Journal of Oil Palm Research Vol. 24 (3) December 2012, p. 1497-1510
PYROLSIS OF OIL PALM BIOMASS USING PALM SHELL CHAR AS MICROWAVE ABSORBER
The main aim of this research was to reveal the heating characteristics of palm shell char (PSC) acting as a microwave absorber (MA) for the pyrolysis of oil palm biomass (shell and fibre). This was done by mixing oil palm biomass with PSC-MA and subjecting it to microwave irradiation. A domestic microwave oven with a maximum power of 1000 W and 2.45 GHz frequency was used. Prior to pyrolysis, the heating characteristic of PSC-MA in terms of its temperature profile (through batch and continuous temperature measurements) was examined. It was found that PSC-MA could act as very good microwave receptor. However, the method of temperature measurement played an important role in the heating and pyrolysis behaviour. A minimum microwave power of 450 W was needed to carry out the pyrolysis process in the present work. Results of the microwave pyrolysis show that the ratio of biomass to PSC-MA has a significant influence on the product yield. A synergistic effect between PSC-MA and the biomass can reduce the consumption of energy, time and cost of the thermo-chemical process.
KEYWORDS:* Department of Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics,
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering,
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia,
81310 UTM Skudai, Johor, Malaysia.
E-mail: farid@fkm.utm.my