Iron salt catalytic pyrolysis of biomass: Influence of iron salt type

To improve on existing pyrolytic products and understand the role played by the anion during catalytic pyrolysis with iron salts, different iron salt types were studied for biomass pyrolysis. The results demonstrate that iron salts promoted the cracking of biomass, decreased the precipitation temperature of the volatiles, and increased the production of char and hydrogen. Specifically, the addition of Fe(NO3)(3) increased the gas yield and promoted the degree of graphitization and mesoporosity of biochar. The use of FeCl2 and FeCl3 led to a high selectivity (85.74%) for the production of ketone-rich oil, a highly developed micropore-dominated biochar with a surface area of 505 m(2)/g, and a hydrogen-rich gas (33.68 vol %). When Fe-2(SO4)(3) was used, acid-dominated oil with 73.85% selectivity was obtained. The pyrolysis behavior and properties of the product depended on the degree of hydrolysis during impregnation and the in-situ-produced iron microcrystalline structure (nitride, oxide, or carbide).

Automated summary

This study investigated the effects of different iron salt types on biomass pyrolysis and found that iron salts can promote the cracking of biomass, lower the precipitation temperature of volatiles, and increase the production of char and hydrogen. Specifically, the addition of Fe(NO3)(3) can increase gas yield and promote the graphitization and mesoporosity of biochar.