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Valorization Of Spent Vetiver Roots For Biochar Generation, Sameer Neve, Dibyendu Sarkar, Manas Warke, Teresa Bandosz, Rupali Datta

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 2

Vetiver root is widely used to produce essential oils in the aromatherapy industry. After the extraction of oil, the roots are disposed of as waste. The central objective of this research was to explore the conversion of this waste into a resource using a circular economy framework. To generate biochar, vetiver roots were pyrolyzed at different temperatures (300, 500, and 700 °C) and residence times (30, 60, and 120 min). Analysis showed the root biochar generated at 500 °C and held for 60 min had the highest surface area of 308.15 m2/g and a yield of 53.76%, in addition to …

Balanced Mixture Of Biochar And Synthetic Fertilizer Increases Seedling Quality Of Acacia Mangium”, Giovanni Reyes M

Bio-Char III: Production, Characterization and Applications

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Gasification Of Waste Wood Fractions In A Staged Process – Characterization Of Resulting Bio-Char, Michael Kresta, David Gurtner

Bio-Char III: Production, Characterization and Applications

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Chemical Nature, Molecular Structure, And Formation Mechanism Of Biochar: Molecular Dynamics Studies And Experimental Approach, Valentina . Sierra-Jimenez, Jonathan P. . Mathews, Anthony . Dufour, Farid Chejne Janna, Manuel. Garcia-Perez

Bio-Char III: Production, Characterization and Applications

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Effect Of Potassium Salts On Biochar Pyrolysis, Yuthapong Wongmat, David R. Wagner

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Alkali pretreatment is one of the chemical pretreatment technologies that has been examined on various types of lignocellulosic biomass. To gain a better insight into the effects of a potassium-based catalyst on pyrolysis behavior with different materials, potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3) and potassium nitrate (KNO3) were used as additives in this study. The experimental parameters which included particle size, heating rate, and additive loading were investigated. The results showed that adding potassium for both KHCO3 and KNO3 to feedstocks led to increase in biochar. A model-free method, Flynn–Wall–Ozawa (FWO), was implemented in this study to determine the activation energy values for …

Effects Of Biochar Production Methods And Biomass Types On Lead Removal From Aqueous Solution, Paola Granados, Sergio Mireles, Engil Isadora Pujol Pereira, Chu-Lin Cheng, James Jihoon Kang

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Biochar has proven its potential in removing heavy metal ions from water. The objective of this study was to evaluate locally obtained biomass feedstocks for biochar production and their efficiency as a sorbent for aqueous lead (Pb²⁺) removal. The biomass feedstocks consisted of avocado seed, avocado peel, grapefruit peel, and brown seaweed, which represent agricultural and marine biomasses. The biochar materials were produced in two different methods: (1) a laboratory tube furnace at 300 °C and (2) a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) biochar maker, “BioCharlie Log”. The biochars were characterized for selected physicochemical properties, and batch adsorption tests with 10 …

Date-Leaf Carbon Particles For Green Enhanced Oil Recovery, Bashirul Haq, Md Abdul Aziz, Dhafer Al Shehri, Nasiru Salahu Muhammed, Shaik Inayath Basha, Abbas Saeed Hakeem, Mohammed Ameen Ahmed Qasem, Mohammed Lardhi, Stefan Iglauer

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Green enhanced oil recovery (GEOR) is an environmentally friendly enhanced oil recovery (EOR) process involving the injection of green fluids to improve macroscopic and microscopic sweep efficiencies while boosting tertiary oil production. Carbon nanomaterials such as graphene, carbon nanotube (CNT), and carbon dots have gained interest for their superior ability to increase oil recovery. These particles have been successfully tested in EOR, although they are expensive and do not extend to GEOR. In addition, the application of carbon particles in the GEOR method is not well understood yet, requiring thorough documentation. The goals of this work are to develop carbon …

Utilization Of The Uae Date Palm Leaf Biochar In Carbon Dioxide Capture And Sequestration Processes, Imen Ben Salem, Maisa El Gamal, Manish Sharma, Suhaib Hameedi, Fares M. Howari

All Works

This paper evaluates the potential use of date palm leaf biochar as a climate change solution through CO2 capture and sequestration. The pyrolysis of date palm leaf was performed at different temperatures 300°, 400°, 500°, and 600 °C. The physicochemical characteristics of the synthesized biochar were examined using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD). Direct gas-solid interaction was carried out in an integrated Fluidized Bed Reactor (FBR), connected with a gas analyzer for maximum and effective mixing between the biochar and CO2. LabView …

What Is Biochar And How Is It Used?, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

Biochar is a charcoal-like product that contains no petroleum. It is made by heating biomass such as herbaceous or woody crop residues, non-salvageable timber, and slash, or animal manure, in a contained system. There are many potential uses for biochar including water treatment, land reclamation, and carbon sequestration. Biochar may also be used as a soil amendment for two purposes – to improve plant health and to store carbon.

Sources Of Variation In Bourbon Whiskey Barrels: A Review, Jarrad Gollihue, Victoria G. Pook, Seth Debolt

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Oak barrels serve two purposes in the production of distilled spirits: storage containers and reaction vessels. It is the latter function which bestows barrel aged spirits with their unique and highly sought after flavour profiles. However, achieving consistent flavour profiles between barrels is notoriously difficult as no two barrels are comprised of the same source of oak. Source variation is due to a range of factors, beginning with the genetic and topographical background of the oak tree from which the barrel staves originate, the spatial region of the tree from which the stave was taken and continuing through each step …

The State Of Technologies And Research For Energy Recovery From Municipal Wastewater Sludge And Biosolids, Zhongzhe Liu, Brooke Mayer, Kaushik Venkiteshwaran, Saba Seyedi, Arun S.K. Raju, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Wastewater resource recovery facilities produce wastewater solids that offer potential for energy recovery. This opinion article provides a perspective on state-of-the-art technologies to recover energy from sludge (unstabilized wastewater residual solids) and biosolids (stabilized wastewater solids meeting criteria for application on land). The production of biodiesel fuel is an emerging technology for energy recovery from sludge, whereas advancements in pretreatment technologies have improved energy recovery from anaerobic digestion of sludge. Incineration is an established technology to recover energy from sludge or biosolids. Gasification, and to a greater extent, pyrolysis are emerging technologies well-suited for energy recovery from biosolids. While gasification …

Comparison Of Pyrolysis Of Live Wildland Fuels Heated By Radiation Vs. Convection, Mohammad-Saeed Safdari, Elham Amini, David R. Weise, Thomas H. Fletcher

Faculty Publications

During wildland fires, which include both planned (prescribed fire) and unplanned (wildfire) fires, live and dead plants may be subject to both radiative and convective heat transfer mechanisms. In this study, the pyrolysis of 14 live plant species native to the forests of the southern United States was investigated using a flat-flame burner (FFB) apparatus under three heating modes in order to mimic pyrolysis of plants during wildland fires. The heating modes were: (1) radiation-only, where the plants were pyrolyzed under a moderate heating rate of 4 °C s−1 (radiative flux of 50 kW m−2); (2) convection-only, where the FFB …

Application Of Biochar Derived From Pyrolysis Of Waste Fiberboard On Tetracycline Adsorption In Aqueous Solution, Deliang Xu, Yaxuan Gao, Zixiang Lin, Wenran Gao, Hong Zhang, Karnowo Karnowo, Xun Hu, Hongqi Sun, Syed S. A. Syed-Hassan, Shu Zhang

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

In this study, biochars derived from waste fiberboard biomass were applied in tetracycline (TC) removal in aqueous solution. Biochar samples were prepared by slow pyrolysis at 300, 500, and 800°C, and were characterized by ultimate analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), etc. The effects of ionic strength (0–1.0 mol/L of NaCl), initial TC concentration (2.5–60 ppm), biochar dosage (1.5–2.5 g/L), and initial pH (2–10) were systemically determined. The results present that biochar prepared at 800°C (BC800) generally possesses the highest aromatization degree and surface area with abundant pyridinic N (N-6) and …

Changes In Pore Size Distribution With Pyrolysis Temperature, Particle Aspect Ratio And Pretreatment By Leaching Of Large Beech Wood Particles, Przemyslaw Maziarka, Peter Sommersacher, Stefan Retschitzegger, Wolter Prins, Frederik Ronsse

Bio-Char II: Production, Characterization and Applications

When assessing the usefulness of pyrolysis chars as porous materials for the application as adsorbents, catalysts or catalyst supports, one of the most important parameters of the assessment, besides the specific surface area, is their pore size distribution [1, 2]. The aforementioned processes are highly pore size selective, hence inappropriate pores sizes of the applied material can lead to the material’s uselessness for a given application. In terms of the application of pyrolysis char as a soil amendment (i.e., biochar), pore size also plays a major role. For example, in case of a too large share of micropores, even though …

Effect Of Pyrolysis Conditions On Sewage Sludge Derived Biochars For High Value Composites Applications, Paola Giudicianni, Maurizio Troiano, Roberto Solimene, Raffaele Ragucci, Mauro Giorcelli, Alberto Tagliaferro, Mattia Bartoli

Bio-Char II: Production, Characterization and Applications

The economy of the whole wastewater treatment system is significantly burdened by the increasing amounts of sewage sludge due to the progressive implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive 91/271/EEC and by the complexity of the treatments required for guaranteeing a safe handling and a proper end-of-life of the sludge. For this reason, thermal treatments of sewage sludge have been studied in the past for their efficient valorization in terms of energy and/or matter recovery. Among them, pyrolysis represents a viable route aiming at the recycling of resources without production of harmful substances to the humans or the environment. …

Biochar Production Though Combined Solar Drying & Single Chamber Pyrolysis, Dirk Weichgrebe, Moni M Mondal, Rahul Ramesh Nair

Bio-Char II: Production, Characterization and Applications

In this study, the challenging management of fibrous organic wastes (FOW) and dewatered municipal sewage sludge (MSS) in urban areas of Asia’s newly industrialised countries is presented with high energy efficiency, negative CO₂ balance and biochar generation. This study investigates the feasibility and benefits of a combined treatment approach for both of the substrates, comprising solar drying (SD) and pyrolysis process (PYR). Based on material investigations, a calculation model is developed to project the material and energy flows of this process combination on the example of Chennai, India.

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Influence Of Heating Rate On The Solid Yield Of Biomass Pyrolysis, Markus Lang, Kathrin Weber, Peter Quicker

Bio-Char II: Production, Characterization and Applications

The use of biochar has become increasingly popular over the last decade. The possible applications are vast and range from renewable carbon carrier in industrial and energetic applications to soil amendment and fodder additive. The various applications have different demands on the properties of biochar. These can be influenced by the choice of feedstock, reactor and production conditions. Regardless of production process and application however, achieving a high yield of the solid product is desirable from an economic point of view. The higher the treatment temperature, the more material is devolatilized and the lower is the amount of biochar that …

Influence Of Feedstock And Operational Conditions On Bio-Chars Derived From The Pyrolysis Of Selected Biomasses, David Chiaramonti, David Casini, Giovanni Ferraro, Emiliano Fratini, Giuditta Pecori, Andrea Maria Rizzo, Luca Rosi

Bio-Char II: Production, Characterization and Applications

The proprieties of bio-char, the solid product from biomass pyrolysis, depends on both the feedstock and process conditions during thermochemical conversion^[1]. As regards the interaction of the char with soil (i.e. as soil amendment), surface areas, size and shape of pores are among the most important factors to be considered.

^[1] P. R. Bonelli , G. Nunell , M. E. Fernández , E. L. Buonomo & A. L. Cukierman

(2012) The Potential Applications of the Bio-char Derived from the Pyrolysis of an Agro-industrial

Waste. Effects of Temperature and Acid-pretreatment, Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery,

Utilization, and Environmental Effects, …

Synthesis And Use Of Bio-Based Dielectric Substrate For Implanted Radio Frequency Antennas, Austin Tesser, Ala Alemaryeen, Jeremy Lewis, Ali Alshami, Meysam Haghshenas, Sima Noghanian

Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications

Equipped with precision sensors/antenna modules combined with integrated processing and telemetry circuitry, wireless implants that are both biocompatible and biodegradable are important devices for monitoring patient's conditions and patient's safety. In this article we report on the development, design, and testing of a bio-based monopole radio frequency (RF) sensor/antenna module for potential use in human health applications. The module is built on a dielectric substrate biocomposite made of 0.5:1.0 ratio of polylactic acid (PLA) to sunflower carbon substrate (SCS) produced via pyrolysis of seeds shells. Findings for the SCS include optimized reactor yields around 7.9 wt.% at 500°C, a 0.27:1.0 …

Evaluation Of The Antifungal Activity Of Cattle Manure Bio-Oil, Matheus Pinheiro Carvalho, Alberto Wisnievski Junior, Ingred Suellen Carvalho Carregosa, Wyllian Winckler Sartori, Maria Lucileide Nogueira Santos Ramos

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Plant diseases are a threat to the health and functionality of both natural and man-made ecosystems. Diverse methods and strategies are being employed to prevent, ameliorate or control plant diseases. Unsustainable practices such as use and misuse of synthetic fungicides have caused severe harm to human health, wildlife and the environment (1). Fungal cause the most destructive plant diseases and impose major losses to both natural and production systems, and one of it is the fungi. Botanical fungicides are particularly sought after because they are abundant, selective, readily degraded, and are not toxic to mammals (2).

Bio-oils produced by rotatory …

Anaerobic Digestion Of The Aqueous Pyrolysis Condensate, Franco Berruti, Cesar Miguel Moreira Valenzuela, Lars Rehmann, Connie Wen

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Fractional condensation of biomass pyrolysis vapors allows the segregation of different pyrolysis fractions and a separation of an aqueous pyrolysis condensate from an organic rich dry bio-oil fraction. Aqueous pyrolysis condensate is often referred at as “wood vinegar” or “pyroligneous acid” since it contains 70-80% water together with 10-20% acetic acid, and smaller quantities of acetone and methanol mixed with hundreds of other chemicals in small concentrations. Such aqueous pyrolysis condensate cannot be easily disposed of, and it may represent a valuable resource. For example, the significant percentage of acetic acid offers the opportunity to attempt its conversion into methane …

Environmental Assessment Of Pyrolysis In Biorefineries Based On Palm Oil Wastes, Electo Eduardo Silva Lora, York Castillo Santiago, Eric Alberto Ocampo Battle, José Carlos Escobar Palacio, Osvaldo José Venturini, Diego Mauricio Yepes Maya, Alberto Albis Arrieta

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

The oil palm industry is one of the largest producers of residual biomass, leading to environmental and economic concerns. For this reason, the concept of biorefinery is emerging as a means to create new ways of converting biomass into new types of renewable products bioenergetics that can contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases. In this context, this document presents a study that consisting of a biorefinery configuration in a Palm Oil Mill (POM), considering the fast pyrolysis process to produce bio-oil and biochar, and an extraction / trans-esterification stage to produce biodiesel and glycerin in the POM. The environmental …

Pyrolysis Of Polyethylene-Lined Waste Paper Cups, Franco Berruti, Connie Wen, Lars Rehmann, Cesar Miguel Moreira Valenzuela

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Fractional condensation of biomass pyrolysis vapors allows the segregation of different pyrolysis fractions and a separation of an aqueous pyrolysis condensate from an organic rich dry bio-oil fraction. Aqueous pyrolysis condensate is often referred at as “wood vinegar” or “pyroligneous acid” since it contains 70-80% water together with 10-20% acetic acid, and smaller quantities of acetone and methanol mixed with hundreds of other chemicals in small concentrations. Such aqueous pyrolysis condensate cannot be easily disposed of, and it may represent a valuable resource. For example, the significant percentage of acetic acid offers the opportunity to attempt its conversion into methane …

Pyrolysis Of Lignin-Rich Biomass For Renewable Aromatics, Materials Paul De Wild

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Currently, several national projects are conducted as an activity along the thermochemical horizon towards functionalized aromatics from lignin and lignin-rich biomass sources in the framework of the BIORIZON shared research center in the south of the Netherlands [1]. Regarding the pyrolytic valorization of lignin-rich biomass towards aromatic chemicals for various applications, it is thought that the collection of pyrolysis vapors in separate fractions [2] offers interesting opportunities for valorization, e.g. towards (additives for) bitumen, resins, rubber and specific marine biofuels. For these high market volume – medium market value products, earlier work has revealed that the application of lignin as …

Co2 Participation In Cross-Linking Reactions And Char Formation During Bio-Oil Pyrolysis, Farid Chejne, Javier Alonso Ordoñez, Carlos F. Valdes

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

The integration of new CO2 capture and storage technologies into energy generation processes has led to the development and study of the oxy-fuel combustion, in which the nitrogen in the air is replaced by recirculated CO2 that facilitates its capture and storage to reduce polluting emissions. Currently, the integration of oxy-fuel technologies with the use of new fuels such as bio-oil obtained from the pyrolysis of biomass is a topic of interest. In this case, the CO2 content surrounding the bio-oil droplets modifies the pyrolysis mechanism due to barriers in the diffusion of light volatiles at low temperatures (less than …

Ion Exchange For Nutrient Recovery Coupled With Biosolids-Derived Biochar Pretreatment To Remove Micropollutants, Yiran Tong, Lee K. Kimbell, Anna Avila, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Brooke K. Mayer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Wastewater, especially anaerobic treatment effluent, contains high ammonia nitrogen (NH₄-N) and inorganic orthophosphate (PO₄-P), which necessitate additional treatment to meet stringent discharge regulations. Ion exchange regeneration is a process that can be adopted for not only removing but also recovering nutrients. However, recovering nutrients by ion exchange from nutrient-rich effluents that also contain micropollutants (which typically pass through anaerobic treatment as well) may result in subsequent problems, since micropollutants could end up in ion exchange effluent, regenerant, or recovered fertilizer products. Micropollutant removal by a nonselective adsorbent, such as biosolids-derived biochar, before nutrient recovery processes would …

Characteristics And Applications Of Biochars Derived From Wastewater Solids, Zhongzhe Liu, Simcha L. Singer, Yiran Tong, Lee Kimball, Erik Anderson, Matthew Hughes, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Pyrolysis is a thermochemical decomposition process that can be used to generate pyrolysis gas (py-gas), bio-oil, and biochar as well as energy from biomass. Biomass from agricultural waste and other plant-based materials has been the predominant pyrolysis research focus. Water resource recovery facilities also produce biomass, referred to as wastewater solids, that could be a viable pyrolysis feedstock. Water resource recovery facilities are central collection and production sites for wastewater solids. While the utilization of biochar from a variety of biomass types has been extensively studied, the utilization of wastewater biochars has not been reviewed in detail. This review compares …

Biosolids-Derived Biochar For Triclosan Removal From Wastewater, Lee K. Kimbell, Yiran Tong, Brooke K. Mayer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Micropollutants, including antibiotics, hormones, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products, are discharged into the environment with liquid and solid effluent streams from water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). The objective of this research was to determine whether biosolids-derived biochar (BS-biochar) could be used as a sorbent in continuous flow-through columns to remove micropollutants as a polishing step for wastewater treatment. Triclosan (TCS) was selected as a representative micropollutant due to frequent detection in liquid effluents, residual biosolids, and surface waters. Bench-scale column experiments were conducted to determine the effect of flow rate and competition due to the presence of other organic micropollutants …

Toxicity Screening Of Biochar-Mineral Composites Using Germination Tests, Jan Mumme, Josephine Getz, Munoo Prasad, Ulf Lüder, Kern Jurgen, Ondrej Masek, Wolfram Buss

Articles

This study assessed the properties and toxicity (water cress germination trials) of 38 waste-derived, novel biochar-mineral composites (BMCs) produced via slow pyrolysis and hydrothermal carbonization (hydrochars). The biochars were produced from sewage sludge and compost-like output (CLO) by varying the type of mineral additive (zeolite, wood ash and lignite fly ash), the mineral-to-feedstock ratio and the carbonization process. While pure hydrochars completely inhibited germination of water cress, this effect was ameliorated by mineral additives. Seedlings grew best in pyrolysis chars and while wood ash addition decreased plant growth in many cases, 1:10 addition to CLO doubled germination rate. The factors …

Evaluation Of Bio-Asphalt Binders Modified With Biochar: A Pyrolysis By-Product Of Mesua Ferrea Seed Cover Waste, Abhinay Kumar, Rajan Choudhary, Rumi Narzari, Rupam Kataki, Sanjay K. Shukla

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

With growing global concerns related to energy security and sustainability, interest in bio-fuels has increased significantly. Production of biofuel mostly begins with pyrolysis, a process that converts the biomass to liquid biooil, solid biochar and gases. A large amount of carbonaceous biochar is generated as a by-product during the pyrolysis. However, no major effort has been made in the past decade to utilize the biochar in pavement applications, especially as a bio-modifier to asphalt binders. In this study, an attempt was made to evaluate the carbonaceous biochar, obtained during bio-fuel production through pyrolysis of Mesua ferrea seed cover waste, as …