Fast pyrolysis of trunk wood and stump wood from a Brazilian eucalyptus clone

The objective of this study was to compare yields and chemical composition of volatile fraction of bio-oil produced from fast pyrolysis of trunk wood and stump wood of Eucalyptus urograndis. Ground material was processed in a fluidized bed pilot plant equipped with a continuous reactor at temperatures of 500-600 °C. Light bio-oil fraction from each material was collected and vacuum distilled. The oily volatile fraction was characterized by GC/MS. Yield of charcoal was higher for stump wood than for trunk wood and the opposite behavior was observed for the yield of light and heavy bio-oil fractions and of gases. Yields of volatile compounds were statistically equal for trunk and stump wood, both representing about 6% of the initial dry biomass. The results demonstrate the technical viability of having stump wood as a source of volatile oils with chemical composition similar to commercial liquid smoke products.