Effect of industrial microwave irradiation on the physicochemical properties and pyrolysis characteristics of lignite

The surface functional groups and pyrolysis characteristics of lignite irradiated by microwave were comparatively studied to evaluate the feasibility of using industrial 915 MHz for lignite drying. The drying kinetics, micro structure, chemical functional groups, re-adsorption properties, and pyrolysis characteristics of the dried coal were respectively analyzed. Results indicated that for typical Chinese lignite studied in this paper, 915 MHz microwave drying was 7.8 times faster than that of the hot air drying. After industrial microwave drying, the sample possessed much higher total specific surface area and specific pore volume than that of air dried sample. The oxygen functional groups and re-adsorption ratio of microwave irradiated coal decreased, showing weakened hydrophilicity. Moreover, during the pyrolysis of the coal dried by hot air and microwave, the yield of tar largely increased from 1.3% to 8.5% and the gas production increased correspondingly. The composition of the tar was also furtherly analyzed, results indicated that Miscellaneous hydrocarbons(HCs) were the main component of the tar, and microwave irradiation can reduce the fraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) from 26.4% to 22.7%.

Pyrolysis Characteristics and Kinetics of Municipal Solid Waste

Based on a systemic survey, the pyrolysis characteristics and apparent kinetics of the municipal solid waste （ MSW） under different conditions were researched using a special pyrolysis reactor, which could overcome the disadvantage of thermo-gravimetric analyzer. The thermal decomposition behaviour of MSW was investigated using thermo-gravimetric （ TG ） analysis at rates of 4.8,6.6,8.4, 12.0 and 13. 2 K/min. The pyrolysis characteristics of MSW were also studied in different function districts. The pyrolysis of MSW is a complex reaction process and three main stages are found according to the results. The first stage represents the degradation of cellulose and hemicellulose, with the maximum degradation rate occuring at 150℃ -200 ℃： the second stage represents dehydrochlorination and depolymerization of intermediate products and the differential thermogravimetric （ DTG ） curves have shoulder peaks at about 300℃： the third stage is the decomposition of the residual big molecular organic substance and lignin at 400 ℃- 600 ℃. Within the range of given experimental conditions, the results of non-linear fitting algorithm and experiment are in agreement with each other and the correlation coefficients are over0. 99. The kinetic characteristics are concerned with the material component and heating rate. The activation energy of reaction decreases with the increase of heating rate.

Combustion characteristics of semicokes derived from pyrolysis of low rank bituminous coal

Various semicokes were obtained from medium-low temperature pyrolysis of Dongrong long flame coal.The proximate analysis,calorific value and Hardgrove grindability index(HGI) of semicokes were determined,and the ignition temperature,burnout temperature,ignition index,burnout index,burnout ratio,combustion characteristic index of semicokes were measured and analyzed using thermogravimetry analysis(TGA).The effects of pyrolysis temperature,heating rate,and pyrolysis time on yield,composition and calorific value of long flame coal derived semicokes were investigated,especially the influence of pyrolysis temperature on combustion characteristics and grindability of the semicokes was studied combined with X-ray diffraction(XRD) analysis of semicokes.The results show that the volatile content,ash content and calorific value of semicokes pyrolyzed at all process parameters studied meet the technical specifications of the pulverized coal-fired furnaces(PCFF) referring to China Standards GB/T 7562-1998.The pyrolysis temperature is the most influential factor among pyrolysis process parameters.As pyrolysis temperature increases,the yield,ignition index,combustion reactivity and burnout index of semicokes show a decreasing tend,but the ash content increases.In the range of 400 and 450 °C,the grindability of semicokes is rational,especially the grindability of semicokes pyrolyzed at 450 °C is suitable.Except for the decrease of volatile content and increase of ash content,the decrease of combustion performance of semicokes pyrolyzed at higher temperature should be attributed to the improvement of the degree of structural ordering and the increase of aromaticity and average crystallite size of char.It is concluded that the semicokes pyrolyzed at the temperature of 450 °C is the proper fuel for PCFF.

Thermogravimetric characteristics and different kinetic models for medical waste composition containing polyvinyl chloride-transfusion tube

Thermogravimetric study of medical transfusion tube （MTT） waste containing polyvinyl chloride （PVC） was carried out using the thermogravimetric analyser （TGA） with N2, at different heating rates of 5, 10, 20, 30, 50 ℃/min. The purpose is to obtain pyrolysis characteristics and kinetic parameters of medical waste. The experimental results indicate that the pyrolysis behavior of the MTT sample is in agreement with its main ingredient of PVC, appearing two stair stepping stages. The influence of the additives in MTT on pyrolysis behavior was also revealed, which could improve MTT pyrolysis at lower temperature in the first stage, and cause obvious unsmoothness and asymmetry of the second DTG peak. Four n-order kinetic models of Coats-Redfern, Ozawa, Kissinger and Freeman-carroll were used to get the kinetic parameters. Furthermore, a novel ＂two-step four-reaction model＂ was established to simulate the whole continuous process. The different methods and the kinetic parameters thus obtained were discussed and compared with each other in literatures. The reasons of deviation among kinetic values were tried to be elucidated. The new established model could more satisfactorily describe the pyrolysis process of MTT, being more mechanistic and conveniently serving for the engineering.

Thermal decomposition characteristics and kinetics of methyl linoleate under nitrogen and oxygen atmospheres

The thermal decomposition characteristics of methyl linoleate （ML） under nitrogen and oxygen atmo- spheres were investigated, using a thermogravimetric analyzer at a heating rate of 10 ~C/min from room tem- perature to 600℃. Furthermore, the pyrolytic and kinetic characteristics of ML at different heating rates were stud- ied. The results showed that the thermal decomposition characteristics of ML under nitrogen and oxygen atmo- spheres were macroscopically similar, although ML exhibited relatively lower thermal stability under an oxy- gen atmosphere than under a nitrogen atmosphere. The initial decomposition temperature, the maximum weight loss temperature, the peak decomposition temperature, and the rate of maximum weight loss of ML under an oxygen atmosphere were much lower than those under a nitrogen atmosphere and increased with increasing heating rates under either oxygen or nitrogen atmosphere. In addition, the kinetic characteristics of thermal decomposition of ML were elucidated based on the experimental results and by the multiple linear regression method. The activation energy, pre-exponential factor, reaction order, and the kinetic equation for thermal decomposition of ML were obtained. The comparison of experimental and calculated data and the analysis of statistical errors of pyrolysis ratios demonstrated that the kinetic model was reliable for pyrolysis of ML with relative errors of about 1%. Finally, the kinetic compensation effect between the pre-exponential factors and the activation energy in the pyrolysis of ML was also confirmed.

Effects of operating conditions and pre-densification on the torrefaction products of sorghum straw

The effects of operating conditions and pre-densification on the torrefaction performance parameters and the properties of the torrefied sorghum straw were studied.A full-factor experiment was performed on a fixed tube furnace,in which sorghum straw powder and pellets were heated to 230℃,260℃,280℃ and 300℃ at 2.5℃/min,5℃/min and 7.5℃/min,respectively.The pyrolysis characteristics of the sorghum straw torrefied under various operating conditions were complemented by thermogravimetric analysis.It was observed that the high temperature led to the high calorific value of the torrefied sorghum straw with an acceptable mass and energy yield.The sorghum straw torrefied at a temperature above 280℃ had a higher heating value(HHV)that was comparable to that of the low rank coal while maintaining its energy yield above 85%.The results suggested that temperature was an important factor determining the properties of the torrefied products,and the heating rate would affect the internal temperature of the torrefied biomass by affecting the heat transfer during the torrefaction.The energy densification index of the pellets decreased uniformly as the heating rate increased proportionally,indicating that pre-densification can be used as a potential method to solve the heat transfer delay in the fixed reactors at high heating rates,especially for high temperatures.