Reactions between char and gasifying agents are usually the controlling step and of a core role for the overall biomass gasification process due to the relatively low reaction rate. Char reactivity will be greatly affected via interacting with volatiles, such as steam, hydrocarbons, tarry compounds, and other light gas species. By taking the updraft/downdraft moving bed and fluidized bed gasifier as examples, this review discussed the effects of char generation and evolution in various reactor environments on its following reaction behaviors. The characteristics of biomass and subsequent char gasification are further examined in terms of feedstock types and their inherent inorganics. Then, the effects of operation conditions and gasifying reagents on biomass gasification are outlined mainly from the point of char production and the subsequent volatiles−char interaction. Finally, some directions and suggestions considering char conversion and utilization are addressed for the design and betterment of the biomass gasification process.

Ash fusion behavior is closely associated with ash-related problems including fouling, sintering, and slagging, which results in a negative effect on the utilization of petroleum coke (petcoke). Petcoke ash contains high levels of vanadium (V), nickel (Ni), iron (Fe), and calcium (Ca). The chemical composition of ash plays an intrinsic role in determining ash fusibility. To better understand the modification mechanism of the ash fusion temperatures (AFTs), this study investigates the influences of ash composition (CaO, Fe2O3, and NiO) on the synthetic petcoke ash fusibility from the perspectives of ash composition change and temperature rising. The AFTs of synthetic ash samples were identified by the ash fusibility tester. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) were applied to explore the relationships between the experimental AFTs and the variation of mineral composition and microstructure of high-temperature ash slag. Moreover, the ash melting process was predicted by the SiO2–Al2O3–V2O5–CaO–Fe2O3–NiO system based on the FactSage modeling. The results show that the AFTs of petcoke are closely related to the ash chemical composition. As the CaO and Fe2O3 content increases, AFTs exhibit continuous decline, while first decreasing slightly and then increasing with the increasing NiO content, which is ascribed to the different mineral transformation behaviors of high-temperature ash slag. The dominant crystalline minerals formed in high-temperature ash slag with different CaO, Fe2O3, and NiO content are anorthite (CaAl2Si2O8), nickel orthosilicate (Ni2SiO4), calcium pyrovanadate (Ca2V2O7), and quartz (SiO2). Fe may form Fe-bearing amorphous matter with other minerals. The synergistic effect between high-melting Ni2SiO4 and low-melting Ca2V2O7 may contribute to the variation of AFTs, which was well validated through thermodynamic equilibrium calculations.

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