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Investigation of the bioenergy potential of microalgae Scenedesmus acuminatus by physicochemical characterization and kinetic analysis of pyrolysis

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Abstract

In this work, the bioenergy potential of green microalgae Scenedesmus acuminatus was evaluated through the psychochemical characteristics and kinetic study of pyrolysis, where the results indicate a good candidate for application in the thermochemical process due to its low moisture and ash content and high calorific value. Its thermal behavior under a heating rate of 10 °C min−1 and inert atmosphere shows that decomposition occurs in two stages. Stage I (125–309 °C) involves the pyrolysis of carbohydrates and protein and stage II (309–501 °C) the pyrolysis of lipids. The Starink isoconversional method showed a better application for simulation curves, compared with methods of FWO and KAS. The average values of activated energy were 107.1 and 132.6 kJ mol−1 for stages I and II, respectively, which indicates that pyrolysis occurs more easily in stage I than in stage II. The conversion rate curves show that the calculated kinetic parameters are satisfactory for the evaluation of the thermochemical systems.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the financial support to this research from the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, SC, 88040-900, Brazil

    José Luiz Francisco Alves, Jean Constantino Gomes Da Silva, Rosangela Lúcio Costa, Seldis Fernando Dos Santos Junior, Valdemar Francisco da Silva Filho, Regina De Fátima Peralta Muniz Moreira & Humberto Jorge José

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  1. José Luiz Francisco Alves
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Correspondence to Jean Constantino Gomes Da Silva.

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Alves, J.L.F., Da Silva, J.C.G., Costa, R.L. et al. Investigation of the bioenergy potential of microalgae Scenedesmus acuminatus by physicochemical characterization and kinetic analysis of pyrolysis. J Therm Anal Calorim 135, 3269–3280 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7506-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7506-2

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