Investigating combustion behaviors of bamboo, torrefied bamboo, coal and their respective blends by thermogravimetric analysis

To investigate co-combustion behavior of bamboo/coal blends, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was used to determine combustion characteristics of bamboo, torrefied bamboo, coal and their respective blends with five mixing ratios and three air flows. The results indicated that torrefaction was an effective way to improve physical properties of bamboo materials. The combustion process of bamboo and torrefied bamboo included drying, oxidative pyrolysis and char combustion. Torrefied bamboo had a lower reactivity compared to bamboo. The ignition and burnout temperature of torrefied bamboo also shifted to higher temperature. The char combustion of torrefied bamboo and coal coincided. The presence of bamboo and torrefied bamboo improved the thermo-chemical reactivity of blends. Air flow could also enhance the combustion reaction and strengthen combustion efficiency of blends. It was better potential for the co-combustion of torrefied bamboo and coal blends in existing coal-fired power plants. The results from this research will be very important and helpful to promote bamboo resources as a blend fuel for co-firing application with coal.