Enhanced energy efficiency in gasification of paper-reject sludge by a mineral catalyst

Abstract This study investigated the feasibility of the enhanced efficiency of energy yields in the catalytic gasification processes of paper-reject sludge. The experiments were conducted by controlling the temperatures that ranged from 600 °C to 900 °C with the addition of the mineral catalyst (calcium oxide, CaO) with a ratio that ranged between 10 percent and 20 percent by weight. According to the experimental results, increasing gasification temperatures will enhance the lower heating value (LHV) of syngas in the gasification of paper-reject sludge. The LHV of syngas increased from 10.6 MJ/Nm 3 to 21.1 MJ/Nm 3 with increased temperatures from 600 °C to 900 °C. The energy density of syngas was also increased from 1.13 to 4.56, as gasification temperature operated between 600 °C and 900 °C. This implied that the energy utilization of syngas, produced by gasification, could increase approximately four times the energy content of paper-reject sludge. Besides this, the energy yield efficiency in gasification will be enhanced by the tested mineral catalyst. In the case of gasification temperatures operating from 600 °C to 900 °C, the LHV of syngas increased significantly from 13.04 MJ/Nm 3 to 21.52 MJ/Nm 3 by the tested mineral catalyst. Meanwhile, the results of the energy density as well as the carbon conversion rate in catalytic gasification indicated that the results were 2.8–4.59 and above 95%, respectively. The experimental results of this research confirm that it is possible to improve the efficiency of tar reduction and energy yields using a tested mineral catalyst and can promote the potential for renewable energy in the application of paper-reject sludge.

[1]  D. Mohan,et al.  Pyrolysis of Wood/Biomass for Bio-oil: A Critical Review , 2006 .

[2]  Paul T. Williams,et al.  Pyrolysis–gasification of post-consumer municipal solid plastic waste for hydrogen production , 2010 .

[3]  T. Fransson,et al.  Downdraft gasification of pellets made of wood, palm-oil residues respective bagasse: Experimental study , 2011 .

[4]  R. Saxena,et al.  Bio-fuels from thermochemical conversion of renewable resources: A review , 2008 .

[5]  Gerrit Brem,et al.  Review of Catalysts for Tar Elimination in Biomass Gasification Processes , 2004 .

[6]  Akwasi A. Boateng,et al.  Gasification of Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) straw in a farm-scale reactor. , 2007 .

[7]  A. Gordon,et al.  New effects during steam gasification of naphthalene: the synergy between CaO and MgO during the catalytic reaction , 2004 .

[8]  C. Igathinathane,et al.  Process engineering evaluation of ethanol production from wood through bioprocessing and chemical catalysis , 2009 .

[9]  A. Rao,et al.  Overview of combustion and gasification of rice husk in fluidized bed reactors , 1998 .

[10]  Masayuki Horio,et al.  Effects of gasifying conditions and bed materials on fluidized bed steam gasification of wood biomass. , 2009, Bioresource technology.

[11]  Prabir Basu,et al.  An investigation into steam gasification of biomass for hydrogen enriched gas production in presence of CaO , 2010 .

[12]  J. F. González,et al.  Investigation on the reactions influencing biomass air and air/steam gasification for hydrogen production , 2008 .

[13]  Kj Krzysztof Ptasinski,et al.  Catalytic decomposition of biomass tars: use of dolomite and untreated olivine , 2005 .

[14]  Chanchal Loha,et al.  Performance of fluidized bed steam gasification of biomass – Modeling and experiment , 2011 .

[15]  Gerrit Brem,et al.  Experimental comparison of biomass chars with other catalysts for tar reduction , 2008 .

[16]  D. Y. Goswami,et al.  An experimental study of hydrogen production by gasification of biomass in the presence of a CO2 sorbent , 2007 .

[17]  Kefa Cen,et al.  Low-temperature gasification of waste tire in a fluidized bed , 2008 .

[18]  S. Pipatmanomai,et al.  Potential of synthesis gas production from rubber wood chip gasification in a bubbling fluidised bed gasifier , 2011 .

[19]  A. Dalai,et al.  Gasification of refuse derived fuel in a fixed bed reactor for syngas production. , 2009, Waste management.

[20]  Thomas Nordgreen,et al.  Effects of Chinese dolomites on tar cracking in gasification of birch , 2009 .

[21]  Rafael Kandiyoti,et al.  Tar Formation and Destruction in a Simulated Downdraft, Fixed-Bed Gasifier: Reactor Design and Initial Results , 2007 .

[22]  N Koukouzas,et al.  Co-gasification of solid waste and lignite - a case study for Western Macedonia. , 2008, Waste management.

[23]  Nicholas H. Florin,et al.  Enhanced hydrogen production from biomass with in situ carbon dioxide capture using calcium oxide sorbents , 2008 .

[24]  Antonio Molino,et al.  High energy syngas production by waste tyres steam gasification in a rotary kiln pilot plant. Experimental and numerical investigations , 2010 .

[25]  Young-Chan Choi,et al.  Hydrogen production from biomass tar by catalytic steam reforming , 2010 .

[26]  A. Mohamed,et al.  Gasification of lignocellulosic biomass in fluidized beds for renewable energy development: A review , 2010 .

[27]  R. Kandiyoti,et al.  Tar Formation and Destruction in a Fixed Bed Reactor Simulating Downdraft Gasification: Optimization of Conditions , 2008 .

[28]  B. Kelleher,et al.  Review of literature on catalysts for biomass gasification , 2001 .

[29]  Islam Ahmed,et al.  Syngas yield during pyrolysis and steam gasification of paper , 2009 .

[30]  Rui Xiao,et al.  Air gasification of polypropylene plastic waste in fluidized bed gasifier , 2007 .

[31]  M. Aznar,et al.  Plastic waste elimination by co-gasification with coal and biomass in fluidized bed with air in pilot plant , 2006 .

[32]  A. Gupta,et al.  Characteristics of syngas from co-gasification of polyethylene and woodchips , 2011 .