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Mechanistic study of enhanced H 2 synthesis in biomass gasifiers with in‐situ CO 2 capture using CaO
Author(s) -
Florin Nicholas H.,
Harris Andrew T.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
aiche journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1547-5905
pISSN - 0001-1541
DOI - 10.1002/aic.11434
Subject(s) - sorbent , char , chemistry , exothermic reaction , context (archaeology) , tar (computing) , biomass (ecology) , decomposition , chemical engineering , thermogravimetric analysis , chemical equilibrium , thermodynamics , residence time (fluid dynamics) , pyrolysis , analytical chemistry (journal) , environmental chemistry , organic chemistry , adsorption , paleontology , oceanography , physics , geotechnical engineering , computer science , engineering , biology , programming language , geology
Biomass gasification coupled with in situ CO 2 removal using CaO is a promising process for the sustainable production of H 2 . Thermodynamic equilibrium modeling predicts biomass conversion to gas containing up to 81.4 vol % H 2 (dry basis). However, in practice, discrepancies between theoretical and experimental results demonstrate the significance of nonequilibrium phenomena. In this context, we have developed a simultaneous thermogravimetric‐mass spectrometric (TG‐MS) technique to study the influence of: (i) heating rate, (ii) CaO loading, (iii) evolved gas residence time, and (iv) reaction atmosphere. The results of this study give insight into the decomposition mechanisms of biomass in the presence of CaO, including the influence of: (i) CO 2 removal, (ii) sorbent hydration (Ca(OH) 2 ), (iii) intrinsic heating and swelling effects associated with the exothermic gas–solid absorption reactions, and (iv) the direct catalytic role of CaO for char gasification and tar elimination. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2008