Conversion of cotton residues to bio-oil and chemicals through flash pyrolysis in a fluidised bed reactor

Abstract

Pyrolysis process offers solution to utilise huge quantity of biomass to produce fuel for energy needs. This paper describes the development of a new model for waste cotton shell pyrolysis. This model calculates the minimum fluidisation velocity for various sand particles for better fluidisation. Cotton shell wastes were subjected to pyrolysis at atmospheric pressure under inert gas atmosphere in a fluidised bed setup to determine the effect of operation parameters. The sand particle size 0.71 mm offered better fluidisation and is more economical as it utilises low hydrogen flow rate. The maximum yield of bio-oil 51 wt% can be obtained under the operation parameters of 450°C pyrolysis temperature, 1 mm particle size at sweep gas flow rate of 1.75 m3/h. In addition, the characterisation study of the bio-oil has been done for its physical and chemical analysis with gas chromatography mass spectroscopy. The elements and its derivatives found in the GC-MS analysis are used as a feed stock for chemical industries.