Catalytic gasification of algal biomass for hydrogen-rich gas production: Parametric optimization via central composite design

This study presents the optimization of algal biomass catalytic gasification for hydrogen-rich gas production. Three operating parameters under varying conditions of temperature (700-900 degrees C), catalyst loading (5-20 wt%) and reaction time (15-40 min) were optimized. The central composite design (CCD) was used to perform optimization and to investigate the influence of operating parameters on response variables (fractions of H-2, CO, CO2 and CH4). The results indicated the temperature and catalyst loading as the most significant reaction parameters influencing H-2 production and reducing the tar produced during the gasification process. The highest H2 fraction of 48.95 mol% (18.77 mol kg-biomass(-1)) was obtained at an optimum condition at 851 degrees C with catalyst loading of 16.4 wt% and reaction time of 28.8 min. The high R-2 values of 0.98, 0.97, 0.95, and 0.90 corresponding to the response variables (H-2, CO, CO2 and CH4) showed paramount estimation of model.