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Biomass Pyrolysis: Section 8
Biomass Pyrolysis: Section 8
Biomass Pyrolysis: Section 8
ME5026 BIO-ENERGY
SECTION 8
BIOMASS PYROLYSIS
AGT Sugathapala
Thermo-Fluids & Energy Group
Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Moratuwa
Dec 2011
CONTENT
• INTRODUCTION
• TYPES OF PYROLYTIC REACTORS
• MECHANISM AND PRODUCTS OF
BIOMASS PYROLYSIS
• THE CHARCOAL MAKING PROCESS
• FACTORS INFLUENCING THE
CHARCOAL YIELD
• DIFFERENT TYPES OF CHARCOAL
KILN
INTRODUCTION
• Definitions
– Pyrolysis is defined as irreversible chemical change
brought about by heat in the absence of oxygen.
– During pyrolysis biomass undergoes a sequence of
changes and normally yields a mixture of gases,
liquids and solid.
– The solid is called charcoal while the condensable
liquid is variously referred to as pyroligneous liquid,
pyroligneous liquor, pyroligneous acid or pyrolysis
oil. The gas is called producer gas or wood gas.
– Generally low temperatures and show heating rates
results in high yield of charcoal. This type of
pyrolysis is called carbonization.
INTRODUCTION
• Definition
– In a now obsolete process for production of
methanol, acetic acid and acetone, wood is heated in
a retort in absence of air and the liquid vapours are
condensed.
This type of pyrolysis is generally called destructive
distillation.
– In a relatively recent development it is found that
yields of volatiles (gas and liquid) increase with the
rate of heating. At sufficiently high heating rates all
biomass can be nearly converted to volatiles.
This is known as fast pyrolysis.
– Although pyrolysis (as a process for charcoal
making) has been known to man since time
immemorial, the complex pattern of series and
parallel reactions involved in the process is not yet
fully understood.
INTRODUCTION
• Pyrolysis Technology Variant
– Pyrolysis processes classified based on heating
rates and residence time
Process Residence Time Heating Rate Temp. (C) Products
Carbonization Days Very low 400 Charcoal
Conventional 5 – 30 min Low 600 Oil, Gas, Char
Fast 0.5 – 5 sec Very high 650 Bio-oil
Flash-liquid < 1 sec High <650 Bio-oil
Flash-gas < 1 sec High <650 Chemicals, Gas
Ultra < 0.5 sec Very high 1000 Chemicals, Gas
Vacuum 2- 30 sec Medium 400 Bio-oil
Hydro-pyrolysis < 10 sec High <500 Bio-oil
Methano-pyrolysis < 10 sec High >700 Chemicals
TYPES OF PYROLYTIC REACTORS
• Classification based on solid movement
– Reactors used for biomass pyrolysis is most
commonly classified depending on the way the solids
move through the reactor during pyrolysis.
Type A:
No solid movement through the reactor during pyrolysis
(Batch reactors)
Type B:
Moving bed (Shaft furnaces)
Type C:
Movement caused by mechanical forces (e.g. rotary kiln,
rotating screw etc.)
Type D:
Movement caused by fluid flow (e.g., fluidized bed, spouted
bed, entrained bed etc.)
TYPES OF PYROLYTIC REACTORS
• Classification based on method of heat
supplied
– Pyrolytic reactor can also be classified depending the
way heat is supplied to biomass:
Type 1:
Part of the material burnt inside the reactor to provide the heat
to carbonize the remainder
Type 2:
Direct heat transfer from hot gases produced by combustion
of the pyrolysis products or any other fuel outside the reactor.
Type 3:
Direct heat transfer from inert hot material (hot gases or sand
introduced into the reactor).
Type 4:
Indirect heat transfer through the reactor walls (i.e. external
heat source due to combustion of one or more pyrolysis
products or any other fuel).
TYPES OF PYROLYTIC REACTORS
• Variations in the Process and Reactors
– Many different combinations of modes of solid
movement and modes of heat transfer are possible in
practice.
– Accordingly, the type of a pyrolytic reactor can
probably be best specified by denoting it as type XI
where X stands for type of solid movement and I
indicates the type of heat transfer.
– Different names are often used to describe specific
type of pyrolytic reactors.
The term “kiln” is used for devices producing only charcoal.
The terms “retort” and “converter” are used for equipments
capable of recovering by-products.
The term “converter” normally refers to devices used for
pyrolysing biomass of small particle size and the term “retort”
refers to equipment for pyrolysing log reduced in size to about
30 cm length and 18 cm diameter.
MECHANISM AND PRODUCTS OF
BIOMASS PYROLYSIS
• Pyrolysis of main constituents
– The major constituents of woody biomass are
cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin.
Cellulose: C6H10O5; Lignin: C9H10O3(OCH3)0.9-1.7; Hemicellulose:
C 5H8 O4
– On an average hardwood contains 43% cellulose,
35% hemicellulose and 23% lignin while softwood
contains 43% cellulose, 28% hemicellulose and 29%
lignin.
– On heating, the constituents of wood decompose
following different pathways and yielding a variety of
products.
– To understand pyrolysis of wood, it is interesting to
consider first the pyrolysis of the main wood
constituents.
MECHANISM AND PRODUCTS OF
BIOMASS PYROLYSIS
• Cellulose Pyrolysis
– Upon heating to temperatures below 250C cellulose
undergoes a drop in the degree of polymerization and
pyrolysis takes place slowly, the major products
being H2O, CO2, CO and a carbonaceous residue.
– At temperatures above 250C cellulose begins to
pyrolyse rapidly producing condensable “tar” along
with gases and leaves a charred residue.
– The pyrolysis of cellulose proceeds very rapidly at
around 350C and above 500C the volatile products
begin to undergo gas-phase pyrolysis.
MECHANISM AND PRODUCTS OF
BIOMASS PYROLYSIS
• Cellulose Pyrolysis
– Following figure provides a simplified reaction
scheme of cellulose pyrolysis.
Dehydration
Low Temperature
Cellulose
High Temperature
Depolymerization