Abstract
One of the major causes of excess CO2 in the atmosphere is the direct burning of biomass waste, which can be obviated by the photocatalytic biomass conversion to useful/valuable chemicals/fuels, a sustainable and renewable approach. The present research work is focused on the development of a novel Zn–Fe LDH by a simple co-precipitation method and its utilization for the photocatalytic conversion of a rice husk extract (extracted from rice husk by means of pyrolysis) to value-added products. The synthesized, pure Zn–Fe LDH was characterized by various analytical techniques such as XRD, SEM, FTIR, and UV–Visible DRS spectroscopy. The rice husk extract was converted in a photocatalytic reactor under irradiation with 75 W white light, and the valued-added chemicals were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). It was found that the compounds in the rice husk extract before the photocatalytic reaction were mainly carboxylic acids, phenols, alcohols, alkanes (in a small amount), aldehydes, ketones, and amines. After the photocatalytic reaction, all the carboxylic acids and phenols were completely converted into alkanes by complex reactions. Hence, photocatalytic biomass conversion of a rice husk extract was successfully carried out in the present experimental work, opening new avenues for the development of related research domains, with a great potential for obtaining an alternate fuel and overcoming environmental pollution.
Highlights
Biomass was essential to mankind for a long time to produce heat energy before the rise of fossil fuels [1]
The rate of greenhouse gases emission has been reaching the value of 6% per annum, and a major portion of greenhouse gases consists of carbon dioxide [3]
In the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, there was one large peak at 36.41◦, which was due to constructive interference attached inside the layered double hydroxides (LDHs) unit cell, with body-centered or face-centered arra
Summary
Biomass was essential to mankind for a long time to produce heat energy before the rise of fossil fuels [1]. CO2 is a major greenhouse gas that is considered to contribute a large portion of overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout the world. The rate of greenhouse gases emission has been reaching the value of 6% per annum, and a major portion of greenhouse gases consists of carbon dioxide [3]. Biomass is a major renewable carbon-based energy resource that is readily available to fulfill the essential requirements of human beings; for carbon-based chemical production, it is the best alternative to fossil fuels. Biomass has been utilized to produce heat energy or power generation in industries, but it can be utilized to obtain valuable fuels, chemicals, materials, and other products, and this will contribute to alleviating the emissions of carbon dioxide [4]. For the production of numerous materials and feedstocks, many biomass-derived chemicals to facilitate the green processing of biomass are readily available [5]
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