Flash pyrolysis of grape residues into biofuel in a bubbling fluid bed

The pyrolysis of two grape residues (grape skins and the mixture of grape skins and seeds) has been carried out in a pilot bubbling fluidized bed pyrolyzer operating under a range of temperature from 300 to 600 degrees C and three vapor residence time (2.5, 5, and 20 s), with the aim of determining their pyrolysis behavior including products yields and heat requirements. The composition of the product gases was determined, from which their heating value was calculated. The liquid bio-oil was recovered with cyclonic condensers and separated into two phases, an aqueous phase and an organic phase. The chemical composition of these liquid phases was characterized. In addition, the environmental parameters of the distilled fraction (85-115 degrees C) of the aqueous phase were tested, while the heating value of the organic phase was determined. Furthermore, the thermal sustainability of the pyrolysis process was estimated by considering the energy contribution of the product gases and of the liquid bio-oil in relation to the pyrolysis heat requirements. The optimum pyrolysis temperatures were identified in terms of maximizing the liquid yield, maximizing the energy from the product bio-oil, and maximizing the net energy from the product bio-oil after ensuring a self-sustainable process by utilizing the product gases and bio-oil as heat sources. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.