Controlled hydrothermal carbonization of wood-derived lignin-rich lignocellulose: Redefining pyrolytic pathways to tailored biochar and hydrogen-enriched syngas

This research illustrates the efficacy of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) as a pretreatment method to improve the pyrolytic performance of wood-derived lignin-rich lignocellulosic biomass (LB), supported by thorough characterization of its derived products such as syngas, tar, and biochar. A system...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Rizwan, Muhammad, Leghari, Asma, Kumar, Akash, Laghari, Azhar, Mansoor, Adil, Nawaz, Muhammad Asif, Zhou, Xiaolong
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/180002
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/180002
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaap.2025.107342
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Lignin-rich lignocellulosic biomass
Hydrothermal carbonization
Pyrolysis
Syngas
Biochar
Tar composition
Biomass valorization
Descripción
Sumario:This research illustrates the efficacy of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) as a pretreatment method to improve the pyrolytic performance of wood-derived lignin-rich lignocellulosic biomass (LB), supported by thorough characterization of its derived products such as syngas, tar, and biochar. A systematic comparison of non-HTC-treated LB and HTC-treated LB through their respective pyrolytic-derived biochar (NLB, HLB) obtained across temperatures (400-1000°C) revealed their basic structural and reactivity variations. HTC resulted in a new carbonyl peak with a 28 % increase in Cdouble bondO concentration in derived biochar, with partial aromatization evidenced by Cdouble bondC bonds at 1509 cm-¹ . Spectroscopic analysis confirmed that HTC promoted a defective carbon structure in derived biochar while enhancing its crystallinity and maintaining its integrity even at higher temperatures. XPS analysis demonstrated that at 1000°C, HLB-T10 retained active oxygen functionalities, while its associated pyrolytic products H2 and CO boosted from 22.45 % to 40.4 % and 32.3–33.4 %, respectively, with drastically lowered CO₂ emissions from 39.95 % to 11.5 %. Regulated deoxygenation routes cause tar composition to shift toward desirable aromatic chemicals. This comprehensive strategy offers a sustainable valorization technique that increases syngas generation efficiency, lowers emissions, and optimizes biorefinery product selection.