Running head: Destructive distillation of wood 1

REPORT ON THE DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION OF WOOD

(CHP 444: Non-Fossil Energy Technologies)

Prepared by: Ogutu Flavian CPE/15/14

Institution: Moi University, Main Campus

Date: 9th May 2017

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Table of Contents

Introduction.............................................................................................................................................4
Engineering aspect of the destructive distillation of wood.......................................................................5
Continuous destructive distillation of wood.........................................................................................5
Batch Destructive Distillation of Wood...............................................................................................6
Products of Destructive Distillation of Wood..........................................................................................7
The Scene in Kenya...............................................................................................................................10
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................11
Works Cited...............................................................................................................................................12
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Introduction

Destructive distillation is the chemical process of the decomposition of feedstock by heating it

to high temperatures. It applies generally to processing of organic materials in the absence of

air/in presence of limited amount of oxygen. It’s the application of pyrolysis. The process breaks

up large molecules. The term is also applied when the feedstock contains inorganic materials.

When you subject an organic feedback to destructive distillation, it gives a broader spectrum as

opposed to inorganic feedstock.

Destructive distillation of wood is a good illustration of pyrolysis application. a significant

illustration of the application of pyrolysis; whereby the wood cellulose is broken down to smaller

molecules by the application of heat. Given that the small molecules produced are more volatile

than the feedstock molecules, they are distilled off. After which they may be further subjected to

chemical reactions which may subsequently result to the condensation or polymerization of the

small molecules into large molecules: including chars and heat- stable tarry substances.

Charcoal and a distillate -comprising gases and vapors- are the primary products that are

obtainable from the destructive distillation of wood. The gaseous components include: carbon

monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, methane and ethylene. Vapours, on the other hand, contain

mainly methanol, acetic acid, acetone, formic acid, propionic aldehyde and acid. They also

contain components that condense to form wood tar. These are phenol derivatives, such as:

cresols, guaiacol, catechol, pyrogallol, xylenol, turpentine ingredients: carene, pinene, camphene,

terpineol, limonene, bornyl acetate[Kla25].

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In line with the aforementioned, this report is bent on discussing the engineering aspect of the

destructive (dry) distillation of wood; the economic and environmental effects of the process in

Kenya.

Engineering aspect of the destructive distillation of wood

In the present times, the destructive distillation of wood can be carried out on a continuous or

batch basis. In either scenario, there is a gradual increase in temperature from 200 ℃ to 600

℃ . For the process to be carried out successfully there is minimal admission of air into the

retorts.

Continuous destructive distillation of wood

Wood in the shape of round billets, of approximately 20cm in diameter, is further reduced in size

prior to being conveyed to a storage silo. From the storage silos, the blocks of wood are charged

into the dryer where they are dried by hot gases whose temperature ranges in between 160-180

℃ . The core objective of exhibiting the wood to the action of hot air is to evaporate the water

that is contained in the wood[Bat22].

From the dryer, the dried blocks of wood are then dropped into the retort which is then closed

and any water that remained locked into the wood is evaporated. The thermal decomposition of

wood is initiated in the retort by the action of hot gases, emanating from the tempering zone, at a

temperature of 250-300 ℃ . Consequently, the organic substance of wood is carbonized. In

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addition to that, acetone, wood tar, methanol, acetic acid and gases such as methane, carbon

dioxide, and carbon monoxide are liberated.

The partially carbonized wood then descends into the tempering zone; where at a temperature of

500-550 ℃ charcoal in its final form is formed. The charcoal further descends into the

cooling zone at the lower part of the retort. The charcoal fines and dust that are formed during

the entire process are used in the manufacture of briquettes.

The gases and vapors generated during the dry distillation of wood are expelled to the burners

through the top of the retort. A portion of these heated gases are used in the drying of wood.

The liquid distillates are collected in settling tanks where they separate into two portions; a tar

layer and pyroligneous acid layer. The acid layer is composed of the following: acetone,

methanol, methyl acetate, acetic acid and some tar components.

The pyroligneous acid layer is subjected to vacuum distillation in multiple effect evaporators

where an acidic distillate of water is obtained. Dissolved tar is often obtained as the tail fraction

and it is then processed together with the settled tar. Water is usually separated from the acidic

distillate either by neutralization- reacting acetic acid with milk of lime, extraction or by

esterification.

In the case of the neutralization-based method, methanol and acetone are distilled off (wood

spirit), and the solution of calcium acetate is concentrated, crystallized, dried and treated with

sulphuric acid after comminution. The liberated acidic acid is purified using rectification

methods. Similarly, the wood spirit is fractionated by rectification[Kla25].

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Flowsheet Key

1 - Retort

2 - Vapour and gas combustion furnace

3 - Heating gas mixing chamber

4 - Air cooler

5 - Water cooler

6 - Steam boiler

7 - Gas mixing chamber

8 - Gas expansion chamber

9 - Wood drier

10 - Storage silo for wood blocks

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Batch Destructive Distillation of Wood

This process takes place either in a furnace or in a kiln. As the name suggests, the process takes

place periodically. A batch is fed into the kiln or furnace and the distillation process is allowed to

take place to completion before another batch is fed into the chamber. The process takes place in

the several stages.

i. Feed Preparation. The wood is initially dried to reduce its moisture content. It is then cut

into small round pieces known as billets and arranged horizontally.

ii. Reaction (destructive distillation). The furnace or kiln chamber is filled with these pieces

of wood and sealed tightly to prevent entry of any air. If air is allowed into the chamber,

combustion takes place. Firing takes place in the outer chamber where the remaining

pieces of wood are burnt. These provide the necessary heat for the distillation process to

occur. At elevated temperatures of about 400ºC, the process of destructive distillation

begins. In kilns and furnaces, an outlet pipe is made available where the gases and

vapours produced during the process can be collected. Solid residue (charcoal) remains in

the chamber.
iii. Product separation. During the destructive distillation of wood, several products are

formed. A solid residue known as charcoal, gases and liquids. While the solid residue

remains in the combustion chamber, the liquid distillates and gases leave the combustion

chamber. The liquid distillates are separated using gravitational settling, whereby the

wood tar settles out from the liquid (pyroligneous acid). Some of the tar dissolves in the

pyroligneous acid.
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Products of Destructive Distillation of Wood

Charcoal

Charcoal is the solid residue formed during the destructive distillation of wood. It is a light black

residue which is similar to coal and thus is also known as impure carbon. It has an elementary

composition of (%wt.): 80-85 carbon, 14-16 oxygen, 3-4 hydrogen and nitrogen and few percent

ash [Mic12]. It is chiefly used as a source of fuel domestically in Kenya. However, it also has

several other uses.

i. Purification and filtration. When charcoal is in its activated form, it has adsorptive

capabilities. For this reason, it is used both domestically and industrially for purposes of

purification and filtration. For example, it is used in sugar industries for the purification

of sucrose from cane sugar. It is also used for the removal of undesired compounds for

liquids such as water.

ii. Fuel. Domestically, charcoal is used as fuel for the purposes of cooking. Industrially, it is

used as a metallurgical fuel for purposes of smelting and sintering iron, production of

ferro-silicon and of pure silicon. It is also used as an industrial fuel.

iii. Source of carbon. In various chemical reactions, charcoal is used as a source of carbon.

An example is the production of carbon sulphide, whereby hot charcoal is reacted with

vapours of sulphur. Charcoal used for this purpose is produced at low temperatures to

increase carbon content.

iv. Raw material. Charcoal is also used as a raw material in the manufacture of several

compounds including sodium cyanide and carbides.

v. Gas producer. Charcoal produces gas for vehicles and for carbonation of soft drinks.

Wood Gas

The gaseous mixture produced during carbonization of wood is composed of gases such as

carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and methane. These gases are naturally occurring.
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Liquid distillates

The liquid distillates acquired from destructive distillation of wood are composed of

pyroligneous acid and tar. By gravitational settling out and through the application of the

principle of distillation, these components can be further divided into their sub-components.

These are further discussed below.

Pyroligneous Acid

Pyroligneous acid also known as wood vinegar is a dark liquid mainly composed of methanol,

acetic acid and acetone. Additionally it contains water along with some organic compounds

including formic acid, propionic aldehyde and propionic acid. As aforementioned, the main

components of pyroligneous acid are methanol, acetic acid and acetone. Historically, destructive

distillation of wood was the primary source of acetic acid but currently; synthetic production

processes of acetic acid have proven to be more economical. The same applies to methanol.

These ompounds have a variety of uses.

Acetic acid is used in the chemical industry in the preparation of various inorganic acetates and

white lead pigment. It is also used widely in the manufacture of cellulose acetate for lacquers,

plastics, rayon, and photographic films, and in the preparation of various other organic acetates,

such as methyl, ethyl, and amyl acetate, for use as solvents. Acetic acid also is an intermediate in

the manufacture of various synthetic organic chemicals. It serves as a reagent in textile dyeing

processes and as a coagulating medium for rubber.

Methanol is one of the most versatile compounds developed. It has a wide range of uses and

most recently has been adopted as a transportation fuel. Methanol fuel is considered cheaper

compared to gasoline and ethanol fuel and has less toxic emissions. It is a component in the
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manufacture of materials such as paints, resins, adhesives, carpeting and insulation. Other major

uses for methanol are as an industrial solvent, an ethanol denaturing agent, and anti-freeze.

Acetone, though no longer a major product of distillation of wood serves as an important solvent

in the pharmaceutical industry and as a denaturant to denatured alcohol. Additionally, it is used

for purposes of cleaning in laboratories.

Wood Tar

Wood tar is mainly acquired from the liquid distillates through gravitational settling out.

However, about 10% of it is in the form of dissolved tar which can be acquired through

distillation. Through fractional distillation, wood tar is separated into inhibitors (heavy oil) and

floatation oil (light oil). Inhibitors are rich in phenols and are used in the stabilization of oils and

benzene. Additionally, heavy oil is used for wood impregnation. Components isolated from

heavy oil include guaiacol and creosote (mixture of cresols, dihydric phenols, methyl ethers

thereof, xylenols) [GBJ11]. Floatation oil is used in ore dressing. The dissolved tar is used

unprocessed in the manufacture of charcoal briquettes.

The Scene in Kenya

Kenya is lightly forested, with only 1.7% of its land constituting forest cover. And additional

27% of the land has wood cover. These act as the main source of wood fuel and raw materials

for the wood processing factories.

Between the years of 1997 and 2010, the wood processing industry has greatly expanded. With

this came with the dwindling of raw materials. Paired with the Vision 2030 manifest, there was

need for conscious development and recycling of waste.

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Production of fuel from agricultural biomass on a commercial level has not been developed to

the point of it being convincing, as its economic viability is still in question. For this reason, its

presence in Kenya has been limited to Mumias Sugar Company Ltd and Spectre International.

Mumias Sugar performs pyrolysis on sugar bagasse.

Economic Impacts

i. Increase of business and economic opportunities for farmers, especially tree farmers.
ii. An increase in household incomes.
iii. Provision of jobs, raising the economic status of the society.
iv. Decrease in the amount of money spent by companies on waste management, hence more

cash flow (profits).

Social Impacts

i. Increasing the socioeconomic status of the community in general.

ii. Better standards of living for the general public.
iii. A steady source of income means happier more hardworking households.

Environmental Impacts

i. It provides a waste management strategy for the timber and sugar industries.
ii. Use of bioethanol as a fuel in homes reduces the rate of indoor air pollution, ensuring

better health for the general.

iii. A substitution for firewood and charcoal as the main sources of fuel will ultimately

reduce the rate of deforestation.

Conclusion

From the foregoing, it has been established that the principal commercial product obtainable

from the destructive distillation of wood is charcoal. On an industrial scale the liquid distillate

and the gaseous products are used as fuel in the process of accomplishing the task of wood

decomposition. However, this is not the case when the process is carried out in small scale, for
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instance in most homes and villages, where the vapor and gaseous products are released into the

atmosphere.

That said, the statistics of the dry distillation of wood on an industrial scale in Kenya is dismal.

Works Cited

Bates, J. S. (1922). Distillation of Hardwoods. Ottawa: F.A.Acland.

G. B. James, H. S. (1911). The Composition and Utilization of Wood Tar. Armour Institute of
Technology.

Klar Max, R. A. (1925). The Technology of wood distillation with special reference to obtaining
the intermediate and final products from the primary distillate. London : London
Chapman.

Michal Lewandowski, E. M. (2012). Modern Technology of Dry Distillation of Wood. West

Pomeranian: Institute of Chmeical Organic Technology.
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