Optimizing co-combustion synergy of soil remediation biomass and pulverized coal toward energetic and gas-to-ash pollution controls

Zhibin Chen; Zhiliang Chen; Jingyong Liu; Ping Zhuang; Fatih Evrendilek; Shengzheng Huang; Tao Chen; Wuming Xie; Yao He; Shuiyu Sun

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159585

Optimizing co-combustion synergy of soil remediation biomass and pulverized coal toward energetic and gas-to-ash pollution controls

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jan 20;857(Pt 3):159585. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159585. Epub 2022 Oct 20.

Authors

Zhibin Chen¹, Zhiliang Chen², Jingyong Liu³, Ping Zhuang⁴, Fatih Evrendilek⁵, Shengzheng Huang¹, Tao Chen⁶, Wuming Xie¹, Yao He¹, Shuiyu Sun¹

Affiliations

¹ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
² Guangdong Engineering Technology Research Center of Heavy Metal Pollution Control and Restoration in Farmland Soil, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Guangzhou 510275, China.
³ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China. Electronic address: Liujy@gdut.edu.cn.
⁴ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Botany, Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China.
⁵ Department of Environmental Engineering, Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University, Bolu 14052, Turkey.
⁶ SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety, MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China. Electronic address: tao.chen@m.scnu.edu.cn.

PMID: 36272484
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159585

Abstract

The co-combustion synergy of post-phytoremediation biomass may be optimized to cultivate a variety of benefits from reducing dependence on fossil fuels to stabilizing heavy metals in a small quantity of ash. This study characterized the thermo-kinetic parameters, gas-to-ash products, and energetically and environmentally optimal conditions for the co-combustions of aboveground (PG-A) and belowground (PG-B) biomass of Pfaffia glomerata (PG) with pulverized coal (PC). The mono-combustions of PG-A and PG-B involved the decompositions of cellulose and hemicellulose in the range of 162-400 °C and of lignin in the range of 400-600 °C. PG improved the combustion performance of PC, with the blends of 30 % PG-A and 70 % (PAC37) and 10 % PG-B and 90 % PC (PBC19) exhibiting the strongest synergy. Both PG-A and PG-B interacted with PC in the range of 160-440 °C, while PC positively affected PG in the range of 440-600 °C. PC decreased the apparent activation energy (E_α) of PG, with PBC19 having the lowest E_α value (107.85 kJ/mol). The reaction order models (Fn) best elucidated the co-combustion mechanisms of the main stages. Adding >50 % PC reduced the alkali metal content of PG, prevented the slagging and fouling depositions, and mitigated the Cd and Zn leaching toxicity. The functional groups, volatiles, and N- and S-containing gases fell with PAC37 and PBC19, while CO₂ emission rose. Energetically and environmentally multiple objectives for the operational conditions were optimized via artificial neural networks. Our study presents controls over the co-circularity and co-combustion of the soil remediation plant and coal.

Keywords: Kinetics; Mineral transformations; Optimization of synergy; Soil remediation plants; TG-FTIR-GC/MS.

MeSH terms

Biomass
Coal Ash* / analysis
Coal* / analysis
Gases
Soil

Substances

Coal
Coal Ash
Soil
Gases