Pyrolysis and Thermogravimetric Study to Elucidate the Bioenergy Potential of Novel Feedstock Produced on Poor Soils While Keeping the Environmental Sustainability Intact

Muhammad Sajjad Ahmad, Muhammad Aamer Mehmood, Huibo Luo, Boxiong Shen, Muhammad Latif, Wan Azlina Wan Ab Karim Ghani, Nuha Abdulhamid Alkhattabi, Akram Ahmed Aloqbi, Ebtihaj Jamaluddin Jambi, Munazza Gull and Umer Rashid
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Muhammad Sajjad Ahmad: Bioenergy Research Centre, Department of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology, Government College University Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
Muhammad Aamer Mehmood: Bioenergy Research Centre, Department of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology, Government College University Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
Huibo Luo: School of Bioengineering, Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Zigong 643000, China
Boxiong Shen: School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 430068, China
Muhammad Latif: Department of Zoology, University of Education, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
Wan Azlina Wan Ab Karim Ghani: Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor 43400, Malaysia
Nuha Abdulhamid Alkhattabi: Biochemistry Department, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21551, Saudi Arabia
Akram Ahmed Aloqbi: Biology Department, University of Jeddah, Jeddah 21577, Saudi Arabia
Ebtihaj Jamaluddin Jambi: Biochemistry Department, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21551, Saudi Arabia
Munazza Gull: Biochemistry Department, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21551, Saudi Arabia
Umer Rashid: Institute of Advanced Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor 43400, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 13, 1-15

Abstract: This work focused on exploring the bioenergy potential of biomass produced on salt-affected soils by growing two types of grasses, namely Parthenium hysterophorus (carrot grass) and Pennesetum benthiumo (mott grass), without using fertilizers or pesticides. The whole plant biomass of both grasses was pyrolyzed at three heating rates (10, 30, and 50 °C min −1 ) in a joined Thermogravimetry–Differential Scanning Calorimetry (TGA–DSC) analyzer under an inert (nitrogen) environment. The pyrolysis of both grasses was shown to occur in a three-stage process, while most of the thermal transformation occurred at the temperature range of 240–400 °C. The pyrolytic behavior was assessed by estimating the kinetic parameters, using the isoconversional models of Kissenger–Akahira–Sunose and Ozawa–Flynn–Wall. The average values of the activation energy of carrot and mott grasses were shown to be 267 kJ mol −1 ( R 2 ≥ 0.98) and 188 kJ mol −1 ( R 2 ≥ 0.98), indicating the suitability of both grasses for co-pyrolysis. Whereas, the difference in the values of enthalpy change and the activation energy was shown to be <~5 kJ mol −1 at each fractional point, which indicated that the product formation was being favored. Moreover, the high heating values of carrot grass (18.25 MJ kg −1 ) and mott grass (18.63 MJ kg −1 ) have shown a remarkable bioenergy potential and suitability of co-pyrolysis for both grasses. This study will lead to establishing an energy-efficient and cost-effective process for the thermal transformation of biomass to bioenergy.

Keywords: lignocellulosic biomass; low-cost production; TGA–DSC pyrolysis; isoconversional models; bioenergy potential (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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