Ex Situ Catalytic Pyrolysis of Invasive Pennisetum purpureum Grass with Activated Carbon for Upgrading Bio-Oil
Md Sumon Reza, Shammya Afroze, К. А. Кутербеков, Asset Kabyshev, Кенжебатыр Бекмырза, Juntakan Taweekun, Fairuzeta Ja’afar, Muhammad Saifullah Abu Bakar, Абул Калам Азад, Hridoy Roy, Md. Shahinoor Islam
Abstract
Energy demands keep increasing in this modern world as the world population increases, which leads to a reduction in fossil fuels. To resolve these challenges, Pennisetum purpureum, an invasive grass in Brunei Darussalam, was examined as the feedstock for renewable energy through a catalytic pyrolysis process. The activated carbon was applied as the catalyst for a simple and economical solution. The catalytic pyrolysis was executed at 500 °C (the temperature for the highest biofuel yield) for both reactors to produce the highest amount of upgraded biofuels. The biochar produced from the non-catalytic and catalytic pyrolysis processes showed a consistent yield due to stable operating conditions, from which the activated carbon was generated and used as the catalyst in this work. A significant amount of improvement was found in the production of biofuels, especially bio-oil. It was found that for catalysts, the number of phenolic, alcohol, furans, and ketones was increased by reducing the amount of acidic, aldehyde, miscellaneous oxygenated, and nitrogenous composites in bio-oils. The highest amount of phenolic compounds was produced due to a number of functional groups (-C=O and -OH) in activated carbon. The regenerated activated carbons also showed promising outcomes as catalysts for upgrading the bio-oils. The overall performance of synthesized and regenerated activated carbon as a catalyst in catalytic pyrolysis was highly promising for improving the quality and stability of bio-oil.