Analytical pyrolysis reaction characteristics of Porphyra tenera

The non-isothermal pyrolysis of red algae (Porphyra tenera) was studied via thermogravimetric (TG) analysis in combination with two types of analytical pyrolyzer-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) techniques, namely, evolved gas analysis (EGA)-MS and multi-shot Py-GC/MS. The TG and model-free kinetic analyses revealed that the pyrolysis of P. tenera proceeded via the independent decomposition of carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. Differential TG and EGA-MS indicated the existence of three decomposition temperature regions. In the first temperature region (<300 °C), carbohydrates were mainly decomposed. Large amounts of pyrolyzates of proteins and lipids such as toluene, phenols, aromatic amino acids, and hexadecanoic acid were produced in the second temperature region (301-380 °C). In the third region (>380 °C), large amounts of aromatic hydrocarbons and alkanes were obtained by the secondary cracking of the pyrolyzates of proteins and lipids.