A complete characterization of solid, liquid and gas phase products derived from the thermochemical pathway of new feedstock Grevillea Robusta sawdust

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saveetha School of Engineering, SIMATS, Thandalam, Chennai. 602105

2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Government College of Technology, Coimbatore.641013.India

Abstract

Grevillea robusta is widely used in the carpentry industry due to its long life and strength but saw dust wastage is just thrown out as manure. This work focuses on analysing characteristics of sub-fractions obtained from pyrolysis of sawdust of Grevillea Robusta (GR). Pyrolysis was carried out in top-loaded fixed bed pyrolysis reactor at 500˚ C temperature, a constant heating rate of 30° C/minute, and an average particle size of 2-3 mm. Pyrolysis reactor temperatures were analysed using thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). The by-products were characterized by techniques like Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Gas Chromatography (GC), and Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) techniques along with physiochemical characterization carried out using ASTM D-7544 standard. A thermal study reveals that maximum decomposition of biomass sample occurred in the temperature range of 345-370 ˚C. There were 35 components found in the pyrolysis oil with varying carbon lengths of C3 – C44. The proximate and ultimate analysis results clearly show that the calorific value of pyrolysis oil is increased by 112.88% than that of biomass sample. Meanwhile other properties like fixed carbon, and nitrogen (N2) content increased whereas moisture content decreased in biochar than the biomass sample, which confirms the presence of hydrocarbons in pyrolytic gas released out of the reactor. Sawdust, which is often considered a waste product in forestry, furniture and wood work based industries, it can be converted into useful energy. The present study intends to investigate the various forms of energy, such as biofuels or biomass-based power generation. This conversion process can create new economic opportunities, including job creation in biomass industry, reduced energy costs for businesses and households, and decreased dependence on imported energy sources. These analyses confirm that the by-products can be used efficiently as substitutes for conventional fuel.

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Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 11 September 2023

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