Biochar of Sugarcane Straw: Characterization and Study of the Process

Abstract

Degradation of residues from plant biomass generates greenhouse gases (GHG), such as CO2. Many researches seek to use these residues to mitigate the environmental damages of this decomposition. An alternative is to apply the pyrolysis (thermal degradation with oxygen limitation) of biomass. The residue is transformed into biochar (charcoal or biochar), a carbon rich material which decomposes more slowly than in natura. Biochar is mainly used as a conditioner, its properties can increase the pH and retain water. This work presents biochar production from sugarcane straw (residual biomass) trying conditions to obtain more expressive values for gravimetric yield and fixed carbon content. The methodology consisted of colecting the material in the field, characterize the sugarcane straw, drying, crushing and perform the granulometric distribution. Different conditions of sugarcane straw pyrolysis were carried out, changing the temperature: T1: 200°C , T2: 300°C, T3: 400°C and T4: 250°C all kept in a muffle for 3 hours. The most satisfactory condition was at 250°C, resulting in 51.39% of fixed carbon and 36,00% of gravimetric yield. The production of biochar from sugarcane straw proved to be an attractive alternative to the destination of this residue, due to its abundance in the field, thus obtaining a use of sugarcane straw.