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Potentially Massive And Global Non-Pyrogenic Production Of Condensed "Black" Carbon Through Biomass Oxidation, Aleksandar I. Goranov, Hongmei Chen, Jianshu Duan, Satish C. B. Myneni, Patrick G. Hatcher

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

With the increased occurrences of wildfires worldwide, there has been an increase in scientific interest surrounding the chemistry of fire-derived "black" carbon (BC). Traditionally, wildfire research has assumed that condensed aromatic carbon (ConAC) is exclusively produced via combustion, and thus, ConAC is equated to BC. However, the lack of correlations between ConAC in soils or rivers and wildfire history suggests that ConAC may be produced non-pyrogenically. Here, we show quantitative evidence that this occurs during the oxidation of biomass with environmentally ubiquitous hydroxyl radicals. Pine wood boards exposed to iron nails and natural weather conditions for 12 years yielded a …

A Foray Into Laboratory Scale Soil Incubations With Corn Stover And High Lignin Fermentation Byproduct, Michelle Wang

ENGS 88 Honors Thesis (AB Students)

As the production of biofuels increases to meet the demands of a growing low carbon economy, questions of sustainability surrounding its feedstock and waste streams have become increasingly relevant. In the biofuel production process, crop residues like corn stover are harvested from the field and converted to biofuels leaving generating a residue called high lignin fermentation byproduct (HLFB). From extensive process modelling in the literature, it is suggested that HLFB should be either combusted to fuel auxiliary conversion processes or returned to the soil in place of the crop residues that were harvested. Currently, there is little literature testing the …

Slow Pyrolysis Of Lignin Rich Residue From Lignocellulosic Biorefining Operations, Paola Giudicianni, Corinna Maria Grottola, Raffaele Ragucci

Pyroliq 2019: Pyrolysis and Liquefaction of Biomass and Wastes

Europe is committed to have a bio-based economy in 2030. It follows that a huge contribution of biorefinery products on the European demand for chemicals, energy, materials and fibers is expected in the near future. To be environmentally and economically sustainable, biorefinery will need to be flexible, versatile, energy and cost efficient [1]. In a lignocellulose based biorefinery, the sugar platform that leads to bioethanol and added-value products through biochemical processes represents a challenging option. After ethanol distillation a lignin reach residue (LRR) is produced and used as energy source. However, it is currently underutilized with about 60% more lignin …

Carbon Sequestration Using Bio-Refinery Residues, Ondřej Mašek

Biochar: Production, Characterization and Applications

Biomass consists of four main constituents, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and minerals. The first two, are the key targets for various conversion processes producing biofuels and chemicals, leaving behind different forms of lignin, depending on extraction process used.

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Production And Characterization Of Slow Pyrolysis Biochar From Lignin-Rich Digested Stillage From 2nd Generation Bioethanol Production, Frederik Ronsse, Dane Dickinson, Wolter Prins

Biochar: Production, Characterization and Applications

Lignin-rich stillage from 2nd generation bioethanol production is a unique feedstock for slow pyrolysis and biochar production, as it contains high amounts of lignin (62 wt. % d.b) and ash (9.97 wt. % d.b) next to some residual cellulose and hemicellulose. As lignin is known to result in higher char and char-C yields compared to regular lignocellulosic feedstock, the suitability of a lignin-containing residue, obtained from a 2nd generation bio-ethanol pilot run using short rotation poplar, was subjected to anaerobic digestion for biogas production followed by slow pyrolysis of the digestate for the production of biochar.

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Engineering Plant Biomass Lignin Content And Composition For Biofuels And Bioproducts, Cassie Marie Welker, Vimal Kumar Balasubramanian, Carloalberto Petti, Krishan Mohan Rai, Seth Debolt, Venugopal Mendu

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Lignin is an aromatic biopolymer involved in providing structural support to plant cell walls. Compared to the other cell wall polymers, i.e., cellulose and hemicelluloses, lignin has been considered a hindrance in cellulosic bioethanol production due to the complexity involved in its separation from other polymers of various biomass feedstocks. Nevertheless, lignin is a potential source of valuable aromatic chemical compounds and upgradable building blocks. Though the biosynthetic pathway of lignin has been elucidated in great detail, the random nature of the polymerization (free radical coupling) process poses challenges for its depolymerization into valuable bioproducts. The absence of specific …