A real explosion: The requirement of steam explosion pretreatment

• Published in: Bioresource technology Vol. 121; pp. 335 - 341
• Main Authors: Yu, Zhengdao, Zhang, Bailiang, Yu, Fuqiang, Xu, Guizhuan, Song, Andong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2012
• Subjects: Biofuels; Biomass; Biotechnology - methods; Catapult explosion mode; Catapults; Consistency; Density; Explosion power density; Explosions; Hydrolysis; Mathematical models; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Models, Chemical; Pretreatment; Severity factor; Steam; Steam electric power generation; Steam explosion pretreatment; Steam explosions; temperature; Time Factors; Explosion power density; Severity factor; Catapult explosion mode; Steam explosion pretreatment; Consistency
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2012.06.055

[Display omitted] ► We present catapult explosion mode which completes the explosion within 0.0875s. ► We compare the effect of pretreatment in the different steam pretreatment methods. ► Without EPD the severity factor cannot describe the entire SE process alone. ► Explosion speed will cause qualitative change in the effect of biomass pretreatment. ► Only the real explosion will satisfy the two requirements of consistency. The severity factor is a common term used in steam explosion (SE) pretreatment that describes the combined effects of the temperature and duration of the pretreatment. However, it ignores the duration of the explosion process. This paper describes a new parameter, the explosion power density (EPD), which is independent of the severity factor. Furthermore, we present the adoption of a 5m3 SE model for a catapult explosion mode, which completes the explosion within 0.0875s. The explosion duration ratio of this model to a conventional model of the same volume is 1:123. The comparison between the two modes revealed a qualitative change by explosion speed, demonstrating that this real explosion satisfied the two requirements of consistency, and suggested a guiding mechanism for the design of SE devices.