Abstract
Thermochemical processes for biomass conversion are promising to produce renewable hydrogen-rich syngas. In the present study, model fitting methods were used to propose thermal degradation kinetics during catalytic and non-catalytic pyrolysis (in N2) and combustion (in synthetic air) of sugarcane residual biomass. Catalytic processes were performed over a Rh-Pt/CeO2-SiO2 catalyst and the models were proposed based on the Thermogravimetric (TG) analysis, TG coupled to Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectrometry (TG-FTIR) and TG coupled to mass spectrometry (TG-MS). Results showed three different degradation stages and a catalyst effect on product distribution. In pyrolysis, Rh-Pt/CeO2-SiO2 catalyst promoted reforming reactions which increased the presence of H2. Meanwhile, during catalytic combustion, oxidation of the carbon and hydrogen present in biomass favored the release of H2O, CO and CO2. Furthermore, the catalyst decreased the overall activation energies of pyrolysis and combustion from 120.9 and 154.9 kJ mol−1 to 107.0 and 138.0 kJ mol−1, respectively. Considering the positive effect of the Rh-Pt/CeO2-SiO2 catalyst during pyrolysis of sugarcane residual biomass, it could be considered as a potential catalyst to improve the thermal degradation of biomass for syngas production. Moreover, the proposed kinetic parameters are useful to design an appropriate thermochemical unit for H2-rich syngas production as a non-conventional energy technology.
Highlights
The increase in energy consumption due to population growth and the dependence on fossil fuels have enlarged greenhouse gases emissions (GHG) with a major impact on environment and global warming [1]
The sugarcane residual biomass contains a low percentage of nitrogen and does not contain sulfur, which makes it promising for its thermal conversion since it reduces the emissions of SO2, NOx and soot [4]
Catalytic and non-catalytic thermal degradation of sugarcane residual biomass under non-isothermal conditions was studied for pyrolysis and combustion
Summary
The increase in energy consumption due to population growth and the dependence on fossil fuels have enlarged greenhouse gases emissions (GHG) with a major impact on environment and global warming [1]. The use of renewable resources for sustainable energy production has been recently promoted [2]. Lignocellulosic biomass, which includes agricultural and agroindustrial residues [3], is considered as an interesting renewable resource since it has low cost, could be carbon neutral [4], and its conversion implies low GHG emissions [5]. Different processes have been proposed for the use of lignocellulosic biomass, such as pyrolysis [6], gasification [7], combustion [8,9], carbonization [10] and liquefaction [11]. H2 has a high calorific value and can be used in fuel cells (FC), which convert chemical energy into power and heat [14]
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