Analysis and Comparison of Bio-Oil Produced by Fast Pyrolysis from Three Barley Biomass/Byproduct Streams

Fluidized-bed fast pyrolysis was carried out on three different barley biomass coproduct streams, straw, hulls, and distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), from Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation of barley grain. Each of these byproducts of fuel ethanol production from barley grain is a po...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Energy & fuels 2010-01, Vol.24 (1), p.699-706
Main Authors: Mullen, Charles A, Boateng, Akwasi A, Hicks, Kevin B, Goldberg, Neil M, Moreau, Robert A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
barley
barley straw
biofuels
biomass
cereal byproducts
distillers grains
ethanol production
fermentation
Hordeum vulgare
hulls
molecular weight
optimization
pyrolysis
Renewable Energy
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
yields
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Summary:Fluidized-bed fast pyrolysis was carried out on three different barley biomass coproduct streams, straw, hulls, and distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), from Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation of barley grain. Each of these byproducts of fuel ethanol production from barley grain is a possible source of feedstock for advanced biofuels production via fast pyrolysis. Bio-oil recovery was in the range of 42−50 wt % of the biomass, but optimized yields could be as much as 70 wt % for each feedstock when the mass balance is mathematically adjusted to account for all unrecovered products using optimization modeling. Biochar yields were 16−21% from the barley feedstocks. Bio-oil produced from straw and hulls had an energy content of 24−25 MJ/kg on a dry basis, while bio-oil produced from DDGS had a dry basis energy content >30 MJ/kg. The bio-oils were further characterized for composition and stability. None of the bio-oils were found to be shelf-stable, as established by an increase in average molecular weight when stored under accelerated aging conditions, a result which is typical for biomass fast pyrolysis bio-oils. Stability was best for the bio-oils produced from straw and hulls and worse for bio-oil produced from the DDGS. The results indicate that colocating a fast pyrolysis unit in a barley ethanol plant may produce potentially usable and blendable liquid fuel from any byproducts of the barley processing value chain.
ISSN:0887-0624
1520-5029
1520-5029
DOI:10.1021/ef900912s