Pyrogenic Carbonaceous Materials Production of Four Tropical Wood Produced by Slow Pyrolysis at Different Temperatures: Charcoal and Biochar Properties

Róger Moya (), Carolina Tenorio, Jaime Quesada-Kimzey and Federico Másis-Meléndez
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Róger Moya: Escuela de Ingeniería Forestal, Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica, Cartago 159-7050, Costa Rica
Carolina Tenorio: Escuela de Ingeniería Forestal, Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica, Cartago 159-7050, Costa Rica
Jaime Quesada-Kimzey: Escuela de Química, Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica, Cartago 159-7050, Costa Rica
Federico Másis-Meléndez: Escuela de Química, Centro de Investigación y de Servicio Químicos y Microbiológicos (CEQIATEC), Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica, Cartago 159-7050, Costa Rica

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 8, 1-21

Abstract: Costa Rica produces a considerable, important quantity of wood residues. This waste can be pyrolyzed to produce charcoals as main products that can be effectively used as an energy source or to immobilize carbon for soil treatment. However, there is a lack of information about the pyrogenic carbonaceous materials (PCMs), such as charcoal or biochar, obtained at different pyrolysis temperatures. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the quality of PCMs (physical, mechanical, ultimate analysis, and FTIR analysis) and charcoal characteristics (energetic properties and thermogravimetric analysis—TGA) and biochar characteristics (conductivity, pH, initial contact angle, and wetting rates) for four tropical wood residues produced in five temperatures (300 °C, 350 °C, 400 °C, 450 °C, and 500 °C). In general, pyrolysis temperature between 450 °C and 500 °C produced charcoals with lower values of density, moisture content, compression strength, volatiles, H and O content, and higher values of C and ash contents, conductivity, pH, initial contact angle, and wetting rates. FTIR and TGA analyses show that celluloses and lignin are pyrolyzed at these temperatures, so these temperatures are recommended. The range of 300–350 °C is not recommended, as these parameters were inverse. Multivariate analysis shows that (i) PCMs obtained at lower temperatures (300–350 °C) from Dipteryx panamensis , Hieronyma alchorneoides , and Tectona grandis belong to a cluster with poorer properties, indicating that these temperatures are not adequate for pyrolysis of these species; (ii) all the PCMs obtained from Gmelina arborea were grouped into one cluster, suggesting different PCM quality; and (iii) the PCMs produced from D. panamensis , H. alchorneoides , and T. grandis at 400–500 °C were grouped into another cluster with better properties, suggesting this pyrolysis temperature range as the best for these species.

Keywords: carbonization; tropical wood; pyrolysis liquids; biochar (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: 2024
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