Abstract
We present results from neutron-imaging studies of slow, vacuum pyrolysis of beech, poplar and conifer wood, and pelletized biomass from room temperature up to 1000 °C. A detailed and quantitative method to extract 2D (in situ neutron radiography, NR) and 3D (ex situ neutron computed tomography, NCT) information on structural transformation and elemental hydrogen content has been developed. NCT and X-ray tomography (XCT) experiments on a carbonized beech twig permitted comparison of the spatial distribution of hydrogen, better sensed by NCT, and carbon, oxygen, and heavier elements, better sensed by XCT. We have developed a methodology to directly compare structure and hydrogen-loss dynamics measured using neutron imaging with thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermogravimetry and thus can better understand the correlations between hydrogen and carbon release dynamics. While the methodology has been developed for the carbonization of biomass, we expect that it could be applied to in situ dynamic monitoring of other hydrogenous reacting systems with the appropriate spatial and temporal scales.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 511-529 |
| Number of pages | 19 |
| Journal | Carbon |
| Volume | 176 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 2021 |
Funding
We thank Jiao Lin for the reconstruction of XCT and NCT data of the beech twig, and Ilia Ivanov for the TGA measurements. We also thank Mario Costa and Tomas Leffler for the pellet samples provided to us. Frederik Ossler acknowledges the financial support by the Generic Research for Optimized Energy Conversion Processes (GRECOP) , project number 38913–2 , supported by the Swedish Energy Agency . This research used resources at the High Flux Isotope Reactor and Spallation Neutron Source, DOE Office of Science User Facilities operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The TGA measurements were conducted at the Center of Nanophase Materials Sciences, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. This research was also supported by the U.S. Department of Energy , Office of Science , Office of Biological and Environmental Research . Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-1008 00OR22725. We thank Jiao Lin for the reconstruction of XCT and NCT data of the beech twig, and Ilia Ivanov for the TGA measurements. We also thank Mario Costa and Tomas Leffler for the pellet samples provided to us. Frederik Ossler acknowledges the financial support by the Generic Research for Optimized Energy Conversion Processes (GRECOP), project number 38913?2, supported by the Swedish Energy Agency. This research used resources at the High Flux Isotope Reactor and Spallation Neutron Source, DOE Office of Science User Facilities operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The TGA measurements were conducted at the Center of Nanophase Materials Sciences, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. This research was also supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-1008 00OR22725. PS: Prof. Mario Costa, who provided some of the pelletized samples, sadly passed away June 3, 2020, and our condolences go to his family, friends, and colleagues.
Keywords
- Biomass pyrolysis
- Carbonization
- Hydrogen loss dynamics
- Neutron imaging
- Structural dynamics
- Thermogravimetry