Kinetic modeling of solid yields formation in the fast pyrolysis of mahogany wood

Abstract

There have been many research of biomass pyrolysis not only in heat transfer point of view but also in chemical reaction point of view. In the present study, the rate of reaction (kinetic rate) formation of solid yield was calculated by varying the pyrolysis temperature that gives a chance of 250 °C, 350 °C, 450 °C, 500 °C, 600 °C, 700 °C, until 800°C with heating rate around 700 °C/hour. The heating rate used was the fast pyrolysis in which the heating rate for heating furnaces takes place quickly. Pyrolysis was accomplished by direct pyrolysis process in which each process was conducted at the certain pyrolysis temperature variation that took over 3 hours. Biomass used was mahogany wood, while the inert gas used to hold in order to avoid combustion was nitrogen gas. The decreasing of solid yields formation obtained was used to calculate the kinetic rate of the pyrolysis process. It was calculated by using the similar Arrhenius equation that considering the temperature changes during the process and the decreasing mass of solid yield formation occurred. The kinetic rate results showed the decomposition of biomass occurs tended in two stages, namely a stage of water evaporation and degradation of biomass solid yield coal followed by a stage of constant formation. The decomposition is expressed by the magnitude of the rate of reaction at 25˚C-517˚C temperature range with a reaction rate constant k1 = 2151.67 exp (−2141/Tp). While at pyrolysis temperatures above 517˚C, the reaction rate constant is expressed with k2 = 32.20 exp (−127.8 / Tp).