Pyrolysis of Wood/Biomass for Bio-oil: A Critical Review
TL;DR: A review of the recent developments in the wood pyrolysis and reports the characteristics of the resulting bio-oils, which are the main products of fast wood pyrotechnics, can be found in this paper.
Abstract: Fast pyrolysis utilizes biomass to produce a product that is used both as an energy source and a feedstock for chemical production. Considerable efforts have been made to convert wood biomass to liquid fuels and chemicals since the oil crisis in mid-1970s. This review focuses on the recent developments in the wood pyrolysis and reports the characteristics of the resulting bio-oils, which are the main products of fast wood pyrolysis. Virtually any form of biomass can be considered for fast pyrolysis. Most work has been performed on wood, because of its consistency and comparability between tests. However, nearly 100 types of biomass have been tested, ranging from agricultural wastes such as straw, olive pits, and nut shells to energy crops such as miscanthus and sorghum. Forestry wastes such as bark and thinnings and other solid wastes, including sewage sludge and leather wastes, have also been studied. In this review, the main (although not exclusive) emphasis has been given to wood. The literature on woo...
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TL;DR: An overview of biochar production technologies, biochar properties, and recent advances in the removal of heavy metals, organic pollutants and other inorganic pollutants using biochar is provided.
1,301 citations
Cites background from "Pyrolysis of Wood/Biomass for Bio-o..."
...Fast pyrolysis usually uses short residence time (62 s) and the peak temperature is set between 300 and 1000 C in order to obtain the highest bio-oil yield, but inhibit the formation of charcoal (Mohan et al., 2006; DeSisto et al., 2010; Manyà, 2012; Shah et al., 2012)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, several aspects which are associated with burning biomass in boilers have been investigated such as composition of biomass, estimating the higher heating value of biomass and comparison between biomass and other fuels.
Abstract: Currently, fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas represent the prime energy sources in the world. However, it is anticipated that these sources of energy will deplete within the next 40–50 years. Moreover, the expected environmental damages such as the global warming, acid rain and urban smog due to the production of emissions from these sources have tempted the world to try to reduce carbon emissions by 80% and shift towards utilizing a variety of renewable energy resources (RES) which are less environmentally harmful such as solar, wind, biomass etc. in a sustainable way. Biomass is one of the earliest sources of energy with very specific properties. In this review, several aspects which are associated with burning biomass in boilers have been investigated such as composition of biomass, estimating the higher heating value of biomass, comparison between biomass and other fuels, combustion of biomass, co-firing of biomass and coal, impacts of biomass, economic and social analysis of biomass, transportation of biomass, densification of biomass, problems of biomass and future of biomass. It has been found that utilizing biomass in boilers offers many economical, social and environmental benefits such as financial net saving, conservation of fossil fuel resources, job opportunities creation and CO 2 and NO x emissions reduction. However, care should be taken to other environmental impacts of biomass such as land and water resources, soil erosion, loss of biodiversity and deforestation. Fouling, marketing, low heating value, storage and collections and handling are all associated problems when burning biomass in boilers. The future of biomass in boilers depends upon the development of the markets for fossil fuels and on policy decisions regarding the biomass market.
1,293 citations
TL;DR: The chemistry, catalysts, and challenges involved in the production of biofuels are discussed, allowing us to rapidly transition to a more sustainable economy without large capital investments for new reaction equipment.
Abstract: As petroleum prices continue to increase, it is likely that biofuels will play an ever-increasing role in our energy future. The processing of biomass-derived feedstocks (including cellulosic, starch- and sugar-derived biomass, and vegetable fats) by catalytic cracking and hydrotreating is a promising alternative for the future to produce biofuels, and the existing infrastructure of petroleum refineries is well-suited for the production of biofuels, allowing us to rapidly transition to a more sustainable economy without large capital investments for new reaction equipment. This Review discusses the chemistry, catalysts, and challenges involved in the production of biofuels.
1,266 citations
TL;DR: Following the whole value chain from raw lignocellulose through depolymerization to application whenever possible, specific lignin-based compounds emerge that could be in the future considered as potential lignIn-derived platform chemicals.
Abstract: Lignin, a major component of lignocellulose, is the largest source of aromatic building blocks on the planet and harbors great potential to serve as starting material for the production of biobased products. Despite the initial challenges associated with the robust and irregular structure of lignin, the valorization of this intriguing aromatic biopolymer has come a long way: recently, many creative strategies emerged that deliver defined products via catalytic or biocatalytic depolymerization in good yields. The purpose of this review is to provide insight into these novel approaches and the potential application of such emerging new structures for the synthesis of biobased polymers or pharmacologically active molecules. Existing strategies for functionalization or defunctionalization of lignin-based compounds are also summarized. Following the whole value chain from raw lignocellulose through depolymerization to application whenever possible, specific lignin-based compounds emerge that could be in the fu...
1,255 citations
TL;DR: The first quantitative review of the effects of biochar on multiple ecosystem functions and the central tendencies suggest that biochar holds promise in being a win-win-win solution to energy, carbon storage, and ecosystem function as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Biochar is a carbon-rich coproduct resulting from pyrolyzing biomass. When applied to the soil it resists decomposition, effectively sequestering the applied carbon and mitigating anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Other promoted benefits of biochar application to soil include increased plant productivity and reduced nutrient leaching. However, the effects of biochar are variable and it remains unclear if recent enthusiasm can be justified. We evaluate ecosystem responses to biochar application with a meta-analysis of 371 independent studies culled from 114 published manuscripts. We find that despite variability introduced by soil and climate, the addition of biochar to soils resulted, on average, in increased aboveground productivity, crop yield, soil microbial biomass, rhizobia nodulation, plant K tissue concentration, soil phosphorus (P), soil potassium (K), total soil nitrogen (N), and total soil carbon (C) compared with control conditions. Soil pH also tended to increase, becoming less acidic, following the addition of biochar. Variables that showed no significant mean response to biochar included belowground productivity, the ratio of aboveground : belowground biomass, mycorrhizal colonization of roots, plant tissue N, and soil P concentration, and soil inorganic N. Additional analyses found no detectable relationship between the amount of biochar added and aboveground productivity. Our results provide the first quantitative review of the effects of biochar on multiple ecosystem functions and the central tendencies suggest that biochar holds promise in being a win-win-win solution to energy, carbon storage, and ecosystem function. However, biochar's impacts on a fourth component, the downstream nontarget environments, remain unknown and present a critical research gap.
1,245 citations
Cites background from "Pyrolysis of Wood/Biomass for Bio-o..."
...Temperature conditions also varied, and there was no precise definition of terminology, such as the time and temperature conditions of ‘fast’ or ‘slow’ pyrolysis processes (Mohan et al., 2006)....
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...Temperature conditions also varied, and there was no precise defini- tion of terminology, such as the time and temperature conditions of ‘fast’ or ‘slow’ pyrolysis processes (Mohan et al., 2006)....
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References
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