Wheat Straw Burning Research Articles

Synthesis of Nanocellulose-Pectin based Hybrid Adsorbent for Efficient Uranium Removal: A Sustainable Approach towards Environmental Remediation

Research on utilizing natural resources, such as agricultural waste, to create biosorbents is limited, especially when it comes to maximizing their adsorption effectiveness and scalability for practical uses. The current research work utilizes the ecofriendly approach to address the environmental hazards caused by the combustion of wheat straw and the disposal of orange peels as biowaste. Specifically, the study focuses on the issue of water contamination from radioactive heavy metals, such as uranium. The aim of this study is to synthesizes a biosorbent from agricultural waste by combining wheat straw extracted nanocellulose with orange peel extracted pectin to make a hybrid backbone which was subsequently grafted with itaconic acid by utilizing N, N’-methylene bisacrylamide (MBA) and ammonium persulfate (APS) as a crosslinker initiator system. The optimization of reaction parameters through response surface methodology (RSM) resulted in % grafting of 161.9%. The biosorbent exhibited a uranium adsorption efficiency of 97.5% under optimal conditions, specifically at pH 6.0, a contact time of 210min, an initial uranium concentration of 100 ppb, and an adsorbent dose of 0.15g. The adsorption kinetics followed the pseudo 2nd model, and the Langmuir isotherm was confirmed through equilibrium studies. This showed that the maximum adsorption capacity was 64.55µg/g. Also, recyclability experiments demonstrated that the biosorbent retained a remarkable 80% adsorption efficiency even after undergoing six reuse cycles, highlighting its exceptional capability for repeated use. The findings enhance sustainable water remediation technologies and illustrate the practical application of waste-to-wealth strategies in environmental management.

Joint effect of black carbon deriving from wheat straw burning and plastic mulch film debris on the soil biochemical properties, bacterial and fungal communities

Black carbon (BC) formed after straw burning remains in farmland soil and coexists with plastic mulch film (PMF) debris. It is unclear how BC influences soil multifunctionality in the presence of PMF debris. In this study, we determined the joint effects of BC and PMF debris on soil biochemical properties and microbial communities. We conducted a soil microcosm experiment by adding BC formed by direct burning of wheat straw and PMF debris (polyethylene (PE) and biodegradable PMF (BP)) into soil at the dosages of 1 %, and soils were sampled on the 15th, 30th, and 100th day of soil incubation for high-throughput sequencing. The results showed that the degradation of PMF debris was accompanied by the release of microplastics (MPs). BC decreased NH4+-N (PE: 68.63 %; BP: 58.97 %) and NO3−-N (PE: 12.83 %; BP: 51.37 %) and increased available phosphorus (AP) (PE: 79.12 %; BP: 26.09 %) in soil containing PMF debris. There were significant differences in enzyme activity among all the treatments. High-throughput sequencing indicated that BC reduced bacterial and fungal richness and fungal diversity in PMF debris-exposed soil, whereas PMF debris and BC resulted in significant changes in the proportion of dominant phyla and genera of bacteria and fungi, which were affected by incubation time. Furthermore, BC affected microorganisms by influencing soil properties, and pH and N content were the main influencing factors. In addition, FAPRPTAX analysis indicated that BC and PMF debris affected soil C and N cycling. These findings provide new insights into the response of soil multifunctionality to BC and PMF debris.

Life Cycle Assessment of Wheat Straw Pyrolysis with Volatile Fractions Chemical Looping Combustion

Among the approaches to facilitating negative CO2 emissions is biochar production. Biochar is generated in the pyrolysis of certain biomasses. In the pyrolysis process, carbon in the biomass is turned into a solid, porous, carbon-rich, and stable material that can be captured from the soil after a period of from a few decades to several centuries. In addition to this long-term carbon sequestration role, biochar is also beneficial for soil performance as it helps to restore soil fertility and improves the retention and diffusion of water and nutrients. This work presents a Life Cycle Assessment of different pyrolysis approaches for biochar production. Biomass pyrolysis is performed in a fixed-bed reactor, which operates at a mild temperature (550 °C). Biochar is obtained as solid product of the pyrolysis, but there are also liquid (bio-oil) and gaseous products (syngas). The pyrolysis gas is partly used to fulfil the energy demand of the pyrolysis process, which is highly endothermic. In the conventional approach, CO2 is produced during the combustion of syngas and emitted to the atmosphere. Another approach to facilitate CO2 capture and thus obtain more negative CO2 emissions in the pyrolysis process is burning syngas and bio-oil in a Chemical Looping Combustion unit. Life Cycle Assessment was performed of these approaches toward biomass pyrolysis to evaluate their environmental impact. The Chemical Looping Combustion approach significantly reduced the values of 7 of the 16 environmental impact indicators studied, along with the Global Warming Potential among them, it slightly increased the value of one indicator related to the use of fossil resources, and it maintained the values of the remaining 8 indicators. Environmental impact reduction occurs due to the avoidance of CO2 and NOx emissions with Chemical Looping Combustion. The CO2 balances of the different pyrolysis approaches with Chemical Looping Combustion configurations were compared with a base case, which constituted the direct combustion of wheat straw to obtain thermal energy. Direct biomass combustion for the production of 17.1 MJ of thermal energy had CO2 positive emissions of 0.165 kg. If the gaseous fraction was burned by Chemical Looping Combustion, CO2 was captured and the emissions became increasingly negative, until a value of −3.30 kg/17.1 MJ was generated. If bio-oil was also burned by this technology, the negative trend of CO2 emissions continued, until they reached a value of −3.66 kg.

Morphology and phosphate distribution in bottom ash particles from fixed-bed co-combustion of sewage sludge and two agricultural residues

The purpose of this study was to provide detailed knowledge of the morphological properties of ash particles, including the volumetric fractions and 3D distributions of phosphates that lay within them. The ash particles came from digested sewage sludge co-combusted with K- and Si-rich wheat straw or K-rich sunflower husks. X-ray micro-tomography were combined with elemental composition and crystalline phase information to analyse the ash particles in 3D.Analyses of differences in the X-ray attenuation enabled calculation of 3D phosphate distributions that showed high heterogeneity in the slag particles. This is underscored by a distinct absence of phosphates in iron-rich and silicon-rich parts. The slag from silicate-based wheat straw mixtures had lower average attenuation than that from sunflower husks mixtures, which contained more calcium. Calculated shares of phosphates between 7 and 17 vol% were obtained, where the highest value for a single assigned phosphate was observed in hard slag from wheat straw with 10 % sewage sludge. The porosity was notably higher for particles from pure wheat straw combustion (62 vol%), compared to the other samples (15–35 vol%). A high open pore volume fraction (60–97 vol%) indicates that a large part of the pores can be accessed by the surroundings. For all samples, more than 60 % of the discrete (closed) pores had an equivalent diameter < 30 μm, while the largest volume fraction consisted of pores with an equivalent diameter > 75 μm. Slag from sunflower husk mixtures had larger pore volumes and a greater relative number of discrete pores >75 µm compared to wheat straw mixtures.

Fixed source monitoring system for marker emission during biomass combustion

Emissions from biomass combustion depend on biomass characteristics, operating parameters and concern different types of compounds such as: CO2, CO, SO2, NOX, inorganic and organic micro-pollutants, polyciclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated byphenils, and particulate matter. The aim of this work is the development of a fixed source sampling method for total levoglucosan emission, commonly considered, along with its isomer mannosan and galactosan as an atmosphere tracers for Total Suspended Particles generated by biomass burning. The semi-volatile behavior of such compound was taken into account and its sampling occurred by depositing the main fraction on a filter and the volatile fraction sampled by impingers filled with specific solution. Subsequently, the emission factors of levoglucosan in Total Suspended Particles from burning of rice and wheat straw varying from 53.7 to 65.8 mg/kgfuel were evaluated. The proposed method uses an isokinetic probe with quartz filter for particle fraction sampling and a system of impingers for the volatile fraction. The important result obtained from the experiment showed that a percentage between 30% and 50% of levoglucosan exceeds the filter and was sampled in the impingers. This result suggests the importance to collect both fractions of levoglucosan emission in order to not neglect the volatile fraction which represents an important component and must not be omitted.

Chemical properties of biochars prepared from corn and wheat straw at different temperatures

In this study, biochar produced by anaerobic combustion of wheat straw and corn straw in Henan Province at 300 ℃, 500 ℃ and 700 ℃ was used. The chemical properties of wheat biochar and corn biochar, such as pH and infrared spectra, were studied with the increase of temperature. The chemical properties of wheat and corn biochars were compared based on the related literatures.It was found that the pH of biochar from wheat straw and corn straw combustion increased with the increase of temperature. Through the analysis of infrared spectra, it was found that the pH change of the two biochars may be related to the content of functional groups in the biochars themselves. With the increase of temperature, the spectra showed that the functional groups of the two biochars, such as hydroxyl and carboxyl,The main reason is that the chemical bonds of the above functional groups are broken with the increase of temperature. Resulting in a decrease in the number of acidic functional groups and an increase in the alkalinity of the biochar.

Monodispersed Co@C nanoparticles anchored on reclaimed carbon black toward high-performance electromagnetic wave absorption

• CB/Co@C nanocomposites composed of sustainable carbon black and anchored Co@C nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized. • As a novel lightweight electromagnetic wave absorber, the optimal RL min and EAB of -53.989 dB and 6.0 GHz were achieved at thin thickness. • A reasonable absorption mechanism was proposed according to various loss mechanism induced by different components. Recently, developing carbon-based hybrid materials loaded with magnetic components has been generally regarded as a promising and practically feasible strategy when it comes to constructing lightweight electromagnetic wave absorbers. In the current work, reclaimed carbon black (CB) nanopowder was firstly produced by simple burning of wheat straw, which was then employed as sustainable carbon-based host materials (carrier) and successfully decorated Co@C nanoparticles via a simple thermal reduction process. Remarkably, both the as-fabricated nanocomposites and corresponding electromagnetic wave absorption performances could be effectively tuned by tailoring the dosage of the Co@C nanoparticles. The minimum reflection loss (RL min ) of –53.989 dB was achieved for CB/Co@C-2# at 2.28 mm thickness, meanwhile, CB/Co@C-3# was featured by a wide effective absorption band (EAB) of 6 GHz (6.72–12.72 GHz) at a 2.73 mm matching thickness, which covered the entire X band, suggesting that the CB/Co@C nanocomposites were an attractive candidate for electromagnetic wave absorber. According to the synergistic influence of dielectric loss and magnetic loss from CB and Co@C, respectively, as well as the properly matched impedance, a reasonable electromagnetic wave attenuation mechanism was illustrated. It is noteworthy that the preparation process of CB is a facile, recycled, and low-cost strategy for achieving nanoscale carbon-based absorbing materials, moreover, the CB/Co@C nanocomposites provide a reference for constructing lightweight dielectric-magnetic products with superb electromagnetic wave absorption performances.

Effects of atmospheric aging processes on carbonaceous species and water-soluble inorganic ions in biomass burning aerosols

Biomass burning (BB) has been considered as a major source for primary aerosols and gas pollutants in the atmosphere, but the influence of atmospheric aging processes on the chemical compositions of BB aerosols remains unclear. In this study, a combustion chamber and an oxidation flow reactor were combined to simulate fresh and 7-day aged PM2.5 from burning of rice, maize, and wheat straws in a laboratory. The emission factors (EFs) of PM2.5 mass, carbonaceous species (i.e. organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC)), and water-soluble inorganic ions in both fresh and 7-day aged samples were determined. The EFs of PM2.5, OC, EC, and ions were 7.2–45, 2.8–24, 0.3–0.8, and 1.6–4.7 g kg−1 in the fresh particles from the straws burning, and 12–63, 3.0–25, 0.3–1.3, and 4.1–13 g kg−1 in the aged ones. Cl− and K+ were the most abundant ions in the fresh samples. EFs of NO3− and NH4+ were increased by 35–100 and 1.6–126 times, respectively, becoming the most abundant ions in the aged particles. By comparison with the results in experiments on 2-day aged specimens, we found a continuous formation of secondary aerosols in the atmospheric aging processes (especially for secondary inorganic ions), and that the deficit of anion equivalents increases with longer aging time. These results are valuable for studying the transportation effects of plumes from wildfires of forest and agriculture, or intensive domestic BB in some rural regions.

Emission factors and chemical profile of I/SVOCs emitted from household biomass stove in China

Household combustion of biomass straw for cooking or heating is one of the most important emission sources of intermediate volatility and semi-volatile organic compounds (I/SVOCs). However, there are limited studies on the emission factors (EFs) and speciation profiles of I/SVOCs from household stoves burning biomass straw. In this study, experiments were conducted in a typical Chinese stove to test the EFs and species of I/SVOCs in three commonly used straws. It was revealed that EFs of I/SVOCs emitted from the burning of corn straw, rice straw, and wheat straw were 6.7, 1.9, and 9.8 g/kg, respectively, which accounted for 48.3 %, 36.8 %, and 48.6 % of total organic compounds emitted. Particulate organic compounds were dominated by ketones, oxygenated aromatics, acids, esters, and nitrogen-containing compounds, whereas the gaseous phase was dominated by aldehydes, acids, and aromatics. Although I/SVOCs only accounted for 18.1–23.6 % of the gaseous emissions from burning of straw, they represented 64.8–72.9 % of the secondary organic aerosol formation potential (SOAFP). The EFs of 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were 362.0, 262.5, and 1145.2 mg/kg for corn straw, rice straw, and wheat straw, respectively, among which 3-ring and 4-ring PAHs were the main components. Thus, the results of this study provide new reliable I/SVOCs data that are useful for the development of an accurate emission inventory of organic compounds, simulation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation, and health risk assessment.

Evolution of light absorption properties during photochemical aging of straw open burning aerosols

Straw burning comprises more than 30% of all types of burned biomass in Asia, while the estimation of the emitted aerosols' direct radiative forcing effect suffers from large uncertainties, especially when atmospheric aging processes are considered. In this study, the light absorption properties of primary and aged straw burning aerosols in open fire were characterized at 7 wavelengths ranging from 370 nm to 950 nm in a chamber. The primary rice, corn and wheat straw burning bulk aerosols together had a mass absorption efficiency (MAE) of 2.43 ± 1.36 m2 g−1 at 520 nm and an absorption Ångström exponent (AAE) of 1.93 ± 0.71, while the primary sorghum straw burning bulk aerosols were characterized by a relatively lower MAE of 0.95 ± 0.54 m2 g−1 and a higher AAE of 4.80 ± 0.68. Both the MAE and AAE of primary aerosols can be well parameterized by the (PM-BC)/BC ratio (in wt.). The MAE of black carbon (BC) increased by 11–190% during photoreactions equivalent to 16–60 h of atmospheric aging, which was positively correlated with the (PM-BC)/(BC) ratio. The MAE of organic aerosols first slightly increased or leveled off, and then decreased. Specifically, at 370 nm, the first growth/plateau stage lasted until OH exposure reached 0.47–1.29 × 1011 molecule cm−3 s, and the following period exhibited decay rates of 1.0–2.8 × 10−12 cm3 molecule−1 s−1 against the OH radical, corresponding to half-lives of 46–134 h in a typical ambient condition. During photoreactions, competition among the lensing effect, growth/bleach of organic chromophores, and particle mass and size growth complicated the evolution of the direct radiative forcing effect. It is concluded that rice and corn straw burning aerosols maintained a warming effect after aging, while the cooling effect of fresh sorghum straw burning aerosols increased with aging.

Secondary organic aerosol formation from straw burning using an oxidation flow reactor

Herein, we use an oxidation flow reactor, Gothenburg: Potential Aerosol Mass (Go: PAM) reactor, to investigate the secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from wheat straw burning. Biomass burning emissions are exposed to high concentrations of hydroxyl radicals (OH) to simulate processes equivalent to atmospheric oxidation of 0-2.55 days. Primary volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were investigated, and particles were measured before and after the Go: PAM reactor. The influence of water content (i.e. 5% and 11%) in wheat straw was also explored. Two burning stages, the flaming stage, and non-flaming stages, were identified. Primary particle emission factors (EFs) at a water content of 11% (∼3.89 g/kg-fuel) are significantly higher than those at a water content of 5% (∼2.26 g/kg-fuel) during the flaming stage. However, the water content showed no significant influence at the non-flaming stage. EFs of aromatics at a non-flaming stage (321.8±46.2 mg/kg-fuel) are larger than that at a flaming stage (130.9±37.1 mg/kg-fuel). The OA enhancement ratios increased with the increase in OH exposure at first and decreased with the additional increment of OH exposure. The maximum OA enhancement ratio is ∼12 during the non-flaming stages, which is much higher than ∼ 1.7 during the flaming stages. The mass spectrum of the primary wheat burning organic aerosols closely resembles that of resolved biomass burning organic aerosols (BBOA) based on measurements in ambient air. Our results show that large gap (∼60%-90%) still remains to estimate biomass burning SOA if only the oxidation of VOCs were included.

Potassium transformation and release during biomass combustion

AbstractTo study the transformation and release of fuel K, the combustion of corn stalk and wheat straw were performed in a reactor with a fixed bed between 400–1000°C. Measurements of weight and elemental composition, chemical fractionation analysis, and low‐temperature ashing coupled with X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis were conducted on biomass and residual samples. The effects of biomass species, temperature and duration time of combustion, oxygen concentration, and pretreatment of water washing were evaluated. The results show that compared with wheat straw, corn stalk has a lower K release, which is much more sensitive to the combustion temperature than to the oxygen concentration. The inorganic potassium occurs as KClO3 and KClO4 in wheat straw and KCl and KClO4 in corn stalk. K2SO4 appears through sulphation of KCl as combustion happens at 800°C or above. When the combustion temperature reached 900°C for corn stalk and 1000°C for wheat straw, some KCl changed into K2Si2O5, which contains insoluble K. K2Ca(SO4)2 appears as corn stalk and wheat straw are burnt at 1000 and 900°C, respectively. Along with the proceeding of wheat straw combustion, more ion‐exchangeable and water‐soluble K transform to the insoluble K with the increasing temperature. The pretreatment of water washing removes nearly all the water‐soluble K from the corn stalk and significantly decreases the K release from 3.26–0.27 mg g−1 in quantity and from 26.74%–14.84% in ratio at 1000°C, respectively.

Influence of kaolin and coal fly ash addition on biomass ash deposition in an entrained flow reactor

The ash deposition behavior when firing different biomass (pulverized wheat straw, wood, bark, and leaves), with and without K-capture additives (kaolin and coal fly ash) was investigated through combustion experiments in the DTU (Technical University of Denmark) entrained flow reactor (EFR). In terms of deposit formation, the K- and Cl-rich Danish wheat straw proved to be the most problematic fuel, while milled wood pellets, leaves, and bark had significantly lower deposition propensities. Kaolin and two types of coal fly ash (Al- and Si-rich) were used as K-capture additives, and the results showed that with a fuel-K/additive-Al molar ratio of 1.0, the deposition propensity of wheat straw combustion was significantly reduced. However, the deposition propensity of the combustion of milled wood pellets did not change significantly with the addition of additives. ICP-elemental analysis of the deposits and fly ash samples showed that the water-soluble K content in the deposits and fly ash was significantly reduced for both wheat straw and wood pellet combustion. In comparison with the data from previous experiments, where pure K-salt reacted with solid additives, kaolin captured KOH more effectively than real biomass combustion. For coal fly ash, an opposite tendency was observed, i.e., it captured K more effectively under real biomass combustion conditions than under pure KOH reaction conditions.

Effectiveness of bed additives in abating agglomeration during biomass air/oxy combustion in a fluidised bed combustor

In this study, molochite (calcined kaolin) and dolomite with particle sizes (ca.1 mm) similar to those of the sand bed materials of industrial-scale fluidised beds, rather than powders which were normally used by previous studies, were investigated as the bed additives to counter agglomeration with the combustion of wheat straw and miscanthus pellets in a 20 kWth bubbling fluidised bed combustor under both conventional air combustion and oxy-fuel combustion conditions. The performance of the additives in abating agglomeration was compared to that achieved with another agglomeration countermeasure, lime addition to fuel. Dolomite was found to be superior to molochite in terms of prolonging defluidisation time when firing wheat straw. When firing miscanthus, similar effects of these two bed additives on defluidisation time were observed. The most significant improvement to the combustion performance was achieved by lime addition to fuel for both fuels. Moreover, the oxy-fuel combustion atmosphere showed a great impact on the effectiveness of dolomite but little influence on the effectiveness of molochite. The agglomeration samples were analysed by CAMSIZER, XRD and SEM/EDX and the results were used to derive the possible anti-agglomeration mechanisms of the additives under both air and oxy combustion conditions.

Phosphorus emission from open burning of major crop residues in China

Biomass burning has been recognized as an important primary source of atmospheric phosphorus (P), but the measurements of P from biomass burning particles are lacking. In this work, emission factors of different P forms, including total P (TP), total dissolved P (TDP), dissolved inorganic P (DIP) and dissolved organic P (DOP), in emission particles from four types of crop residues burning were measured in a number of chamber experiments. Based on the measured emission factors and the amount of crop residue burned, a high-resolution (0.25° × 0.25°) emission inventory of P for China during 2011–2015 was firstly developed. The emission factors of TP, DIP and DOP were 0.23, 0.06 and 0.13 g/kg, 0.57, 0.17 and 0.27 g/kg, 0.52, 0.15 and 0.27 g/kg, 0.43, 0.13 and 0.25 g/kg for wheat, corn, soybean and rice straw burning, respectively. The total emissions of TP, TDP, DIP, and DOP from the four types of crop straw open burning were 72.0 × 103 ± 6.7 × 103 Tons, 56.3 × 103 ± 5.5 × 103, 20.9 × 103 ± 2.0 × 103 and 35.4 × 104 ± 3.4 × 103 Tons, respectively. TDP dominated the TP fraction, indicating that biomass burning was the important source of bioavailable P. The high P emission areas were mainly distributed in the Northeast and North China Plain, where were the main grain production areas in China, while P emission in economically developed areas such as Beijing and Shanghai and western areas such as Tibet and Qinghai was lower. Affected by the harvesting periods of crops, high P emissions peaked in March, April, June and October. The results herein can provide a dataset for modeling research in calculating the contribution of biomass burning sources to atmospheric P; therefore reduce uncertainties in estimating atmospheric P deposition.

Application of a Modeling Tool to Describe Fly Ash Generation, Composition, and Melting Behavior in a Wheat Straw Fired Commercial Power Plant

Ash behavior is a key operational aspect of industrial-scale power generation by means of biomass combustion. In this work, FactSageTM 6.4 software was used to develop and assess three models of wheat straw combustion in a vibrating grate-fired commercial boiler of 16 MWth, aiming to describe the inorganic elements release as well as fly ash melting behavior and composition. Simulations were carried out solving four consecutive calculation stages corresponding to the main plant sections. Chemical fractionation was adopted in order to distinguish between reactive, inert and partially reactive biomass fractions. The developed models allow take into account different levels of partial reactivity, values of the temperature for each sub-stage on the grate, and ways to apply entrained streams based on data from the elemental analyses of the fly ashes. To this end, two one-week experimental campaigns were conducted in the plant to carry out the sampling. It has been found that considering chemical fractionation is indispensable to describe the entrainment of solid particles in the gas stream. In addition, the best results are obtained by adopting a small reactivity (2%) of the inert fraction. As for fly ash composition, the concentrations of the major elements showed good agreement with the results from the chemical analyses. In the case of S and Cl, calculations revealed a match with gas cooling effects in the superheaters as well as an entrainment effect. The melting behavior together with the presence of KCl and K2SO4 condensates, point out at possible corrosion phenomena in walls at temperatures of 700–750 °C.

Release of potassium in association with structural evolution during biomass combustion

A mechanistic understanding of potassium release is essential to mitigate the potassium-induced ash problems during biomass combustion. This work studies the effects of operational condition on the potassium release and transition during the combustion of wheat straw, and elucidate the release potential of potassium associated with the structural change of biomass particles. The combustion tests were carried out in a laboratory-scale reactor, working in a wide range of temperatures and heating rates. It was found that the combustion of biomass sample at a temperature up to 1000 °C results in a release of over 60% of its initial potassium content. Raising the heating rate from 8 °C/min to 25 °C/min could lead to an additional release of up to 20% of the initial amount of potassium. A three-stage potassium release mechanism has been concluded from this work: the initial-step release stage (below 400 °C), the holding stage (400–700 °C) and the second-step release stage (above 700 °C). Comprehensive morphology analysis with elemental (i.e. K, S, O, Si) distribution was carried out; the results further confirmed that potassium is likely to exist inside the stem-like tunnel of biomass particles, mainly in forms of inorganic salts. During the heating-up process, the breakdown and collapse of biomass particle structure could expose the internally located potassium and thus accelerate the release of potassium and the transform of its existing forms. Lastly, a detailed temperature-dependent release mechanism of potassium was proposed, which could be used as the guidance to mitigate the release of detrimental potassium compounds by optimising the combustion process.

Nitrous acid emission from open burning of major crop residues in mainland China

Nitrous acid (HONO) plays a significant role in tropospheric chemistry. The emission sources of HONO, however, are poorly characterized, which constraints the predictive capabilities of HONO and the associated environmental influences in models. This study measured the emission factors of HONO (EFHONO) from the agricultural residue (including wheat, rice, corn and soybean straws) open burning, the largest biomass combustion source in China. Based on this, a high-resolution (0.25 ° × 0.25 °) emission inventory of HONO from 2011 to 2015 was established using the city-level activity data compiled through statistical yearbook review in combination with machine learning algorithms, including linear regression (LR), back-propagation neural network (BPNN), general regression neural network (GRNN) and random forest (RF). Results showed that the averaged EFHONO from open burning of wheat, rice, corn and soybean straws were 0.10, 0.25, 0.98 and 0.97 g kg−1, respectively. Total annual emissions of HONO were estimated to be 101347.3, 100232.1, 104278.3, 98383.0 and 107783.9 tons, respectively, for 2011–2015. Regions with high HONO emission intensities were mainly concentrated in North China Plain and Northeast China, whereas low intensities were mainly allocated to western regions. The temporal distribution of average provincial emissions showed the peaks in March, April, June and October, respectively. Results shown herein should be useful for improving the accuracy of HONO budgets and air quality simulations in China.

Toward Novel Biocomposites from Unavoidable Food Supply Chain Wastes and Zirconia

The synthesis and characterization of novel biocomposites, herein termed bioboards, derived from agricultural residues (wheat straw and barley straw) and aqueous biosilicate solutions, as binder, are reported. The addition of a small amount of protein significantly enhances board strength. The internal bond strength (IBS) increases from 0.0498 to 0.0688 N mm–2. Prior to adhesion, the agricultural residues were dewaxed (ethanol), making them more amenable to aqueous wetting. The aqueous biosilicate binder was obtained via KOH-assisted hydrothermal leaching of spent ashes derived from the combustion of wheat straw. The concentration of biosilicate was determined by ATR-IR spectroscopy and compared with commercial silicate solution (K120). Zirconia powders were introduced to increase the fireproof ability of bioboards. The presence of zirconia was evidenced by powder X-ray diffraction studies. Thus, the bioboards reported represent “greener” alternatives to conventional, commercial particle and medium density fiber boards because they are wood-free, use waste as a renewable resource (agricultural straws), and, importantly do not use any harmful phenol-formaldehyde and isocyanate binders.

Thermal behavior and kinetic analysis of co-combustion of wheat straw and polyvinyl chloride under different oxygen concentrations through thermogravimetry

Co-combustion characteristics of wheat straw with polyvinyl chloride under different oxygen concentration atmospheres were investigated using a thermogravimetric analyzer. Experimental samples included wheat straw, polyvinyl chloride, and their blends. The results showed that when the wheat straw was blended with polyvinyl chloride, there was an inhibition for devolatilization in the volatile combustion stage. However, during the char combustion stage, a promotion was observed. As the oxygen concentration increased from 10% to 40%, the ignition temperatures, burnout temperatures, and maximum reaction rate temperatures of all samples decreased, and the combustion characteristic factors ( SN) increased. The combustion of wheat straw was significantly affected by oxygen concentration, whereas the polyvinyl chloride and blends were affected relatively slightly. Especially, as the oxygen concentration increased from 30% to 40%, the combustion of polyvinyl chloride and blends improve slightly. The reason for this behavior is attributed to the diffusion effects of the oxygen and the microstructure changes of the samples. In addition, the activation energies of the co-combustion process under the four atmospheres, for all samples, were calculated by Flynn–Wall–Ozawa method. The kinetic results show that the diffusion effect of the oxygen influenced the apparent activation energies of combustion reaction and the compensation effect of activation energies exists.