At a total pressure of 101.3 kPa, and in the presence of water vapor (PH20 = 32 Ha), the impact of commercially available Norwegian and Swedish quarried mineral rocks on the gaseous product yields and selectivities generated during the catalytic steam pyrolysis of n-heptane (Pn-C7H,6 = 2.9-4.7 kPa) in the intermediate temperature range of 973-1073 K and GHSV 1200-4000 h-' was investigated. The results indicate that the choice of calcined mineral particles as the bed material influences the product distribution of alkenes. In particular, calcined dolomites [CaMg(0)2] suppressed the evolution of unsaturated and aromatic hydrocarbon species; however, the formation of ethylene (C2H4) was correlated. A LangmuirHinshelwood mechanism has also been proposed to describe the rate equation of the vapor-phase steam pyrolysis of nheptane on calcined dolomite at 973 K.On a etudie, a une pression totale de 101,3 kPa et en presence de vapeur d'eau ( P H~~ = 32 kPa), l'impact de roches minerales de carrieres norvegiennes et suedoises, sur les rendements de produits gazeux et les selectivites generees au cours de la pyrolyse a la vapeur catalytique du n-heptane (P.-c-~,~ = 2,9-4,7 kPa) dans la gamme de temperatures intermediaires de 973-1073 K et un GHSV de 1200-1400 h-'. Les resultats indiquent que le choix de particules minerales calcinees comme materiau de lit influence la distribution de produits des alcenes. En particulier, les dolomites calcinees [CaMg(0)2] suppriment I'evolution d'especes d'hydrocarbures aromatiques et non satures; toutefois, la formation d'ethylene (C2H4) a ete correlee. On propose egalement un mecanisme de Langmuir-Hinshelwood pour decrire l'equation de vitesse de la pyrolyse a la vapeur du n-heptane en phase vapeur sur la dolomite calcinee a 973 K.Keywords: calcined dolomite, CaO, limestone, MgO, steam pyrolysis, n-heptane. evelopment of thermal gasification technologies has D enabled a significant increase of the utilization of biomass (foresty and agricultural residues) including municipal solid waste or parts of it, RDF, and desified digested sewage sludges in energy production (Nilsson, 1995). Thermal gasification of biomass produces permanent gas ( e g , H,, CO, CO,, CH,) which is withdrawn from the gasification reactorzone and subjected to a cleaning operation to rid the flue gas of various contaminants (tar, VOC, particulates in the form of carbon, dust, ash, alkali trace metals, etc). Tar mitigation in the flue gas has been one of the key processes in biomass gasification in the last 20 years due to plugging of downstream equipment from tar condensation (Taralas, 1988;Taralas and Koukios, 1996). The basic idea in processing tm elimination is to benefit from the chemical energy of the he1 gas that includes the tar conversion into H2, CH, and lighter hydrocarbons (Sjostrom et al., 1988; Rensfelt and Ekstrom, 1989).There exists a significant amount of literature on tar cracking and sulphur absorption on dolomite and related carbonate mineral materials practicing gasification engineering of fossil (...