Catalytic upgrading of bio-oil from bagasse: Thermogravimetric analysis and fixed bed pyrolysis

Abstract

The objective of this work was to upgrade bio-oil from bagasse by pyrolysis using catalyst/biomass of three different compositions (5, 15 and 20 wt% HZSM-5 loadings). The thermal analysis and product distribution experiments were carried out in a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) and a fixed bed reactor, respectively. In TGA, the pyrolysis of catalytic runs shifted the thermograph curves to the lower temperatures and generated high yield residues compared to that obtained from non-catalytic run. From a fixed-bed condition, the maximum bio-oil yield from non-catalytic and catalytic runs at a temperature of 500 °C at 15% ZSM-5 catalyst concentration were 49.4% and 21.1 wt% respectively. Aromatics, phenols and oleic acids are the main chemical components deduced from gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis of the bio-oil. Bio-oil from catalytic pyrolysis had more aromatics (desirable component) and less oleic acid (undesirable component) than the bio-oil from non-catalytic pyrolysis. The study of bio-oil from catalytic bagasse pyrolysis enhances desirable component when used as transportation fuel. Besides addition of catalyst improving the degradation mechanism of biomass also alters the product composition closer to the aromatic range hydrocarbon. Keywords: Bagasse, Pyrolysis, TGA, Fixed bed reactor, Catalytic, Bio-oil