Thermocatalytic reforming of biomass waste streams

A thermocatalytic reforming (TCR®) unit patented by Fraunhofer UMSICHT was tested to convert lignocellulosic biomass and three organic wastes, digestate, paper sludge, and sewage sludge, into enhanced pyrolysis products. The TCR® reactor is an intermediate pyrolysis screw reactor connected to a reformer. hawse have explored the TCR® of four feedstocks in a 2 kg h−1 laboratory-scale plant. The aim of the work was to compare the product yields and qualities (biochar, bio-oil, and syngas) obtained by using TCR® under the same pyrolysis conditions (pyrolysis at 400 °C and postcatalytic reforming at 700 °C). Finally, paper sludge bio-oil was distilled at several temperatures to obtain the oil fractions. High-quality bio-oil and syngas from four different kinds of biomass were obtained and compared to that from traditional intermediate pyrolysis and fast pyrolysis. The bio-oil showed a high higher heating value (HHV) (35-38 MJ kg−1) independent of the kind of biomass used, and the total acid number was 1.8-5.4 mgKOH g−1. Fractional distillation led to a gasoline-like light fraction and an overall distillation rate of 74 %.