The Effect of Pd-Doped -Al2O3on the Low-Temperature Thermal Decomposition of Corn Cobs and Leaves in Bio-oil Production

Abstract

Recently, biomass has become one of the most important renewable energy sources. Corn cobs, stalks, leaves, and other agricultural residues are produced in large quantities annually. However, only few studies have considered the use of these cheap materials as a source of biomass. In the current study, lignocellulose from dry corn cobs and leaves was thermally decomposed at low temperatures (150-250 ºC) for different pyrolysis time intervals (30-120 min) in an in-house assembled reactor. The pyrolysis process was conducted in the absence and presence of Pd-doped -Al₂O₃ catalyst. The bio-oils produced were characterized and classified using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GS/MS). The GS/MS results showed that the bio-oils produced contained: carboxylic acids, alcohols, hydrocarbons, guaiacols, miscellaneous oxygenates, and multicomponent compounds. The results also showed that the presence of the catalyst increases the bio-oil yield by at least 50%. In addition, in presence of the catalyst, the leaves produced more bio-oils than the cobs.