Modelling of ozone multiphase flow behaviour in an ozonolysis pretreatment reactor

Abstract

Ozonolysis pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass (LB) is envisaged as a green and effective method to selectively remove lignin for subsequent bio-based processing. Herein, this study investigates the ozone multiphase flow behaviour of an ozonolysis pretreatment reactor for lignin degradation of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB). A coupled transport-reaction model is simulated using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) via COMSOL Multiphysics® software to visualize the ozone multiphase flow behaviour in non-porous and porous bed regions. Numerical findings indicate the pressure drop across porous bed linearly increases with superficial ozone velocity. Simulation results also reveal that the relative pressure across the biomass bed reduces by reducing the biomass bed length. The present work provides preliminary insights for ozonolysis reactor design and optimum operations of biomass pretreatment for up-scaling and commercialization purposes.

Chemical and Structural Changes of Ozonated Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) in a Ribbon-Mixer Reactor

“…The physical properties of untreated EFB in terms of bulk density and void fraction were de-termined according to our previous work [6]. The effect of various moisture contents (20%, 30%, and 40%) and different particle sizes (0.3 mm and 0.5 mm) on the physical properties were evaluated.…”

“…The effect of various moisture contents (20%, 30%, and 40%) and different particle sizes (0.3 mm and 0.5 mm) on the physical properties were evaluated. The moisture content was measu red using moi stu re analy zer (SASTECTM, ST-LSC60 model, Malaysia) [6].…”

“…In Malaysia, about 420 oil palm mills process fresh fruit bunches (FFB) to produce crude palm oil, and almost 70% of FFB are turned into wastes in the form of empty fruit bunch (EFB), fibers and shells, as well as liquid effluent [5]. These by-products can be converted to higher value-added products or energy to generate additional profit for the palm oil industry [6]. Among the wastes, the EFB is underutilized and some of it is currently used either as mulching material or sometimes fed into the boiler as a low energy-efficiency combustion fuel [7].…”