MgO-modified activated biochar for biojet fuels from pyrolysis of sawdust on a simple tandem micro-pyrolyzer

Hari Prasad Reddy Kannapu; Sumin Pyo; Su Shiung Lam; Jungho Jae; Gwang Hoon Rhee; Moonis Ali Khan; Byong-Hun Jeon; Young-Kwon Park

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127500

MgO-modified activated biochar for biojet fuels from pyrolysis of sawdust on a simple tandem micro-pyrolyzer

Bioresour Technol. 2022 Sep:359:127500. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127500. Epub 2022 Jun 17.

Authors

Hari Prasad Reddy Kannapu¹, Sumin Pyo¹, Su Shiung Lam², Jungho Jae³, Gwang Hoon Rhee⁴, Moonis Ali Khan⁵, Byong-Hun Jeon⁶, Young-Kwon Park⁷

Affiliations

¹ School of Environmental Engineering, University of Seoul, Seoul 02504, Republic of Korea.
² Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries (AKUATROP), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030 Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia.
³ School of Chemical Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan 46241, Republic of Korea.
⁴ Department of Mechanical and Information Engineering, University of Seoul, Seoul 02504, Republic of Korea.
⁵ Chemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Republic of Korea.
⁷ School of Environmental Engineering, University of Seoul, Seoul 02504, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: catalica@uos.ac.kr.

PMID: 35724913
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127500

Abstract

The aim of this work was to study on MgO-modified KOH activated biochar (AC) catalysts, in the pyrolysis of sawdust for the direct production of bio-jet fuels using a tandem micro-pyrolyzer. AC catalysts with various MgO contents (5 to 20 wt%) were synthesized using an impregnation method. The mesopores generated (4 to 18 nm) in the carbon has a great potential in the conversion of oxygenated to jet fuel. The importance of basic nature in the catalysts is demonstrated with the maximum bio-jet fuel yield of 29 % at 10 % MgO. Further, the temperature of 600 °C and a catalyst/sawdust ratio of 10 are identified as the optimal conditions. The nanosize of MgO and the synergism of acid and base sites seemed to enhance deoxygenation, via decarboxylation and decarbonylation, and oligomerization, which are required for jet fuel formation in high amounts from sawdust pyrolysis.

Keywords: Bio-jet fuels; Biochar; MgO/AC; Pyrolysis; Rice husk; Sawdust.

MeSH terms

Biofuels
Charcoal
Hot Temperature
Magnesium Oxide*
Pyrolysis*

Substances

Biofuels
biochar
Charcoal
Magnesium Oxide