ENR 146 : Renewable Energy Resource Characteristics (Module 11)

Dr. Aditi Agarwal

Email: aditiagarwal1214@gmail.com
Course Content
 Physical Structure of Biomass

• Woody biomass feedstocks are composed of cells of various sizes and shapes.
• Long pointed cells are known as fibres. The length of the fibres varies in hard and softwood. Hardwood fibres are about 1 mm
in length while softwood fibres are 3–8 mm.
• Thickness of the cell wall determines the density and mechanical properties of woody biomass.

Particle size and size distribution

• The size and size distribution of biomass are important in selection of equipment, pre-processing required, etc. Fluidized bed
combustors require a small and uniform size.
• Biomass gasifiers accept a size range of 25–100 mm, whereas grated combustors can accept larger sizes. Biomass has to be
ground to a fine size for purposes of densification. Large sizes are generally not desirable for biochemical reactors.

Permeability
• Permeability is important for both the combustion and biochemical processes. Gases and liquids generated during
combustion/microbial action have to pass through the porous structure to the surrounding. Low permeability of fuel in the
combustion process increases the residence time of the primary pyrolysis products in the hot zone increasing their probability
for the second reaction.
• Permeability of wood varies from 10–4 to 104 cm3 (air)/cm atm. In biochemical reactors, low permeability of substrate
obstructs the availability of the formed products for subsequent reactions.
Physical Properties of Biomass
 Cellulose
• Cellulose is a linear polysaccharide polymer that exists in crystalline as well as in amorphous types containing glucose
disaccharide with β-1,4-glucosidic bonds.
• These polymers are confined alongside in planar sheet and wrapped into microfibrils. The undivided cellulose chains are very
closely packed due to which they provide rigid strength to the plants through inter-chain hydrogen bonds with high tensile
strength microfibrils.
• Cellulose is immiscible in water except at eminently low or high pH levels. However it dissolves in solvents like ionic liquids
and N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide.
• Cellulose exhibits the advantageous characteristics such as biological compatibility, stereouniformity, hydrophobic and acts
as an effective resource for obtaining components such as fibers, films, composites as well as fuels and chemicals.
• The extraction of cellulose component from agricultural residues requires biomass pretreatments which results in the
breakdown of recalcitrant nature of lignin, degeneration of hemicellulose thereby decreasing the crystallinity and the
polymerization of cellulose.
• The removal of lignin enhances porosity of cell wall, providing the biomass furthermore favorable to enzymatic hydrolysis
thus reducing the degeneration of cellulose. Amongst different types of biomass resources, cellulose from agricultural
residues can be utilized to generate biofuel and valuable products.
 Hemicellulose

• Hemicellulose is the polymer subsequent to cellulose that is available in plenty. In contrast to cellulose,
hemicellulose possesses an arbitrary and amorphous arrangement consisting of numerous heteropolymers along
with xylan, galactomannan, glucuronoxylan, arabinoxylan, glucomannan and xyloglucan.
• Hemicelluloses vary from celluloses in their construction because their building blocks comprise 500–3000
sugar fractions repeating to create numerous short chains compared to 7000–15,000 glucose monomers per
cellulose polymer.
• Hemicelluloses are attached to the cell walls of plant to create a complicated bond matrix that imparts ability
structurally by binding cellulose fibers into microfibrils and inter-linking with lignin.
• The hemicellulose plays an important role in framing a network between lignin and cellulose. Hemicelluloses
are significantly smaller relative to cellulose together with a degree of polymerization typically lower than 200
and they are commonly non-crystalline.
 Lignin

• Lignin is the predominant aromatic and hard biopolymer comprising up to 30% of the organic compounds and
therefore considered as a possible sustainable raw material for the generation of biofuels and aromatic
chemicals. It comprises phenolic compounds of phenyl propionic units such as p-coumaryl, coniferyl and
sinapyl alcohol that are adhered together with various types of linkages.
• The major role of lignin is to impart strength to the plant structurally, imperviousness and difficulty to microbial
attack and oxidative stress.
• The lignin can be utilized for the production of valuable compounds by means of biological and chemical
transformation processes.
 Extractives
Biomass often contains extractable compounds such as terpenes, resins, tannins, and essential oils, depending on
the type of plant material. These compounds may have various industrial applications.
Steam Distillation: Steam distillation is commonly used to Solvent Extraction: Solvent extraction is often used for
extract essential oils from plant materials. In this method, steam extracting a wide range of compounds, including terpenes
is passed through the plant material, carrying the volatile and some resins. In this process, a suitable solvent (e.g.,
essential oils with it. The steam is then condensed, and the ethanol, hexane) is used to dissolve and extract the target
essential oil is separated from the water. compounds from the biomass. The solvent is then evaporated
to recover the extracted compounds.
 Extractives
Solid-Phase Microextraction (SPME): Liquid-Liquid Extraction:
SPME is a technique used to extract volatile and semi-
In liquid-liquid extraction, two immiscible solvents are used to
volatile compounds from solid or liquid samples. It
selectively extract the target compounds from the sample. It's
involves exposing a fiber coated with a suitable adsorbent
often employed for the extraction of certain compounds from
to the sample, which absorbs the target compounds. The
biomass.
fiber is then desorbed, releasing the compounds for
analysis.
 Chemical Oxygen Demand
Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) is a critical parameter used to measure the amount of organic matter and the pollution
potential of a sample, typically wastewater or a solution. It quantifies the oxygen required for the chemical oxidation of organic
compounds in a sample. COD is an essential measurement in environmental and wastewater treatment applications, but it may
also be relevant in certain contexts related to biomass.
The COD test involves digesting the organic matter in a sample with a strong chemical oxidizing agent (usually potassium
dichromate) and measuring the amount of oxygen consumed during the reaction. The results are expressed in terms of
milligrams of oxygen per liter (mg/L) or grams of oxygen per liter (g/L).
When dealing with biomass, COD measurements are often used in the following scenarios:
1.Wastewater Treatment: In industrial processes involving biomass, such as the production of biofuels or bioproducts,
wastewater may be generated. This wastewater can contain organic compounds derived from biomass. Measuring the COD of
this wastewater helps assess its pollution potential and determine the treatment requirements.
2.Anaerobic Digestion: Anaerobic digestion is a biological process used to convert organic matter, including biomass, into
biogas or biofertilizers. Monitoring the COD in the feedstock or the effluent of anaerobic digesters is important for process
control and optimization.
 Chemical Oxygen Demand
Problem:
Estimate the COD (chemical oxygen demand) of
(i) glucose,
(ii) cell biomass,
(iii) methane, and
(iv) sewage sludge with the following composition: Carbon (31.1%), hydrogen (4.2%), oxygen (24.3%), nitrogen (3.3%),
and sulphur (1.1%).

Hint: (i) C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6CO2 + 6H2O

(ii) C5H7NO2 (cell biomass) + 5O2 → 5CO2 + NH3 + 2H2O

(iii) CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + 2H2O

(iv) CH1.62 N0.1 O0.6 S0.06 + 0.995O2 → CO2 + 0.1NH3 + 0.59H2O + 0.06H2S
 Chemical Oxygen Demand
Problem:
Estimate the theoretical methane yield for 1 g COD of organic matter.

Hints: Density of methane is 0.7167 g/litre

CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + 2H2O
Course Content