Hydrothermal carbonization of sugarcane industry by-products and process water reuse: structural, morphological, and fuel properties of hydrochars

Author(s)

dos Santos, Joao Vitor ^[1] ; Fregolente, Lais Gomes ^{[1, 2]} ; Laranja, Marcio Justi ^[1] ; Moreira, Altair Benedito ^[1] ; Ferreira, Odair Pastor ^[2] ; Bisinoti, Marcia Cristina ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Paulista, Unesp, Lab Estudos Ciencias Ambientais LECA, Inst Biociencias Letras & Ciencias Exatas, Rua Cristovao Colombo 2265, BR-15054000 Sao Jose Do Rio Preto, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Fed Ceara UFC, Dept Fis, Lab Mat Funcionais Avancados LaMFA, BR-60455900 Fortaleza, Ceara - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BIOMASS CONVERSION AND BIOREFINERY; v. 12, n. 1, SI, p. 153-161, JAN 2022.
• Web of Science Citations: 1

Abstract

Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) has emerged as a promising technology for sustainable use and waste valorization. One major challenge of HTC technology is the process water (PW) disposal or reuse, which is rich in dissolved organic carbon. This study evaluated the (i) potential of HTC to transform sugarcane industry by-products (sugarcane bagasse and vinasse) into useful materials for energy purposes, after, (ii) carry out the PW reuse in a novel HTC process with sugarcane bagasse. Relationships among composition, structure and morphology with fuel properties of hydrochars were evaluated. All hydrochars had lower volatile matter and higher fixed carbon content compared to the raw biomass. In addition, the decrease of H/C and O/C atomic ratios indicated an enhancement of the dehydration and deoxygenation reactions. Furthermore, the higher heating values (HHV) of hydrochars were in the range of 21.10-23.78 MJ kg(-1), compared to 15.43 MJ kg(-1) of the sugarcane bagasse. This result added to those from the van Krevelen diagram showed that the hydrochars presented fuel properties similar to conventional non-renewable energy sources, such as bituminous coal. Overall, the PW reuse did not promote great differences in the hydrochar properties and, consequently, no big changes on their fuel properties. Further, the hydrochar produced with sugarcane bagasse, vinasse, and sulfuric acid showed the highest heating value, and it was the most hydrophobic hydrochar among the others investigated. Therefore, the present study showed HTC and PW reuse as promising methods to treat the sugarcane industry by-products for solid fuel production. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 15/22954-1 - Metal transportation and natural organic matter characterization from rivers of Itacoatiara, Amazônia
• Grantee: Márcia Cristina Bisinoti
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/26718-6 - Humic Substances of Hydrochar and soils Amazon Dark Earth: Interactions with Macro and Micronutrients
• Grantee: Altair Benedito Moreira
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/09914-9 - Humic and fulvic acids from hydrochar and anthropogenics soils: complexation capacity and characterization using molecular fluorescence
• Grantee: João Vitor dos Santos
• Support type: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• FAPESP's process: 17/13230-5 - Partial ethanol reforming: stability and selectivity of mix metal amphoteric oxides as catalysts for atmospheric pressure flow reaction
• Grantee: Mauricio Boscolo
• Support type: Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Regular Program Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/15733-7 - Evaluation of the use of hydrochar for agricultural purposes and of magnetic coal as adsorbent material
• Grantee: Márcia Cristina Bisinoti
• Support type: Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Regular Program Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/05408-9 - Characterization of humic substances extracted from hydrochar and terra mulata soil from Amazon Region
• Grantee: João Vitor dos Santos
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation