Fast pyrolysis of the energy crop “Geodae-Uksae 1” in a bubbling fluidized bed reactor

• Fast pyrolysis of Geodae-Uksae 1 was performed in a rectangular BFB reactor.
• Biocrude-oil yield and quality were the highest at 500 °C.
• Geodae-Uksae 1 has potential as an alternative energy source.

The fast pyrolysis characteristics of Geodae-Uksae 1 were examined in a lab-scale bubbling fluidized bed reactor. First, raw material was examined thorough proximate and ultimate analyses. TGA (Thermogravimetric analysis) was carried out to determine the basic thermal degradation characteristics of the material. To study biocrude-oil yield and quality, 1 kg of Geodae-Uksae 1 was applied to the fluidized bed reactor for 1 h with reaction temperatures ranging from 400 °C to 550 °C. The quality of biocrude-oil as a fuel was investigated using various analytical methods including HHV (higher heating value), water content, viscosity, pH, homogeneity, and GC/MS and elemental analyses. Results showed that the highest yield of biocrude-oil was 45.1 wt. % at 500 °C. The HHV was higher in the biocrude-oil from Geodae-Uksae 1 than in that from Miscanthus sinensis over the all tested reaction temperatures. Based on GC/MS results, the biocrude-oil from Geodae-Uksae 1 is composed of 27 chemical compounds that belong to seven main groups. From the analysis results, Geodae-Uksae 1 has potential as an alternative energy source. In addition, treated biocrude-oil can be directly applied to conventional heat and power generation.