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Recent Progress in Biomass Pyrolysis and High Value Utilization of Pyrolytic Carbon

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A4: Bio-Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 16 May 2024 | Viewed by 12468

Special Issue Editors

Department of Air Protection, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Interests: biomass utilisation; pyrolysis; chemometrics and chemoinformatics; waste-to-energy; chemical recycling
Department of Air Protection, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Interests: biomass utilisation; pyrolysis; analytical pyrolysis; chromatography; waste-to-energy
The Institute for Ecology of Industrial Areas (IETU), 40-844 Katowice, Poland
Interests: biomass utilisation; gasification; engineering thermodynamics; solid waste management; alternative fuels

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biomass is one of the most widely available renewable energy carriers, and its use as a source of energy has been recognised as an environmentally advantageous and sustainable alternative. In comparison to more traditional fuels such as coal, natural gas, and oil, biomass fuel creates no carbon dioxide. Not only may biomass and biomass-derived materials be utilised as a source of fuel, they can also be used to obtain additional valuable goods and by-products from the thermal conversion of biomass. Depending on the process circumstances, the pyrolysis process, which is one of the most prevalent methods for the thermal conversion of biomass, can produce three key and valuable product streams: biochar, bio-oil, and pyrolysis gas. One of the most prevalent techniques is pyrolysis. Biochar made from biomass is increasingly being used not only in sorption processes, but also in energy storage and in metallurgy sectors with cokemaking processes. However, replacing traditional fuel with biomass in these sectors raises a slew of technological challenges. CO2 emissions will be reduced by replacing coal with biomass in industries such as metallurgy and cokemaking. Bio-oils, in addition to providing a source of the components required to make liquid fuel, may also act as substrates in numerous biotechnological processes. Not only is pyrolytic gas being investigated in terms of energy, but it is also being investigated as a substrate for chemical synthesis. Methods involving pyrolysis and biomass remain important components with the ability to contribute to the expansion of society while emitting zero emissions in accordance with sustainable development guidelines.  This Special Issue aims to present and disseminate the most recent advances and prospects related to the theory, experimentation, simulation and application of recent progess in biomass pyrolysis with a high-value utilization of pyrolytic carbon. Both research and review articles are welcome. As a result, we cordially invite you to contribute essays on a wide range of topics relating to this area. Papers should address either the theoretical or applied aspects of the topic. 

Dr. Marcin Sajdak
Dr. Roksana Muzyka
Dr. Grzegorz Gałko
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • enhancement of biomass
  • bioreducers
  • biomaterials used in metallurgy and steel production
  • alternative energy sources
  • bio-coke
  • bio-based products

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

29 pages, 4865 KiB  
Article
Investigation of the Impact of Biochar Application on Foaming Slags with Varied Compositions in Electric Arc Furnace-Based Steel Production
by Lina Kieush and Johannes Schenk
Energies 2023, 16(17), 6325; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16176325 - 31 Aug 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 845
Abstract
This paper investigates the influence of biochar, either as an individual component or in combination with high-temperature coke, on the slag foaming behavior. High-temperature coke serves as a reference. Three scenarios were considered to study the slag foaming behavior, each characterized by different [...] Read more.
This paper investigates the influence of biochar, either as an individual component or in combination with high-temperature coke, on the slag foaming behavior. High-temperature coke serves as a reference. Three scenarios were considered to study the slag foaming behavior, each characterized by different slag chemical compositions. The results indicate that biochar can promote steady foaming for specific slags when the basicity (CaO/SiO2) falls within a range of 1.2 to 3.4. Experimental findings also reveal that stable foaming can be achieved when a mixture containing biochar and coke with a ratio of 1:1 is employed, with a minimum slag basicity of 1.0 and FeO content of 25 wt.%. The foaming range obtained using different FeO contents (15 wt.% to 40 wt.%) in the mixture surpasses the range observed with the individual application of coke or biochar. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis showed that unrelated to the carbon source applied, the general pattern was that the phases larnite (Ca2SiO4) or dicalcium silicate were detected for slag foams with high basicity. Monticellite (CaMgSiO4) and magnesium iron oxide (Fe2MgO4) were predominant in slag foam samples, with the highest MgO content. The presence of monticellite and merwinite (Ca3MgSi2O8) occurred in samples with the lowest basicity. Eventually, the application of the mixture of coke and biochar showed the potential to obtain stable foaming across a wide range of slag compositions. Full article
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22 pages, 3498 KiB  
Article
Sewage Sludge Gasification Process Optimization for Combined Heat and Power Generation
by Alberto Carotenuto, Simona Di Fraia, Nicola Massarotti, Szymon Sobek, M. Rakib Uddin, Laura Vanoli and Sebastian Werle
Energies 2023, 16(12), 4742; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16124742 - 15 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1413
Abstract
This work aims to assess the effect of the operating parameters of the gasifying agent preheating temperature and equivalence ratio (ER) on the conversion of sewage sludge (SS) to syngas through gasification and combined heat and power (CHP) generation. A novel gasification model [...] Read more.
This work aims to assess the effect of the operating parameters of the gasifying agent preheating temperature and equivalence ratio (ER) on the conversion of sewage sludge (SS) to syngas through gasification and combined heat and power (CHP) generation. A novel gasification model was simulated in Aspen Plus to represent a fixed-bed updraft gasifier to generate syngas from SS through an equilibrium approach restricted by temperature. The novelty of this work is that the model was developed by applying the gasifying agent preheating temperature as an operating variable instead of the gasification temperature. It was calibrated by using a set of experimental values and then validated by comparing the numerical results with the experimental outcomes related to nine different operating conditions of air preheating temperatures and ER. A good agreement between the simulation and experimental results was observed. The optimum gasification process parameters of the air preheating temperature and ER were predicted to be 150 °C and 0.2, respectively. The CHP generation potentiality of SS was assessed to be 2.54 kW/kg SS as dry solids (DS), of which 0.81 kW was electrical and the remainder was thermal power. The conversion of SS to CHP through the proposed treatment can reduce 0.59 kg CO₂/kg SS as DS emissions compared with that of natural gas combustion to generate a similar quantity of energy. Full article
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25 pages, 14686 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Slag Foaming Behavior Using Renewable Carbon Sources in Electric Arc Furnace-Based Steel Production
by Lina Kieush, Johannes Schenk, Andrii Koveria, Andrii Hrubiak, Horst Hopfinger and Heng Zheng
Energies 2023, 16(12), 4673; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16124673 - 12 Jun 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1477
Abstract
The influence of different carbon sources, including anthracite, calcined petroleum coke, three samples of high-temperature coke, biochar, and a mixture of 50 wt.% biochar and 50 wt.% coke, on slag foaming behavior was studied. The slag’s composition was set to FeO-CaO-Al2O [...] Read more.
The influence of different carbon sources, including anthracite, calcined petroleum coke, three samples of high-temperature coke, biochar, and a mixture of 50 wt.% biochar and 50 wt.% coke, on slag foaming behavior was studied. The slag’s composition was set to FeO-CaO-Al2O3-MgO-SiO2, and the temperature for slag foaming was 1600 °C. The effect of the carbon sources was evaluated using foaming characteristics (foam height, foam volume, relative foaming height, and gas fraction), X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analysis of the slag foams, Mossbauer spectroscopy, observation by scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) mapping. Different foaming phenomena were found among conventional sources, biochar as a single source, and the mixture of coke and biochar. Biochar showed the most inferior foaming characteristics compared to the other studied carbon sources. Nevertheless, the slag foaming process was improved and showed slag foaming characteristics similar to results obtained using conventional carbon sources when the mixture of 50 wt.% coke and 50 wt.% biochar was used. The XRD analysis revealed a difference between the top and bottom of the slag foams. In almost all cases, a maghemite crystalline phase was detected at the top of the slag foams, indicating oxidation; metallic iron was found at the bottom. Furthermore, a difference in the slag foam (mixture of coke and biochar) was found in the presence of such crystalline phases as magnesium iron oxide (Fe2MgO4) and magnetite (Mg0.4Fe2.96O4). Notwithstanding the carbon source applied, a layer between the foam slag and the crucible wall was found in many samples. Based on the SEM/EDS and XRD results, it was assumed this layer consists of gehlenite (Ca2(Al(AlSi)O7) and two spinels: magnesium aluminate (MgAl2O4) and magnesium iron oxide (Fe2MgO4). Full article
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20 pages, 3852 KiB  
Article
Development of a Dual-Chamber Pyrolizer for Biochar Production from Agricultural Waste in Sri Lanka
by W. A. M. A. N. Illankoon, Chiara Milanese, Anurudda Karunarathna Karunarathna, A. M. Y. W. Alahakoon, Puhulwella G. Rathnasiri, Maria Medina-Llamas, Maria Cristina Collivignarelli and Sabrina Sorlini
Energies 2023, 16(4), 1819; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16041819 - 11 Feb 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3015
Abstract
This study investigates the design and development of a pyrolysis reactor for batch-type biochar production from rice husks. The main objective is to develop an appropriate technology to regulate pyrolysis temperature and biomass residence time that can be easily operated under field and [...] Read more.
This study investigates the design and development of a pyrolysis reactor for batch-type biochar production from rice husks. The main objective is to develop an appropriate technology to regulate pyrolysis temperature and biomass residence time that can be easily operated under field and household conditions with minimal operational and technical requirements. The designed novel dual-chamber reactor comprises two concentrical metal cylinders and a syngas circulation system. The outer cylinder is for energy generation and the inner one is for pyrolysis. Temperature profiles, energy exchanges, syngas production, and the physicochemical characteristics of biochar were obtained to determine the performance of the reactor. Different trials were carried out to obtain different pyrolysis temperatures under constant amounts of feedstock and fuel. The temperature was monitored continuously at three predetermined reactor heights, the temperature profile varied from 380 °C to 1000 °C. The biochar yield was 49% with an average production rate of 1.8 ± 0.2 kg h−1. The reactor consumed 11 ± 0.1 kg of rice husk as feedstock and 6 ± 1 kg h−1 of wood as fuel. The gaseous products from the pyrolysis were CH4, CO2, H2, CO, and CnHm, which contributed 23.3 ± 2.3 MJ m−3 of energy as fuel for the pyrolysis process. The specific surface area of the biochar was 182 m2 g−1. The achieved operational capacity and thermal efficiency of the reactor show biochar production is a suitable option to convert discarded biomass into a value-added product that can potentially be used in several environmental applications. Full article
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27 pages, 9067 KiB  
Article
A Study on Bio-Coke Production—The Influence of Bio-Components Addition on Coke-Making Blend Properties
by Michał Rejdak, Małgorzata Wojtaszek-Kalaitzidi, Grzegorz Gałko, Bartosz Mertas, Tomasz Radko, Robert Baron, Michał Książek, Sten Yngve Larsen, Marcin Sajdak and Stavros Kalaitzidis
Energies 2022, 15(18), 6847; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15186847 - 19 Sep 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3998
Abstract
Due to global warming, technologies reducing CO2 emissions in the metallurgical industry are being sought. One possibility is to use bio-coke as a substitute for classic coke made of 100% fossil coal. Bio-coke can be produced on the basis of coal with [...] Read more.
Due to global warming, technologies reducing CO2 emissions in the metallurgical industry are being sought. One possibility is to use bio-coke as a substitute for classic coke made of 100% fossil coal. Bio-coke can be produced on the basis of coal with the addition of substances of biomass origin. Blends for the production of bio-coke should have appropriate coke-making properties to ensure the appropriate quality of bio-coke. The article presents the results of the research on the influence of the addition (up to 20%) of bio-components of different origins to the coke blend on its coke-making properties, i.e., Gieseler Fluidity, Arnu—Audibert Dilatation and Roga Index. The bio-components used in the research were raw and thermally processed waste biomass of different origins (forestry: beech and alder woodchips; sawmill: pine sawdust; and the food industry: hazelnut shells and olive kernels) and commercial charcoal. Studies have shown that both the amount of additive and the type of additive affect the obtained coking properties. There was a decrease in fluidity, dilatation and Roga Index values, with more favorable results obtained for the addition of carbonized biomass and for additives with a higher apparent density. A regressive mathematical model on the influence of the share of the additive and its properties (oxygen content and apparent density) on the percentage decrease in fluidity was also developed. Full article
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