass pyrolysis process. This study uses an activated carbon (AC) catalyst in the pyrolysis process using a fixed bed reactor. The result showed that using AC reduces the temperature of methane production from 395 °C to 380 °C and increases CH4 production from 202.800 ppm to 223.500 ppm. The increase in the production and decrease in temperature of light hydrocarbon formation occurs due to the influence of properties of the aromatic ring on the activated carbon surface. The presence of aromatic rings causes electrostatic forces so that influences atomic bond in structure biomass molecule. From simulations that have been carried out using Avogadro Software, it shows that the length of C-C bonds increases and this means the bonds become weaker. This condition triggers the accelerating process of cracking hydrocarbon molecules and produces lighter hydrocarbon gas.