Synergetic biofuel production from co-pyrolysis of food and plastic waste: reaction kinetics and product behavior.

This study aimed to develop a process for producing bio-oil, char, and value-added chemicals from food waste and plastic waste blend using co-pyrolysis under controlled conditions. The food waste (rice, vegetables, and fish) was blended in definite ratios (70:30, 60:40, and 50:50 w/w) with polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Experiments were conducted at various temperatures (250, 300, and 350 °C) and reaction times (30, 60, 90, and 120 min).

Utilization of grasses for potential biofuel production and phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated soils.

This research focuses on investigating the use of common biofuel grasses to assess their potential as agents of long-term remediation of contaminated soils using lead as a model heavy metal ion. We present evidence demonstrating that switch grass and Timothy grass may be potentially useful for long-term phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated soils and describe novel techniques to track and remove contaminants from inception to useful product. Enzymatic digestion and thermochemical approaches are being used to convert this lignocellulosic feedstock into useful product (sugars, ethanol, biocrude oil+biochar).

Influence of inorganic salts on the primary pyrolysis products of cellulose.

Processing bio-oil with the help of currently existing petroleum refinery infrastructure has been considered as a promising alternative to produce sustainable fuels in the future. The feasibility of bio-oil production and upgrading processes depend upon its chemical composition which in turn depends on the biomass composition and the process conditions of the fast pyrolysis reactions. The primary goal of this paper was to investigate the effect of mineral salts including mixtures of salts in the form of switchgrass ash on the chemical speciation resulting from primary pyrolysis reactions of cellulose and to gain an insight of the underlying mechanisms.

Influence of pyrolysis condition on switchgrass bio-oil yield and physicochemical properties.

The poor and inconsistent physicochemical properties of bio-oil are inhibiting its industrialized production. We investigated the variability in properties of switchgrass bio-oil produced at three pyrolysis temperatures (T=450, 500, and 550 degrees C) and three feedstock moisture contents (MC=5%, 10%, and 15%) in a 3x3 factorial experiment in order to exploit opportunities to improve bio-oil properties through optimization of pyrolysis parameters. Results showed that even with the single type of feedstock and pyrolysis system, the two main factors and their interaction caused large variations in bio-oil yield and most of the measured physicochemical properties.