Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies

A special issue of C (ISSN 2311-5629).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2019) | Viewed by 41052

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Chemical Engineering Department, École Polytechnique de Montŕeal, C.P. 6079 succ. Centre-Ville, Montréal, QC H3C 3A7, Canada
Interests: coal pyrolysis and gasification; combustion, incineration, and gasification; high-pressure and high-temperature processes development; processes simulation and optimization; technical-economic study of processes; simulation and optimization of chemical reactors with one or many phases; catalytic reactions
Chemical Engineering Department, École Polytechnique de Montŕeal, C.P. 6079 succ. Centre-Ville, Montréal, QC H3C 3A7, Canada
Interests: simulation and optimization of thermal conversion processes such as coal/biomass pyrolysis and gasification; numerical simulation of gas–solid/gas–liquid/gas–liquid-solid multiphase flows in chemical reactors; experiments of multiphase flow at high-pressure and high-temperature; development and application of general simulation tools (package) for reactor design; high performance computation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Traditional forms of energy utilization should be upgraded to tackle the challenges of climate change and environmental pollution. Up to now, coal has been playing an important role in energy systems, and makes up about 30% of the world’s energy supply. Advanced coal conversion and clean coal technologies are in increasing the demand to provide efficient energy utilization and emission-reduction improvements. Biomass and waste as renewable and sustainable energy resources contribute to the production of energy and a reduction in the use of coal. In recent decades, advanced technologies, such as pyrolysis, gasification, and combustion, have made significant strides in the conversion of coal, biomass, and waste. However, these technologies in large-scale industrial application remain limited due to their complex chemical compositions and physical properties.

In this Special Issue of C—Journal of Carbon Research on the topic of “Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies”, prospective authors are encouraged to contribute their most recent work in the form of research articles, reviews, communications, and letters to accelerate advancements in this field. A wide scope of research topics on “Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies” from experimental studies to numerical modeling will be covered in this Special Issue. The specific topics include, but are not limited to, pyrolysis, gasification, and combustion of coal, biomass and waste, technology scale-up, as well as CO2 capture from flue gas and gas streams.

As Guest Editors, we hope that this Special Issue can provide a forum for international experts, from both academia and industry, in this field to share their latest advancements and will be of great interest for the majority of CJournal of Carbon Research readers.

Prof. Dr. Jamal Chaouki
Dr. Shuli Shu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. C is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • coal
  • biomass
  • waste
  • pyrolysis
  • gasification
  • combustion
  • CO2 capture
  • scale up & optimization
  • numerical modelling

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Editorial

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1 pages, 160 KiB  
Editorial
Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies
by Shuli Shu and Jamal Chaouki
Viewed by 2452
Abstract
Coal, biomass and waste, which are abundant, are considered to the foremost raw material that can potentially replace the depleting economically-viable oil resources and promote the energy and environment sustainability [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)

Research

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11 pages, 1710 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Recycling of Formic Acid by Bio-Catalytic CO2 Capture and Re-Hydrogenation
by Zhengyang Zhao, Pei Yu, Bhuvana K. Shanbhag, Phillip Holt, Yu Lin Zhong and Lizhong He
C 2019, 5(2), 22; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/c5020022 - 01 May 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4903
Abstract
Formic acid (FA) is a promising reservoir for hydrogen storage and distribution. Its dehydrogenation releases CO2 as a by-product, which limits its practical application. A proof of concept for a bio-catalytic system that simultaneously combines the dehydrogenation of formic acid for H [...] Read more.
Formic acid (FA) is a promising reservoir for hydrogen storage and distribution. Its dehydrogenation releases CO2 as a by-product, which limits its practical application. A proof of concept for a bio-catalytic system that simultaneously combines the dehydrogenation of formic acid for H2, in-situ capture of CO2 and its re-hydrogenation to reform formic acid is demonstrated. Enzymatic reactions catalyzed by carbonic anhydrase (CA) and formate dehydrogenase (FDH) under ambient condition are applied for in-situ CO2 capture and re-hydrogenation, respectively, to develop a sustainable system. Continuous production of FA from stripped CO2 was achieved at a rate of 40% using FDH combined with sustainable co-factor regeneration achieved by electrochemistry. In this study, the complete cycle of FA dehydrogenation, CO2 capture, and re-hydrogenation of CO2 to FA has been demonstrated in a single system. The proposed bio-catalytic system has the potential to reduce emissions of CO2 during H2 production from FA by effectively using it to recycle FA for continuous energy supply. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)
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13 pages, 7527 KiB  
Article
Finger-Like Carbon-Based Nanostructures Produced by Combustion of Flour-Based Sticks (Spaghetti)
by Frederik Ossler and Crispin J. D. Hetherington
C 2019, 5(2), 21; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/c5020021 - 29 Apr 2019
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2728
Abstract
Biomass is becoming particularly important as a starting material for advanced carbon structures. In this study, we found interesting nanostructures on the surface of burnt spaghetti using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) for analysis. The [...] Read more.
Biomass is becoming particularly important as a starting material for advanced carbon structures. In this study, we found interesting nanostructures on the surface of burnt spaghetti using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) for analysis. The structures were elongated and finger-like, with evidence that the tubes have shell and core components. The shell was carbon that included amorphous and layered graphene structures. EDX showed enriched potassium and phosphorous in the core and at the tip of the tubes. The results indicate that tube formation depends on phase separation of polar/ionic and nonpolar moieties when water is produced in the biomass from the pyrolysis/combustion. The tube growth is most probably due to the raising pressure of vapor that cannot escape through the carbon film that is formed at the surface of the stick from flame heat. This process resembles glass blowing or volcanic activity, where the carbon acts as the glass or earth’s crust, respectively. These observations suggest that new interesting tubular nanostructures with different properties on the inside and outside can be produced in a relatively simple way, utilizing processes of combustion of starch-rich biomass materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)
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12 pages, 4206 KiB  
Article
Novel Biobased Polyol Using Corn Oil for Highly Flame-Retardant Polyurethane Foams
by Sneha Ramanujam, Camila Zequine, Sanket Bhoyate, Brooks Neria, Pawan K. Kahol and Ram K. Gupta
C 2019, 5(1), 13; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/c5010013 - 14 Mar 2019
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 6074
Abstract
A novel bio-based polyol was synthesized using corn oil and 2-mercaptoethanol via thiol-ene reaction as an alternative to petroleum-based polyol for the synthesis of polyurethane foams. The polyol was analyzed using wet chemical techniques to obtain hydroxyl number and viscosity. Infrared spectroscopy and [...] Read more.
A novel bio-based polyol was synthesized using corn oil and 2-mercaptoethanol via thiol-ene reaction as an alternative to petroleum-based polyol for the synthesis of polyurethane foams. The polyol was analyzed using wet chemical techniques to obtain hydroxyl number and viscosity. Infrared spectroscopy and gel permeation chromatography were used to confirm the structural properties of the foams. Flame-retardant polyurethane foams were prepared by the addition of different concentrations of dimethyl methyl phosphonate (DMMP) in final foam composition. The effect of DMMP on the thermo-mechanical properties of the polyurethane foams was analyzed. The TGA analysis showed improved stability of the final char with addition of DMMP in the foams. All the foams maintained a well-defined cellular structure and over 95% of closed cell content. The horizontal burning test showed reduced burning time and weight loss from 115 s and 38 wt.% for the neat foams, to 3.5 s and 5.5 wt.% for DMMP-containing foams (1.94 wt.% P). The combustion test using cone calorimeter showed a considerable reduction in heat release rate and total heat release. Thus, our study shows that corn-oil based polyol can be used to produce renewable polyol for industrially producible rigid polyurethane foams. The addition of a small amount of DMMP could result in a significant reduction in the flame-retardant properties of the polyurethane foams. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)
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9 pages, 849 KiB  
Article
Physical Activation of Wooden Chips and the Effect of Particle Size, Initial Humidity, and Acetic Acid Extraction on the Properties of Activated Carbons
by Davide Bergna, Henrik Romar and Ulla Lassi
C 2018, 4(4), 66; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/c4040066 - 05 Dec 2018
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3916
Abstract
In this research study, two different wooden biomasses (birch and pine) were thermally carbonized and steam-activated into activated carbons in a one-stage process. The effects of particle size and humidity (as received and oven-dried) on the properties, such as specific surface areas, pore [...] Read more.
In this research study, two different wooden biomasses (birch and pine) were thermally carbonized and steam-activated into activated carbons in a one-stage process. The effects of particle size and humidity (as received and oven-dried) on the properties, such as specific surface areas, pore volumes, and pore size distributions, of the final activated carbon characteristics were examined. Another set of biomasses (birch, spruce, and pine) was pre-treated before carbonization and the activation steps through an extractive process using a weak acetic acid in Soxhlet extractors. According to the results, the dried samples had a slightly lower surface area, while no difference was observed in the yields. For the extracted samples, there was a significant difference, especially in the pore size distributions, compared to the non-extracted samples. There appeared to be a shift from a meso-microporous distribution to a microporous distribution caused by the extractive pre-treatment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)
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Review

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20 pages, 858 KiB  
Review
Methods for the Treatment of Cattle Manure—A Review
by Carolina Font-Palma
C 2019, 5(2), 27; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/c5020027 - 15 May 2019
Cited by 95 | Viewed by 20369
Abstract
Environmental concerns, caused by greenhouse gases released to the atmosphere and overrunning of nutrients and pathogens to water bodies, have led to reducing direct spread onto the land of cattle manure. In addition, this practice can be a source of water and air [...] Read more.
Environmental concerns, caused by greenhouse gases released to the atmosphere and overrunning of nutrients and pathogens to water bodies, have led to reducing direct spread onto the land of cattle manure. In addition, this practice can be a source of water and air pollution and toxicity to life by the release of undesirable heavy metals. Looking at the current practices, it is evident that most farms separate solids for recycling purposes, store slurries in large lagoons or use anaerobic digestion to produce biogas. The review explores the potential for cattle manure as an energy source due to its relatively large calorific value (HHV of 8.7–18.7 MJ/kg dry basis). This property is beneficial for thermochemical conversion processes, such as gasification and pyrolysis. This study also reviews the potential for upgrading biogas for transportation and heating use. This review discusses current cattle manure management technologies—biological treatment and thermochemical conversion processes—and the diverse physical and chemical properties due to the differences in farm practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Coal, Biomass and Waste Conversion Technologies)
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