Hydrothermal Liquefaction of Sugarcane Bagasse and Straw: Effect of Operational Conditions on Product Fractionation and Bio-Oil Composition
Raquel Santos Silva,
Reinaldo Alves da Silva,
Flávio Montenegro de Andrade,
Pedro Nunes Acácio Neto,
Rayane Maria do Nascimento,
Jandyson Machado Santos,
Luiz Stragevitch,
Maria Fernanda Pimentel,
Diogo Ardaillon Simoes,
Leandro Danielski
Affiliations
Raquel Santos Silva
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
Reinaldo Alves da Silva
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
Flávio Montenegro de Andrade
Fuel Laboratory (LAC), Institute for Petroleum and Energy Research (i-LITPEG), Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. da Arquitetura, s/n, Recife 50740-550, Brazil
Pedro Nunes Acácio Neto
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
Rayane Maria do Nascimento
Department of Chemistry, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Rua Manuel de Medeiros, s/n, Recife 52171-900, Brazil
Jandyson Machado Santos
Department of Chemistry, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Rua Manuel de Medeiros, s/n, Recife 52171-900, Brazil
Luiz Stragevitch
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
Maria Fernanda Pimentel
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
Diogo Ardaillon Simoes
Fuel Laboratory (LAC), Institute for Petroleum and Energy Research (i-LITPEG), Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. da Arquitetura, s/n, Recife 50740-550, Brazil
Leandro Danielski
Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. dos Economistas, s/n, Recife 50740-590, Brazil
In the energy transition process, aiming for zero disposal and clean production in the elimination of waste is crucial; consequently, agricultural residues have significant potential for reduction in the use of fossil fuels. This study investigates the hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of sugarcane bagasse (BSC) and straw (SSC), examining the products’ distribution and bio-oil composition relative to the reaction conditions. The experiments used a 23 factorial design, evaluating the temperature (300–350 °C), constant heating time (0–30 min), and the use of the K2CO3 concentration as the catalyst (0–0.5 mol/L−1). The main factor affecting the biocrude yield from BSC and SSC was the use of K2CO3. Statistically significant interaction effects were also observed. Milder conditions resulted in the highest bio-oil yields, 36% for BSC and 31% for SSC. The catalyst had no impact on the biocrude production. The bio-oils were analyzed by GC/MS and FTIR; a principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to evaluate the samples’ variability. The FTIR highlighted bands associated with common oxygenated compounds in lignocellulosic biomass-derived bio-oils. The GC-MS results indicated a predominance of oxygenated compounds, and these were highest in the presence of the catalyst for both the BSC (90.6%) and SSC (91.7%) bio-oils. The SSC bio-oils presented higher oxygenated compound contents than the BSC bio-oils. Statistical analysis provided valuable insights for optimizing biomass conversion processes, such as determining the optimal conditions for maximizing product yields.
