Elsevier

Biomass and Bioenergy

Volume 154, November 2021, 106245
Biomass and Bioenergy

A review on lignocellulosic biomass waste into biochar-derived catalyst: Current conversion techniques, sustainable applications and challenges

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biombioe.2021.106245Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Thermo-chemical conversion techniques of biomass are reviewed and analyzed.

  • Biochar modification is beneficial to enhance catalytic properties and activities.

  • Discussed the relation of conversion and modification techniques with applications.

  • Impact of IR 4.0 on biomass industry are discussed.

  • Lignocellulosic biomass is a promising feedstock for catalysis applications.

Abstract

Biochar, is one of the thermo-chemical conversion products generated from lignocellulosic biomass via conversion techniques including gasification, pyrolysis, torrefaction, hydrothermal liquefaction, and carbonization. Modified biochar has received great attention in the catalytic process due to the great physicochemical properties and catalytic activities. Hence, this work presents a review on the current conversion techniques in transforming lignocellulosic biomass waste into biochar, which mainly focuses on gasification and pyrolysis. Additionally, comparison on the conversion techniques in terms of benefits, drawbacks, and limitations such as environmental factor, costing and safety aspect are discussed. Moreover, this review highlights the modification techniques of biochar and compares the physical properties of the pristine and modified biochar. Likewise, the biochar characterization techniques such as FT-IR, XRD, TGA, and TPD are reviewed. Subsequently, the applications of biochar-derived catalyst are studied in the production of biodiesel, syngas, and biogas, as well as NOx reduction. Besides that, the performance of biochar-derived catalyst and conventional catalyst are compared. The analysis showed that both catalysts give comparable catalytic activities. Hence, the biochar-derived catalyst generated from lignocellulosic biomass waste can be an alternative heterogeneous catalyst to replace conventional catalyst if more in-depth researches are performed. Lastly, the current challenges and limitations are discussed, and the impacts of the fourth industrial revolution on the biomass industry are highlighted.

Introduction

With the increasing energy demands due to the rapid evolution of the world, the conventional raw materials, fossil fuels, no longer fulfil the energy demand as they are non-renewable and also bring negative impact to the environment [1]. The burning of fossil fuels causes climate change due to greenhouse gas emission, which brings negative impact to the ecosystem [2]. Thus, the concern on sustainable energy is necessary for a better environment and brings benefits to the economy and society. Lignocellulosic biomass is a common source of sustainable energy which is abundant in nature. It is an organic matter with carbohydrates building blocks derived from photosynthesis [3]. Biopolymers including 35–50% of cellulose, 20–35% of hemicellulose, and 10–25% of lignin are the three building structures of lignocellulosic biomass, which are shown in Fig. 1 [4,5]. Cellulose is a polymer composed of glucose which makes up the largest component of lignocellulosic biomass. Hemicellulose is a group of polysaccharides while lignin is a water-insoluble polymer that provides structural rigidity to plants [4,6]. Besides these three components, a small portion of non-structural components, ash exists in lignocellulosic biomass [7].

Lignocellulosic biomass is widely available in nature. It can be obtained in huge quantities at low cost. Hence, lignocellulosic feedstock material shows a prospective to replace non-renewable energy. Lignocellulosic biomass can be categorized into four groups, which are hardwood, softwood, grasses, and agricultural wastes [7,8]. According to Perea-Moreno et al. [9], research is conducted to analyze the number of scientific publications on biomass renewable energy topics. Since 2001 and up to 2018, the top 5 countries with the most publications are United States [[10], [11], [12], [13]], China [[14], [15], [16], [17], [18], [19]], India [[20], [21], [22]], Germany [[23], [24], [25], [26]], and Italy [9,[27], [28], [29], [30], [31]]. Apart from this, Canada [[32], [33], [34], [35]], Brazil [[36], [37], [38], [39]], Australia [[40], [41], [42]], Japan [[43], [44], [45], [46], [47]], Malaysia [[48], [49], [50], [51], [52]], Turkey [51,[53], [54], [55]], France [[56], [57], [58]], Spain [[59], [60], [61], [62], [63]], and Poland [[64], [65], [66], [67], [68], [69]] are also giving attention to biomass energy research [9]. Table 1 indicates the major biomasses available in these countries.

Lignocellulosic biomass is a potential feedstock to be transformed into valuable fuels and chemicals including bio-oil [70], biochar [71], syngas [72], and biogas [72] through biochemical or thermo-chemical conversion [7,73]. The biomass conversion techniques include gasification, pyrolysis, torrefaction, hydrothermal liquefaction, and hydrothermal carbonization as represented in Fig. 2 [74,75]. On the other hand, the biomass conversion efficiency can be increased by the pre-treatment of lignocellulosic biomass. Current pre-treatment technologies for lignocellulosic biomass include biological pre-treatments, physical pre-treatments, acid or alkaline pre-treatments, and thermal pre-treatments [76,77]. Pristine biochar is a solid carbon residual which is in black from the process of thermal decomposition of lignocellulosic biomass [73,78]. Modified biochar with advantageous surface area, porosity, and surface functional groups can be applied in various applications [79].

Researches on investigating the catalytic activity of biochar-derived material in processes including syngas cleaning and conversion, biofuel production, and pollution control are gaining increase attentions [79]. Furthermore, biochar-based material can be utilized to enhance the retention time of fertilizer in the soil, to increase the electrical conductivity in semiconductor, and as an adsorbent in removing heavy metals and organic substance from aqueous solution [80]. Carbon material can be applied directly in heterogeneous catalytic reaction as active component or acted as catalyst support [81]. Biochar-derived catalyst has gained increasing attention as it is a carbon-rich material that has the potential to replace conventional heterogeneous carbon-based catalysts [82]. For example, biochar contains inorganics components like Fe and K, which enhance the catalytic activity in tar removal [82].

To the best of our knowledge, there is still lack of comprehensive research on the transformation of lignocellulosic biomass into biochar-derived catalyst, by revealing the influences of various biomass conversion and biochar modification techniques on the physicochemical properties of the resulted catalyst, particularly in bioenergy production and air pollutant reduction. To date, the relationship of Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0 with biomass industry and field of catalysis has scarcely been reported thoroughly. Therefore, the current review provides an in-sight analysis by comparing various biomass conversion techniques, in the aspects of process conditions, benefits, drawbacks, limitations, as well as the effect of various biomass conversion techniques and biochar modification techniques on the physical properties of pristine biochar and modified biochar. In addition, the characterization techniques used to determine the physicochemical properties of modified biochar are discussed thoroughly. In the application of biochar-derived catalyst, the catalytic performance and the unit production cost of biochar-derived catalyst are compared with conventional catalyst. Meanwhile, the impact of IR 4.0 on biomass industry is also highlighted in the present review. In short, the aim of present review is to provide comprehensive data, in-depth comparison and thorough discussion among various biomass conversion techniques and biochar modification techniques, as well as the influence on the properties of biochar-derived catalyst which is the key parameter in catalysis. Based on the understanding on properties of biochar-derived catalyst, the applications of the biochar-derived catalyst in biofuel production and NOx reduction are reviewed quantitatively and qualitatively.

Section snippets

Biomass conversion techniques

In this section, several biomass conversion techniques, including gasification, pyrolysis, torrefaction, hydrothermal liquefaction, and hydrothermal carbonization for biochar production, are discussed and compared in terms of operating conditions, type of products generated, production cost, as well as benefits, drawbacks and limitations.

Biochar modification techniques

Generally, pristine biochar that converted from lignocellulosic biomass exhibited limitations on surface area, pore volume, and surface functional groups that could eventually influence the role as a catalyst [159]. However, the properties of the biochar can be intensified and modified through chemical and physical activation approaches [160]. This section gives an outline of the effects of various modification techniques on the biochar surface area and pore volume.

Applications of biochar-derived catalyst

Modified biochar-derived catalysts with enhanced physicochemical properties are potentially serve as substitution to conventional catalyst in several applications, including biofuel production and NOx reduction. This section gives an outline of the catalytic performance of the biochar-derived catalyst in different applications. In addition, the catalytic performance is compared with the conventional catalyst.

Impacts of industrial revolution 4.0 on biomass industry

The fourth industrial revolution (IR 4.0) was originated in Germany and spread rapidly all over the world [239]. IR 4.0 focuses on sustainable production through smart factories, or to say towards a digitalization world by applying big data analytics and business intelligence, internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, cyber-security, autonomous robots, additive manufacturing, and augmented reality [239,240]. Additive manufacturing, which is also called 3D printing, can provide highly

Conclusions and prospects

Converting lignocellulosic biomass into biochar-derived catalyst is of great interest among researchers in the view of increasing demand for energy, environmentally friendly, economic benefits, and sustainable energy. This review paper provides an outline of the recent conversion techniques of lignocellulosic biomass, methods of modification of biochar, and the applications of the biochar-derived catalyst in biofuel production and pollution control. The conversion techniques and the effect of

Acknowledgements

This work was funded by Xiamen University Malaysia Research Fund (Grant no. XMUMRF/2020-C5/IENG/0028).

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