The Physicochemical Properties and Catalytic Characteristics of Different Biomass Ashes

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Steam gasification of petroleum coke catalyzed by different biomass ashes and different biomass ash loadings were investigated to examine the catalytic effects not only on the gasification activity but also on the H2 production characteristics, and the physicochemical properties of three biomass ashes (rice straw ash, wheat straw ash, and cotton straw ash) were also analyzed. The total contents of alkali metals (K and Na), alkaline earth metals (Ca and Mg), and transition metal (Fe) in RSA, WSA, and CSA were separately up to 22.63, 43.88, and 55.68%, and a large quantity of catalytic components (such as KCl, K2SO4, etc.) were contained in these biomass ashes. The biomass ashes could not only enhance the gasification activity of petroleum coke effectively, but also promote the H2 production greatly. The ordering of the catalytic action of various biomass ashes was CSA > WSA > RSA. The increasing loading of biomass ash was favorable for elevating the gasification activity of petroleum coke and promoting the H2 production, and the effects of the redundant biomass ash loading on those were very little. The mineral matters in biomass was conducive to improve the gasification activity of petroleum coke during the co-gasification processes and to promote the H2 production to produce syngas with high purity H2 (up to 61%) and no virtual CH4 at relatively low temperatures.