Water Hyacinth Pyrolysis For Electricity And Charcoal Production

 

Map of distribution of global water hyacinth infestation

Water hyacinth has become a global concern as the most disturbing and invasive aquatic weed. The impact of water hyacinth losses covers the environment, economy and even social conditions experienced by many countries as a result of the water hyacinth attack. Economically, the losses due to water hyacinth are also very large, reaching hundreds to thousands of millions of dollars. Pyrolysis of water hyacinth for electricity and charcoal production is one solution to overcome the water hyacinth attack. In this way, it is hoped that the growth of water hyacinth can be controlled and reduce the environmental impact significantly. This is because the speed of attack from the fast growth of water hyacinth can be balanced with the speed of the biomass requirement for the pyrolysis process that produces electricity and charcoal.

The electricity generated in addition to operate or running the pyrolysis unit can also be used for various needs of the surrounding community. Meanwhile, the charcoal produced can be used for energy and agricultural applications, or in general the motivation for charcoal (biochar) production is as shown in the scheme below. And to facilitate handling both storage, transportation and use, the charcoal can be compressed / densified into pellets or briquettes. The need for energy or fuel for the surrounding community for cooking and so on, can use the charcoal that has been compressed into the pellets or briquette. If the community previously used firewood obtained from the forest illegally, then the charcoal pellet or briquette is also a solution to the problem of forest destruction.

 

The use of water hyacinth as a bioenergy is the best option and is most recommended by prominent experts and researchers around the world. Pyrolysis is one way or method of bioenergy production. It is true that water hyacinth also provides environmental benefits, namely phytoremediation, but with uncontrolled development, the aspects of the losses incurred are far greater than the benefits obtained. This requires good management so as to produce optimal benefits. In a number of cases even the water hyacinth creates silting which causes the volume and discharge of water, even though the water is used for hydroelectric power plants. This causes the hydropower plant to have less water supply and disrupt its operation. So that the use of water hyacinth for electricity production with pyrolysis will again increase the supply of electricity produced and at the same time overcome the volume and discharge of water for the hydropower plant. Basically, maintaining a balance between the environment and economic aspects must be made in such a way as to become a sustainable activity so that it is in line with the bioeconomic era. Bioeconomics is defined as knowledge-based production and using biological resources or living things to produce products, processes and services in the economic sector within the framework of a sustainable economic system.

The Importance Of Standard Biochar

Biochar and charcoal are similar materials with different purposes. Charcoal, a fuel and metal reductant,is considered to be the oldest man-made material. The advantage of charcoal is that it burns with less smoke, which is advantageous when cooking indoors. In addition, charcoal burns hotter than wood, which allows it to be used for metal forming, such as in blacksmithing.

Adsorption is a pivotal property that distinguishes biochar from other carbon-rich natural products. Adsorption also distinguishes superior biochars from less effective “agricultural charcoals”. Since biochar is so new, there are no analytical methods developed specifically to measure adsorption in biochar, nor any experience base to relate adsorption to biochar impact when added to growing system. Thus,  urgently needed the standard biochars. Following paper will give analytical options for biochar adsorption and surface area, please go here.

Biomass Ash Behaviour in Pyrolysis Process

In most pyrolysis systems, the operating temperatures are fairly modest. It is commonly found at laboratory and rig scale that the inherent mineral material in biomass tends to be retained within char, and is not released into gas or vapour phase in sufficient quantities to cause ash deposition or other operational problems within the reactor or in the gas collection equipment.

Very little work has been carried out on the distribution and stability of heavy metals in biochar. High mineral-ash biochars (especially chicken manure biochar and activated carbon) are known to adsorb heavy metals.

Very little has been published on the distribution of mineral ash within different type of biochar. Of the inorganic elements that comprise mineral ash, most are believed to occur as discrete phases separate from the carbonaceous matrix. In some biochars, however, K and Ca are distributed throughout the matrix where they may form phenoxides (K, Ca) or simply be intercalated between grapheme sheets (K).

Minerals found in biochars include sylvite (KCl), quartz (SiO2), amorphous silica, calcite (CaCO3), hydroxyapatite (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2), and other minor phases such as Ca phosphates, anhydrite (CaSO4), various nitrates, and oxides and hydroxides of Ca, Mg, alumunium (Al), titanium (Ti), Mn, zinc (Zn) or Fe. Amorphous silica is of particular interest as it typically is in the form of phytoliths that contain and protect plant C from degradation. Crystalline silica is also of interest because it has been found in some biochars where it poses a very high level respiratory risk. Microprobe analysis of these biochars indicates that there is a large variation of mineral content even within each particle.

Biochar activity in Southeast Asia Promote The Growth Of Biochar Industry

A variety of literature, research, seminars, training and trials around the world have proved that the biochar or agrichar; charcoal produced from the pyrolysis process provides great benefits for soil fertility so that crop productivity will increase. Japan is one country that is known users biochar to agricultural land for decades. This makes some parts of Southeast Asia are also affected to use biochar to improve soil quality. Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and the Phillipines are a number of countries in Southeast Asia are trying to apply the biochar.

 

This activity provides an encouraging result because it gives a positive result and reduces pollution because it uses raw material of various types of waste biomass. The hope of this activity continues to increase the use of biochar on a larger scale and more sustainable. Indonesia and Malaysia as the largest CPO producers in the world would require an intensification in the agricultural field to improve soil quality in addition to the energy requirements for CPO and its derivative production processes so that is where the biochar industry using pyrolysis technology will be crucial. Industrial-scale continuous pyrolysis technology is easy to use would be needed for this.

What they say about biochar?

AL GORE - "One of the most exciting new strategies for restoring carbon to depleted soils, and sequestering significant amounts of CO2 for 1,000 years and more, is the use of biochar."

BILL MCKIBBEN - "If you could continually turn a lot of organic material into biochar, you could, over time, reverse the history of the last two hundred years…"

DR. TIM FLANNERY - "Biochar may represent the single most important initiative for humanity's environmental future...."

DR. JAMES LOVELOCK - "There is one way we could save ourselves and that is through the massive burial of charcoal."

From http://unfccc.int/ on the home page that opens, scroll down a bit to Decisions adopted by COP 15 and CMP 5

Look in the right column under CMP, download the PDF named "Further guidance relating to the clean development mechanism"

Paragraph 33 states:

33. Invites interested entities to submit methodologies, considering the current work of the Executive Board and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice, on new technologies that have the potential to reduce in net terms the concentration of carbon or carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere.


Biochar sequestration can be considered not merely carbon neutral, but actually a carbon negative strategy, because it results in a net decrease in atmospheric CO2 and other GHGs over long periods. That is, rather than allowing biomass (which removes carbon from the atmosphere to grow) to decompose and re-emit the CO2 or even produce more potent methane under anaerobic conditions, or by being eaten by termites, etc., pyrolysis will sequester the carbon. This will remove circulating CO2 from the atmosphere and store it in virtually permanent soil carbon pools. In addition, the bio-oil produced can be used to displace fossil liquid fuels, further reducing the net emissions of CO2.

Because the agrichar (biochar) does not readily break down, it could sequester for thousands of years nearly all the carbon it contains, rather than releasing it into the atmosphere as GHG carbon dioxide. It is believed that this soil amendment
could boost agricultural productivity through its ability to retain nutrients and moisture. Terra Preta is a highly productive type of soil created in the Amazon jungle of Brazil by pre-Colombian native Indians, by incorporation of charcoal.