Operation and Thermodynamic Modeling of a Novel Advanced Hydrothermal Reactor: Introduction of the Novel 3-Step Evolution Model

Stergios Vakalis (), Snehesh Shivananda Ail, Konstantinos Moustakas and Marco J. Castaldi
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Stergios Vakalis: Energy Management Laboratory, Department of Environment, University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, Greece
Snehesh Shivananda Ail: Chemical Engineering Department, City College, City University of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
Konstantinos Moustakas: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 15780 Athens, Greece
Marco J. Castaldi: Chemical Engineering Department, City College, City University of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 4, 1-14

Abstract: Liquid biowaste represents more than 98% of the total municipal waste streams on wet basis and 4–5% on dry basis. Recent attention has been focused on how to manage it optimally, and several novel technologies are being developed to valorize it. Among the developing alternatives is a technology that operates continuously by integrating a hydrothermal reactor, a gasifier and condenser to recover hydrochar using any produced gases to power the system. This study introduces the “3-step evolution model” in order to simulate the hydrothermal reactor. The model has been developed in a MATLAB/Cantera environment and calculates the outputs as the products of a series of sub-stoichiometric char-gas reactions. Experiments with chicken manure slurry as feedstock were implemented for the validation of the model. Treatment of 32.16 kg/h of chicken manure produces 4.57 kg/h of hydrochar and 3.45 kg/h of syngas. The 3-step evolution model simulated the correct ratio of solid-to-gas, 57–43% (excluding the liquids). The experimentally measured carbon dioxide is used as a correction factor to calculate all the other parameters that cannot be assessed during the continuous operation of the hydrothermal reactor. The simulated compositions for carbon dioxide and methane were 94–96% and 0.5–0.8%, respectively. The values were close to the experimental results that ranged from 94.7% to 95.6% for the carbon dioxide and from 0.5% to 0.7% for the methane. The model predicts that higher temperatures of operation would increase carbon monoxide composition from 4–5% up to 7–8%.

Keywords: hydrothermal carbonization; hydrochar; thermodynamic modeling; biowaste; mass balances (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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