Pyrolysis of lemon peel waste in a fixed-bed reactor and characterization of innovative pyrolytic products

Abstract

Lemon peel waste (LPW) were pyrolysed in a laboratory fixed-bed reactor at final temperature of 300 °C, 400 °C and 500 °C with an incremental heating rate of 10 °C/min, under N2 atmosphere to produce biochar, bio-oil and gas. The maximum yields of bio-oil, biochar and gas were 16.66 wt%, 66.89 wt% and 54.6 wt%, respectively, at 400 °C, 300 °C and 500 °C. The produced gas has a maximum calorific value around 12 MJ/N m3 with a composition up to 68.82 vol.% of CO, 5.25 vol.% of CH4, 1.48 vol.% of CnHm. The recovered biochar is a promising applicant for the manufacturing of carbon materials and for solid fuel applications. The bio-oil chemical characterization using GC–MS and FTIR spectroscopy shows its richness with bioactive compounds such as squalene, d-limonene, ß-Sitosterol and phenol. Biochar and bio-oil showed bactericidal activity against Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus luteus, Salmonella enterica, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. Pyrolytic products of LPW show large potential applications in agriculture and agri-food industry and allow a sustainable biomass-waste management with promising economic benefits.