Pyrolysis Study of Different Fruit Wastes Using an Aspen Plus Model

Abstract

Large quantities of fruit wastes are generated during the consumption and processing of fruits. The disposal of fruit wastes in an environmentally benign way is a challenging task. The biochar production from fruit wastes by pyrolysis is receiving huge attention because it can alleviate pollution of fruit wastes and provide a supply of biochar sustainably. In this study, five fruit waste types—orange peel, banana peel, mango endocarp, apricot kernel shell, and date pits—are examined. An Aspen Plus simulation tool was employed to develop a steady-state model to predict the pyrolysis product yields of the fruit wastes. The details of the proximate and elemental analyses of the fruit wastes were applied as input parameters in the model, and the simulation was carried out at 300–600°C and 1 atm pressure. Among the fruit wastes, the date pits presented the highest char yield (50.92 wt.%), while the mango endocarp offered the highest syngas yield (54.23 wt.%). From the simulation results, it can be inferred that the date pits are best suited for biochar production, whereas the mango endocarp and orange peel are appropriate for syngas generation. The study is further analyzed by studying the optimization of biomass feedstock blend to yield the highest char relative to bio-oil and syngas. The optimization results demonstrate apricot kernel shell and date pits to dominate the feedstock blend. It is hoped that the current outcomes will be helpful in the selection of appropriate feedstocks for biochar generation through pyrolysis.

Recent Advances in Biomass Pyrolysis Processes for Bioenergy Production: Optimization of Operating Conditions

“…Utilizing an Aspen simulation model and typical pyrolysis settings, the pyrolysis products of five different fruit wastes were examined. These wastes were orange peel, banana peel, mango endocarp, apricot kernel shell, and date pits [123,124]. Before using simulation to predict the yields of fruit waste pyrolysis, the model was first used to validate it by utilizing published data.…”

Development and Comparison of Thermodynamic Equilibrium and Kinetic Approaches for Biomass Pyrolysis Modeling

“…The models developed by Aspen Plus for biomass pyrolysis processes can be categorized as thermodynamic equilibrium (TE), kinetic models and fixed data (FD) models (see Figure 2a). A non-exhaustive survey of biomass pyrolysis modeling utilizing Aspen Plus from 2010 to 2021 found that approximately 63% of biomass pyrolysis simulations applied thermodynamic equilibrium models, and that the most-cited subset of this approach is the method relying on the minimum Gibbs free energy (MGFE) [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]. The remaining 14% and 23% used the kinetic approach [44][45][46] and FD [47][48][49][50][51], respectively (see Figure 2b).…”

“…The thermodynamic equilibrium model that was established in this paper is a replication of other TE models available in the literature [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]. In this work, the Penge Robinson equation of state with Boston-Mathias alpha function (PR-BM) was employed to calculate the physical properties of the conventional substances in the pyrolysis system.…”

Modeling and simulation of Khat waste fast pyrolysis for energy recovery

“…In this simulated study, the composition of the biofuel produced by pyrolysis of khat wastes is also estimated. The research will allow us to understand the process's behavior without having to conduct time-consuming, expensive, and difficult trials [ 21 ]. The results of the investigation will be useful in determining the best feedstock for the formation of biofuel.…”