Evaluation of fire hazards in typical vegetable oil residues

Vegetable oil residues, which are often used for biogas production, are prone to fires. The decomposition and fire behaviors of four vegetable oil residues, namely rapeseed oil residue (ROR), peanut oil residue (POR), gingili oil residue (GOR), and soybean oil residue (SOR), were investigated using elemental analysis, thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry-derivative thermogravimetry (TG-DSC-DTG), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry, and a cone calorimeter. Based on the TG-DSC-DTG results, ROR is the residue most susceptible to spontaneous ignition and complete decomposition. Further, although the FTIR results showed that the functional group compositions of the four residues are similar, according to cone colorimetry experiments, SOR has the lowest critical heat flux and the lowest peak value of heat release rate under an external heat flux. (c) 2021 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The study found that rapeseed oil residue is the most susceptible to spontaneous ignition and complete decomposition, while soybean oil residue has the lowest critical heat flux and peak value of heat release rate under external heat flux conditions.