Pyrolysis of peat: Product yield and characterization

Pyrolysis of peat obtained from Yenicaga, Bolu, Turkey was conducted in a fixed-bed tube furnace under various conditions, and variations in the structure of the char, tar and gas products were examined. The chars produced were studied by proximate and ultimate analyses. The maximum tar yield of 20.41% was obtained at a heating rate of 20 degrees C/min, a temperature of 450 degrees C, a sweeping gas flow rate of 100 ml/min and a 0.5-2.0 mm size range. The chemical composition of the tar was examined by elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, H-1-NMR spectroscopy and column chromatography. The chemical composition of the tar with dense aliphatic structure was established to be CH1.22O0.25N0.02. The composition of the gases obtained at a heating rate of 20 degrees C/min for the 0.5-2.0 mm size range was examined by gas chromatography.