Laboratory-scale Fluidized Bed Reactor Research Articles

Adsorptive and oxidative removal of phenolphthalein by sono-assisted synthesized FeAcC in advanced oxidation-integrated fluidized bed reactor

ABSTRACT Environmental water sources are under increasing threat due to the addition of harmful chemicals that are not addressed by conventional water treatment processes. To work on this concern, the current study aimed to synthesize sono-assisted Fe-modified activated carbon–chitosan (FeAcC) composite and construct a laboratory-scale ozone-integrated fluidized bed reactor (FBR) to eliminate phenolphthalein (php). After 120 min of incubation, the adsorbent demonstrated a 27.28 mg g−1 of php adsorption capacity at a pH of 4 with 0.5 g L−1 of adsorbent dosage. The adsorption efficacy and mechanism were defined using isotherm and kinetic models. The study investigated the impact of different factors, including initial concentration, reuse of FeAcC, recirculation flow rate, and hydraulic retention time (HRT), on the efficiency of php removal. The optimum removal efficiency was observed at approximately 95% after 20 min of operation at 1.5 L min−1 recirculation flow rate (batch FBR) and 70 min of HRT (continuous FBR) under a 400 mg h−1 ozonation rate. Experimental parameters were optimized using response surface methodology with central composite design to improve php removal. The large-scale implementation of the findings in the future can be a step for adding new technology for clean water treatment processes for emerging toxic organic pollutants.

Adsorptive and oxidative removal of phenolphthalein by sono-assisted synthesized FeAcC in advanced oxidation-integrated fluidized bed reactor

ABSTRACT Environmental water sources are under increasing threat due to the addition of harmful chemicals that are not addressed by conventional water treatment processes. To work on this concern, the current study aimed to synthesize sono-assisted Fe-modified activated carbon–chitosan (FeAcC) composite and construct a laboratory-scale ozone-integrated fluidized bed reactor (FBR) to eliminate phenolphthalein (php). After 120 min of incubation, the adsorbent demonstrated a 27.28 mg g−1 of php adsorption capacity at a pH of 4 with 0.5 g L−1 of adsorbent dosage. The adsorption efficacy and mechanism were defined using isotherm and kinetic models. The study investigated the impact of different factors, including initial concentration, reuse of FeAcC, recirculation flow rate, and hydraulic retention time (HRT), on the efficiency of php removal. The optimum removal efficiency was observed at approximately 95% after 20 min of operation at 1.5 L min−1 recirculation flow rate (batch FBR) and 70 min of HRT (continuous FBR) under a 400 mg h−1 ozonation rate. Experimental parameters were optimized using response surface methodology with central composite design to improve php removal. The large-scale implementation of the findings in the future can be a step for adding new technology for clean water treatment processes for emerging toxic organic pollutants.

The Influence of Solid Heat Carrier Load of Char on Pyrolysis Characteristics of Pulverized Coal in a Fluidized Bed Reactor

Pulverized coal pyrolysis based on solid heat carrier has a huge advantage in high tar yield. In this study, pyrolysis experiments on pulverized coal were conducted in a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor at 650 °C, utilizing char as the solid heat carrier. The influence of mass ratio of char to coal (RATIO) was investigated. Results show that the incorporation of solid heat carrier of char significantly enhanced the primary pyrolysis reaction in coal pyrolysis, resulting in increasing yields of tar and gas but reducing one of char. The yield of tar maximally reached 148.80–262.22% of the Gray–King analysis value at the RATIO of 14.52 g/g. As the RATIO increased, the tar contained more light component content, indicating that incorporating solid heat carriers improved the tar quality. These findings offer significant insights for the design of fluidized bed pyrolysis unit utilizing char as solid heat carrier.

Process performance and precipitate quality of phosphorus recovery by struvite precipitation in a fluidized bed reactor using a MgO industrial by-product

Phosphorus recovery through struvite precipitation has gained interest due to the potential use of struvite as a fertiliser, with fluidised bed reactors being a popular technology for carrying out the process. Struvite precipitation requires a magnesium source and an alkaline reagent. This research uses a low-grade magnesium oxide (LG-MgO) industrial by-product with a 56 wt% of MgO as magnesium source and an alkaline reagent to lower operating costs and value-add an industrial by-product. LG-MgO is poorly soluble in water, but its solubility increases significantly when dissolved in anaerobic digestion supernatants due to its circumneutral pH and high buffer capacity. Phosphorus precipitation was carried out in a laboratory-scale fluidised bed reactor where three operating variables (i.e. P:Mg molar ratio, feed inlet position, and recirculation flow rate) were studied to determine the LG-MgO impact on precipitate struvite content. Experimental results showed a high struvite content in all precipitates, close to the values reported for pure magnesium sources. The P:Mg molar ratio influenced precipitate composition. The percentage of struvite in the precipitate were 75–82 wt%, 85–88 wt%, and 75–76 wt% for the P:Mg ratio of 1:0.5, 1:1 and 1:3, respectively. The feed inlet position (side or bottom) also had an impact on precipitate struvite content when the P:Mg molar ratio was 1:3, but not for the other molar ratios. The recirculation flow rate did not have a significant impact on precipitate struvite content.

Co-Gasification of Polyethylene and Biomass in Catalytic Bed Material

In this work, a simplified comprehensive three-dimensional numerical model is developed to study the effect of hydrogen production on co-gasification of biomass and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). CFD software AVL Fire 2020 inbuilt algorithms were employed to develop the gas phase while the solid phase was developed by user-defined FORTRAN subroutines. Solid hydrodynamics, fuel conversion, homogenous and non-homogenous chemical reactions, and heat transfer, including radiation, subroutines were defined and incorporated into AVL FIRE explicitly. Species concentrations of the syngas were analyzed for co-gasification of Beechwood and LDPE for three distinct types of bed materials (silica sand, Na-Y zeolite, and ZSM-5 zeolite). Then, the model is validated with experiment results available in the literature for a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor. The highest hydrogen production was observed in Na-Y zeolite followed by ZSM-5 zeolite and silica in both numerical and experimental analysis for the co-gasification of Beechwood and LDPE, providing a reasonable agreement between the numerical and the experimental results. Therefore, the current model predicts the enhancement of the quality of hydrogen-rich syngas through the application of co-pyrolysis within a fluidized bed reactor, incorporating a catalytic bed material.

Coupled kinetic and hydrodynamic model for a carbonator reactor of calcium looping process: Sulfur dioxide effect

The application of the calcium looping (CaL) process for CO2 capture has gained recognition as a highly efficient technology in mitigating greenhouse gases emission. In this study, by considering the characteristics of the adsorbent and the hydrodynamics of the fluidized bed in the fast fluidization regime, a fractal-like random pore kinetic model and a 1D hydrodynamic model were combined together. In order to validate the kinetic model, experimental carbonation data obtained from a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor under realistic operational condition and in the absence/presence of SO2 gas were used. The results demonstrated a satisfactory agreement between the model and experimental data, as indicated by the maximum absolute error of 1.23% and 1.78% in the absence and presence of SO2, respectively. Based on sensitivity analysis, the efficiency of the carbonator reactor was found to be predominantly affected by the solid inventory in the bed and the gas inlet velocity. Also, the results of this analysis indicate that in the presence of SO2, a higher make-up flow rate leads to a more pronounced enhancement in the efficiency of the carbonator reactor, as compared to the absence of SO2 in the reaction environment. Results of modelling indicated that the presence of SO2 necessitated a 36.5-fold increase in the minimum-required make-up flow to attain comparable efficiency obtained in the condition of the absence of SO2. Furthermore, the results of modelling as a function of number of cycles demonstrated a substantial decline in the efficiency of the carbonator reactor, which in the absence of SO2, the efficiency decreased from 68.13% to 18.81%, while in the presence of SO2, it decreased from 45.53% to 4.75% over 100 sequential cycles.

Scaling a Gas Phase Residual Lithium Conversion Process on Ni-Rich NMC Cathode Materials in Commercial Fluidized Bed Reactors

‘Residual lithium’, the LiOH and Li2CO3 surface contamination that is ubiquitous to Ni-rich NMC manufacturing, is a significant obstacle in the large-scale production and handling of high-nickel layered oxides. These hydroxide and carbonate surface phases influence reproducibility and shelf stability of the NMC powder and cause gelation and particle aggregation during electrode casting. There is ample evidence in the literature that atomic layer deposition (ALD) possesses a two-fold solution to this problem.1-3 First, reactive organometallic species such as trimethylaluminum (TMA) can convert insulating residual lithium to a Li-rich LixAlyO conducting layer. Customizable ALD layers can then be added to inhibit the re-formation of the carbonate layer and to deter negative side reactions of the CAM surface with the liquid electrolyte. While highly impactful, these studies have mostly been relegated to small, lab-scale demonstrations of <50 g. As such, there remains a need to enable this ALD-assisted-technology for high-throughput commercial applications.In this talk, we will explore the progression of a residual lithium conversion process from lab (10 – 1000 mL) to industrial-scale (10 L – 100 L) fluidized bed equipment and how scale and material-dependent parameters can impact performance. Using a commercial NMC 811 cathode as a case study, we first applied aluminum phosphate ALD coatings on a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor to examine the interfacial and electrochemical changes of the CAM material under various process conditions. ICP-OES measurements confirmed linear and reproducible deposition versus ALD cycle number between 200- 300°C. XPS analysis showed the ALD coated NMC 811 powder had an 80% reduction in Li2CO3 versus the pristine material and that a reduction persisted even after 10 days of storage in atmospheric conditions. At standard (0.5C/1C) cycling to 4.4V, AlPO4 coatings increased cycle life by 44% versus the uncoated powder. Under optimized conditions, the process was scaled first to 1 kg and finally to 10 kg in a pilot-scale reactor. In-situ mass spectrometry indicated that residual lithium conversion byproducts such as CO2 could be used to monitor reaction progress and optimize chemical usage efficiency. Fluidization aids including vibration and mechanical stirring were used to inhibit and break up powder agglomerates. ICP-OES and electrochemical cycling data confirmed reproducible deposition and cycle life benefits versus the small scale runs and pristine materials, demonstrating a pathway for these ALD-enhanced materials to transition from lab-scale demonstration to viable product. We will discuss strategies for continuing the scaling process to 100 kg batches for commercial applications.[1] M. Young et al., The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 2019 123 (39), 23783-23790[2] P. Darapaneni et al., ACS Applied Energy Materials 2022, 5, 8, 9870–9876[3] J. Li et al., Coatings 2022, 12(1), 84

Numerical modelling of biomass gasification with steam injection for catalytic bed materials

Biomass gasification with steam injection in a fluidized bed reactor has emerged as a promising method to improve syngas quality by increasing hydrogen production. In this work, a simplified yet comprehensive three-dimensional multiphase model incorporating combustion chemistry and heat transfer was integrated into AVL FIRE CFD software through the implementation of user-defined subroutines. Biomass combustion and gasification for four different bed materials acting as catalysts to the biomass pyrolysis process with steam injection were investigated for this work. Beechwood was consistently used as the biofuel for all the experiments while varying the bed material. Four various types of bed materials (Silica sand, Olivine, Na–Y Zeolite, and ZSM-5 Zeolite) were used in the study and a constant steam injection was maintained. ZSM-5 Zeolite exhibited the highest hydrogen production under steady-state condition. The present model was validated against experimental results available in the literature for a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor. The model's results of species concentrations of the syngas were analyzed and compared with the experimental results and found reasonable similarity.

Design and first application of a novel laboratory reactor for alkali studies in chemical looping applications

Alkali compounds are readily released during biomass conversion and their complex interactions with reactor walls and sampling equipment makes detailed investigations challenging. This study evaluates a novel laboratory-scale fluidized bed reactor for chemical looping combustion (CLC) studies. The reactor design is based on detailed consideration of the behavior of alkali-containing molecules and aerosol particles and is guided by computational fluid dynamic simulations. The design allows for interactions between gaseous alkali and a fluidized bed, while minimizing alkali interactions with walls before and after the fluidized bed. The function of the laboratory reactor is demonstrated in experiments using online gas and alkali analysis. Alkali is continuously fed to the reactor as KOH or KCl aerosol with and without a fluidized bed of the oxygen carrier CaMn0.775Ti0.125Mg0.1O3-δ present in inert, reducing and oxidizing conditions at temperatures up to 900 °C. Alkali uptake by the OC is characterized in all conditions, and observed to sensitively depend on gas composition, reactor temperature and type of alkali compound. The experimental setup is concluded to have a significantly improved functionality compared to a previously used reactor, which opens up for detailed studies of interactions between alkali compounds and oxygen carriers used in CLC.

Characterization and gasification of end-of-life banknotes rich in cotton content

Many central banks are reviewing their environmentally sustainable activities, including the disposal of end-of-life banknotes, within the scope of green finance policies aimed at reducing environmental impacts. The total amount of banknote production waste and end-of-life (non-reusable) banknotes is estimated to exceed 185.000 tons per year worldwide. End-of-life banknotes are commonly disposed of as combustion, incineration for energy recovery, and landfill. In this study, the characterization and gasification of end-of-life banknotes rich in cotton content, which are classified as lignocellulosic waste, were investigated to bring them into the economy more effectively. The proximate, calorific value, lignocellulosic, elemental, and metal analyses were performed as characterization tests. Thermogravimetric analysis was performed at six different heating rates from 5 to 30 °C. The gasification experiments were carried out in a laboratory-scale fluidized bed reactor. With the gas analyzer, CO, CO2, CH4, H2, and O2 compositions as the mole fraction were determined simultaneously. The effects of temperature, particle size, and H2O/O2 ratio at the inlet intake on the experimental mole fractions were examined. The gasification main reactions that could be effective in gas composition were examined. The cotton-based banknote sample presented high levels of calorific value, C, O, H, cellulose, and lignin concentrations. The sample contained various transition metals such as Fe, Cu, Co, and Cr, which can be used as catalysts in gasification. The activation energy was calculated as 171.13 kJ/mol according to Kissinger method. In gasification experiments, the production of CO (12.11 %) and H2 (8.77 %) in a high composition was carried out.

Influence of Fluidised Bed Inventory on the Performance of Limestone Sorbent in Calcium Looping for Thermochemical Energy Storage

This research work deals with the application of the calcium looping concept for thermochemical energy storage. Experiments were carried out in a lab-scale fluidised bed reactor, which was electrically heated. An Italian limestone (98.5% CaCO3, 420–590 μm) was present in the bed alone, or in combination with silica sand/silicon carbide (this last material was chosen as per its high absorption capacity in the solar spectrum). Calcium looping tests (20 calcination/carbonation cycles) were carried out under operating conditions resembling the “closed-loop” scheme (calcination at 950 °C, carbonation at 850 °C, fluidising atmosphere composed of pure CO2 in both cases). Carbonation degree, particle size distribution, and particle bulk density were measured as cycles progressed, together with the application of a model equation to relate carbonation degree to the number of cycles. Mutual relationships between the nature of the bed material and possible interactions, the degree of CaO carbonation, the generation of fragments, and changes in particle density and porosity are critically discussed. An investigation of the segregation behaviour of the bed material has been carried out through tests in a devoted fluidisation column, equipped with a needle-type capacitive probe (to measure solid concentration).

Improvement of coal and Petroleum coke combustion in a fluidized bed by using ilmenite ore as bed material

Oxygen carrier-aided combustion (OCAC) is an innovative technology that adopts the reactive oxygen carrier (OC) particles as bed materials instead of inert ones, which improves the uniformity of temporal and spatial oxygen distribution in the fluidized bed combustor. However, the existing research of OCAC mainly focuses on high-volatile fuels, less attention has been paid to high-ash and low-volatile fuels (such as coal), which are widely used in the world. In this work, three kinds of solid fuels have been comprehensively evaluated in a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor. Results show that compared to quartz sands as bed material, the OC as bed material shows an apparent “oxygen buffering capacity”, improving combustion stability and reducing the unburnt gas. The promotion effect of OCAC increases with the increase of volatile content in fuel, which indicates that OCAC mainly improves combustion through the redox reaction between volatile and OC particles. The solid-solid reaction between OC and char was negligible. The OCAC experiment was carried out for more than 20 h and found that due to the abrasion of the OC surface, the generated fly ash has a significantly higher Fe content than that using quartz sand as bed material at the initial stage of the experiment, and the abrasion of OC decreases with the increase of experimental time. Interestingly, during a 20-h continuous operation, the reactivity of ilmenite ore increased gradually, which was attributed to the development of pore structure and Fe diffusion of ilmenite ore. In addition, the content of unburnt carbon in the fly ash is similar regardless of the bed materials.

Prediction and optimization of syngas production from Napier grass air gasification via kinetic modelling and response surface methodology

In this research, a kinetic model was developed for Napier grass air gasification using Aspen Plus software and thereafter collated and validated with experimental results obtained from a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor. Herein, the model was further employed to investigate the effect of gasification operating parameters, including temperature (650–850) °C, equivalence ratio (0.2–0.4), and moisture content (0–18) wt.% on products’ yields and syngas quality. The model was segregated into four sections: the drying, devolatilization, combustion, and reduction sections. The outputs of tar, gas, and char from the devolatilization section were defined by external Microsoft Excel subroutine. Kinetic parameters were incorporated in the combustion and reduction sections to simulate tar cracking, oxidation, and reduction reactions. A good agreement was observed between the predicted and experimental results. Furthermore, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to analyze the mutual effects of process variables and perform multi-objective optimization to maximize producer gas yield, higher heating value, carbon conversion efficiency, and cold gas efficiency by incorporating the predicted results from the developed kinetic model. The optimized syngas yield and HHV were 69.42 wt% and 8.14 MJ/Nm3 at 850 °C, 0.3021, and 15.69 wt% for temperature, ER, and moisture content, respectively.

A combined experimental and multiscale modeling approach for the investigation of lab-scale fluidized bed reactors

We show the potential of coupling numerical and experimental approaches in the fundamental understanding of catalytic reactors, and in particular fluidized bed ones.

Tannery Sludge Gasification in a Fluidized Bed for Its Energetic Valorization

The present article deals with the valorization of the organic content of tannery sludges to produce energy vectors. In this scenario, gasification is a viable option to obtain a flexible gaseous stream (syngas) of interesting energetic value, under operating conditions that do not favor the oxidation of Cr(III) (typically found in tannery sludges) to the more harmful Cr(VI) state. To this end, an industrial tannery sludge was characterized through proximate/ultimate analyses and determination of the heating value, showing its capability to act as a solid fuel in a gasification process, and metal analyses, showing that its Cr(VI) content was below the detection limit (2 ppm). The material was subjected to gasification tests in a lab-scale fluidized bed (FB) reactor. The reactor, with a 41 mm inside diameter and a 1 m height, was electrically kept at an operating temperature of 850 °C. The fluidization velocity was 0.30 m/s at 850 °C, i.e., 7.5 times the value of the minimum fluidization velocity. The gasifying stream was composed by O2 (3% vol.) diluted in N2. The adopted oxidant equivalence ratio (ER) levels were 0.15 and 0.24, to ensure substoichiometric (i.e., reducing) conditions in the FB atmosphere. Under the most reducing operating conditions, it was possible to produce syngas with a lower heating value of 12.0 MJ/N m3 (dry and N2-free basis). It contained, under these conditions, about 42% H2, 36% CO, and 4% CH4, plus 16% CO2 and other components. The tar produced from the process, fully characterized by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, showed a favorably low concentration of about 25 g/N m3. FB bottom and fly ashes were analyzed for their carbon and metal contents. In bottom ash, the total Cr concentration resulted in the range of 8–12 g/kg, with a Cr(VI) concentration between 8 and 10 ppm. In the elutriated stream, the total Cr concentration was about 55 g/kg, with a Cr(VI) concentration between 4 and 7 ppm. The Cr(VI) concentration was higher when higher values of the ER were used, but it resulted in 3–4 orders of magnitude lower than the total Cr concentration, showing the appropriateness of the process to produce syngas with very limited oxidation of chromium in the solid residues.

Investigation on self-sustained combustion, NOx emissions, and ash characteristics of coal slime in a lab-scale fluidized bed

Incineration of coal slime in the fluidized bed boiler is an efficient means of energy recovery and environmental protection. In this study, combustion behaviors and NOx emissions of coal slime were studied using a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor. Besides, the fundamental characteristics of coal slime and its ash were explored coupled with a particle size analyzer, X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), automatic specific surface, porosity analyzer, etc. It revealed that the range of 350–640 °C was the main mass loss stage with more than 92% of the total loss during combustion through the thermogravimetric analysis, guaranteeing good burnout performance. The challenges of fluidization and burnout of C-type particles accounting for 36.59% of coal slime were solved by mixing the water with coal slime to enhance its agglomeration and thermal explosion. Through the coupling of multiple operating parameters such as primary and secondary air rate, secondary air height, the oxygen content of flue gas, etc., reasonable furnace temperature and reduction zone distribution can be achieved. In addition, it was found that the migrations of most heavy metals are correlated with the proportion of fine particles in coal slime during combustion. The high content of alkaline substances of coal slime leads to a slightly slagging propensity below 900 °C due to the prevention of eutectics formation. Pore analysis implies that bottom ash and fly ash show different trends in the specific surface area and pore volume compared to the coal slime during combustion.

Thermal denitration of sodium nitrate in a fluidized bed reactor: Optimization of process parameters and application of S-statistics for fluidization state monitoring

A voluminous liquid waste stream is generated as sodium nitrate (NaNO3) solution in Spent Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Plants. Fluidized bed thermal denitration is a strong contender among various disposal options for this stream. In the present work experimental investigations on thermochemical denitration of NaNO3 have been carried out in an 80 NB laboratory scale fluidized bed reactor. Carbon based reductant was utilized to convert NaNO3 to sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) as well as to reduce denitration temperature. The operating parameters were optimized for maximum conversion of NaNO3 and 99.13% denitrification has been achieved. Pressure fluctuation across bed was also recorded and analysed in the state space domain employing attractor comparison technique. This technique computes a statistical metric ‘S’, as a measure of the fluidization state in the fluidized bed reactor and can be used for early detection of agglomeration in the bed. The sensitivity and early agglomeration detection capability of S-statistics are illustrated with experimental results for a liquid-sprayed gas fluidized bed.

Investigation on Forestry Wood Wastes: Pyrolysis and Thermal Characteristics of Ficus religiosa for Energy Recovery System

Pyrolysis is the most important thermochemical process that can be used for the production of biofuel, from wood and wood-based lignocellulosic materials. In this study, bio-oil is produced from the bio-weed named Ficus religiosa by the thermal pyrolysis process by utilizing laboratory-scale fluidized bed reactor. This study deals with the production of maximum bio-oil by optimizing process parameters such as process temperature, particle size, and sweep gas flow rate. Further different analytical techniques were used to describe the properties of bio-oil for different applications. Wood and wood barks of Ficus religiosa were chosen as the raw material due to their higher volatile content (72.4%). The maximum yield of 47.5 wt% bio-oil was collected at the optimized operating conditions of 450°C temperature, 1.0 mm particle size, and 2.0 m3/h sweep gas flow rate. Compared with other operating parameters, temperature is observed as the most significant one to determine the product yield. Through chromatographic analysis, it was identified that the bio-oil is found with the variety of chemical compounds including alcohols, alkenes, phenols, saturated fatty acids, and esters.

Direct Dry Carbonation of Mining and Industrial Wastes in a Fluidized Bed for Offsetting Carbon Emissions

The direct dry mineral carbonation of selected mining and industrial wastes, using carbon dioxide derived from combustion flue gas, was evaluated. Specifically, coal fly ash from two Australian brown coal-fired power plants, red mud from the refinement of bauxite into alumina, and diamond tailings were considered, due to their relevant residual alkali content. These materials were tested in a laboratory-scale fluidized bed reactor at different temperatures (300–450 °C), in a reactive environment that simulated the typical CO2 concentration in a combustion flue gas. The experimental results showed a low, but still appreciable, CO2 capture capacity for three of the tested materials, which appears to be more favorable in the lower temperature range and with relatively fast kinetics, indicating the practical relevance of the process. One of the fly ashes exhibited a different behavior; starting at 350 °C, the sorbent began to release CO2, rather than absorb it. This suggested that the sorbent was already extensively carbonated by weathering before the tests. This study provides some evidence for the possible viability of recycling mining waste and for the circular economy in offsetting carbon emissions in the mining industry.

Study of Energy Valorization of Disposable Masks via Thermochemical Processes: Devolatilization Tests and Simulation Approach

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the use of medical protective equipment, including face masks, to protect the individual from the virus. This work studies the feasibility of using these materials as fuel for thermochemical processes for the production of syngas. A preliminary physic-chemical characterization was made by means of moisture and ash determination, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray fluorescence. Afterward, pyrolysis and gasification tests were executed in a laboratory-scale fluidized bed reactor with chirurgical and FFP2 masks investigating four temperature levels and three different operating conditions (fluidizing agents and dry/wet sample). A qualitative and quantitative analysis of condensable aromatic hydrocarbons in the produced gas, collected during the test campaign, was performed employing a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. The experimental data from the tests were used to propose a hybrid approach to simulate the gasification process, based on experimental laws for the devolatilization step and a thermodynamic equilibrium approach for char gasification. The resulting data were compared with a thermodynamic equilibrium model, showing that the new approach captures non-equilibrium effects always present in real gasifiers operation.