Thermochemical Processing of Miscanthus through Fluidized‐Bed Fast Pyrolysis: A Parametric Study

• Published in: Chemical engineering & technology Vol. 41; no. 9; pp. 1737 - 1745
• Main Authors: Wang, Wei-Cheng, Lee, An-Cheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frankfurt Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.09.2018
• Subjects: Agricultural wastes; Agriculture; Biomass; Bio‐fuel; Carrier gases; Chemical composition; Combustion; Fast pyrolysis; Flow velocity; Fluidized bed; Fluidized beds; Gas flow; Organic chemistry; Parametric statistics; Pyrolysis; Raw materials; Renewable energy; Thermochemical process
• ISSN: 0930-7516; 1521-4125
• DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201700486

Thermochemical processing of agriculture waste not only provides surrogates for combustion fuel but also reduces the environmental issues of waste. Miscanthus has been viewed as one of the largest agriculture wastes in Taiwan and a proper process for turning Miscanthus into a valuable product has become a significant subject. Here, fluidized‐bed fast pyrolysis was applied to convert Miscanthus into bio‐oil, bio‐char, and pyrolytic gases as the products. The product distributions were examined depending on various reaction parameters such as reaction temperature, carrier gas flow rate, feedstock feeding rate, and feedstock size. The chemical compositions of the bio‐oil, bio‐char, and product gases were analyzed and the properties of the bio‐oil were also tested via standard methods. So far, bio‐oil derived from Miscanthus is unfavorable for application in combustion engines without further upgrading processes. Fluidized‐bed fast pyrolysis was used to convert Miscanthus, one of the largest agriculture wastes in Taiwan, into bio‐oil, bio‐char, and pyrolytic gases. The product distributions were studied depending on various parameters and the properties of the bio‐oil were tested via standard methods. Bio‐oil derived from Miscanthus is still unfavorable for application in combustion engines.