Thermogravimetric study on the pyrolysis kinetics of apple pomace as waste biomass

Biomass waste-to-energy is an attractive alternative to fossil feedstocks because of essentially zero net CO2 impact. A viable option consists in an integrated process, in which biomass is partly used to produce valuable chemicals with residual fractions employed for hydrogen production. One example of a biomass waste is the apple pomace, which is the residue generated in the process of extraction of apple juice. In this research, a kinetic study of the pyrolysis of apple pomace biomass (APB) was performed by TGA aiming its liquid and gaseous products be utilized for the production of valuable chemicals and hydrogen. Characterization of APB consisted in calorific value, compositional, proximal and elemental analyzes. Kinetics were evaluated using three iso-conversional TGA models at 5, 10, 15 and 20 degrees C/min. Activation energy values of 213.0 and 201.7 kJ/mol were within the range for hemicellulose and cellulose, respectively, which are the main components of biomass. Copyright (C) 2014, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.