Potential Bio-Oil Production from Invasive Aquatic Plants by Microscale Pyrolysis Studies

Abstract

The invasive aquatic plants Eichhornia crassipes (water hyacinth), Eichhornia azurea, and Nymphaea spp. were evaluated as sources of lignocellulosic biomass for the production of bio-oil. These plants have high growth rates that can lead to various environmental problems and the production of large amounts of waste biomass. The materials were characterized in terms of their contents of moisture, oil, and ash, and by analysis using thermogravimetry, infrared spectroscopy (IR), elemental analysis, and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (EDX). The in natura biomasses had moisture contents of around 90%. Micropyrolysis studies were performed at 500 °C using the dried biomasses (ca. 8% moisture). The liquid product of pyrolysis (bio-oil) was trapped in an adsorbent and then eluted with different solvents. The best recovery was achieved using tetrahydrofuran. The bio-oil solutions were derivatized with N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl) trifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) and analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The main compounds found in the bio-oils were glycerol, o-benzenediol, p-benzenediol, arabinoic acid, levuglucosan, and hexadecanoic acid.

The Use of Fluorescence Microscopy to Assess the Suppression of the Development of Cyanobacteria under the Influence of Allelochemicals of Aquatic Macrophytes

“…In the samples of aquatic macrophytes we studied, we did not find heptanoic and gallic acids. However, there is ample evidence regarding the presence of heptanoic acid in the composition of metabolites of aquatic macrophytes [41]. In addition, there are results that heptanoic and octanoic acids, being allelochemicals of aquatic macrophytes, can lead to suppressing the development of cyanobacteria [42].…”

Synthesis of Hydroxy-Sodalite from Rice Husk Silica and Food-Grade Aluminum Foil as A Catalyst for Biomass Pyrolysis

“…In another study, Gulab et al [32] was reported that pyrolysis of water hyacinth using Cu and Al catalyst produce BCO with aliphatic hydrocarbons and aromatic hydrocarbons. Santos et al [31] reported BCO produced by pyrolysis of water hyacinth with the composition of o-benzenediol, glycerol, p-benzenediol, hexadecanoic acid, arabinoic acid, and levoglucosan and composed of phenols, furans, and nitrides were interpreted by Huang et al [37]. Pyrolysis experiments with the second raw materials (a mixture of cassava solid waste and palm oil) produced the GC chromatograms presented in Figure 4.…”

“…The types of components are also very similar. Several workers have conducted pyrolysis of cassava solid waste, however, the main purpose of the studies was for the production of biochar [29][30][31][32]. For the production of BCO, pyrolysis of cassava solid waste was described by several workers with various compositions.…”

Application of Water Hyacinth Biomass (Eichhornia crassipes) as an Adsorbent for Methylene Blue Dye from Aqueous Medium: Kinetic and Isothermal Study

“…The roots of the water hyacinth plants were removed and discarded, and the plants were washed in running water and left to dry for three days in the open. Then, the stems and leaves were separated and placed in an oven at 50 • C for 24 h [20]. After the drying process, they were ground separately and left in an oven at 45 • C for 24 h, and finally, sieved using a 425 µm particle size sieve.…”