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Preparation and characterization of hydrothermally processed carbonaceous hydrochar from pulp and paper sludge waste

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Abstract

The results of this study demonstrated the successful conversion of paper sludge waste (PS) to carbonaceous hydrochar by applying hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) under controlled conditions. The experimental conditions were designed by Box–Behnken design (BBD) within a temperature range of 200–220 °C, time of 2–6 h, and liquid–solid ratios (L/S) of 12–20. The response values, including final yield (Y), energy densification (ED), and energy recovery (ER), were considered for evaluating the combustion characteristics of the hydrochar. The obtained results illustrated that the hydrochar produced at higher temperatures and for a longer time showed excellent fuel characteristics with steadily increased C content and high heating value (HHV). A suitable condition for hydrochar production was 220 °C, 6 h, and an L/S ratio of 16. This suggested condition provided the hydrochar with an HHV of 25 MJ kg−1 and atomic H/C and O/C ratios of 1.31 and 0.35, respectively. At the same time, this HTC condition can also provide numerous porous structures in the morphology of hydrochar, as well as high fixed carbon content and energy densification (ED). Regarding the kinetic study, the first-order combustion reactions of PS and hydrochar were fitted. The results presented that the activation energy of hydrochar was higher than that of PS, indicating the higher stability of solid fuel, meaning that PS can be transformed into a high-quality solid fuel that can replace lignite coal. Accordingly, this research could hopefully result in sustainable and broader applications in the fields of energy, agriculture, and waste treatment.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Environmental Hazardous Substance Management (EHSM) and Faculty of Engineering, Khon Kaen University, Thailand, for a partial scholarship. This research project is also supported by the Research and Graduate Studies, Khon Kaen University. Furthermore, the support was partially provided by the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE), the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI), and the MHESI. Finally, the authors would like to thank Phoenix Pulp & Paper PCL., Khon Kaen, and Wallop Promprakone for the raw paper sludge used in this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand

    Piyanut Phuthongkhao, Kitanchalee Phasin, Purita Boonma, Totsaporn Suwannaruang & Kitirote Wantala

  2. Chemical Kinetics and Applied Catalyst Laboratory (CKCL), Faculty of Engineering, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand

    Piyanut Phuthongkhao, Kitanchalee Phasin, Purita Boonma, Rattabal Khunphonoi, Totsaporn Suwannaruang & Kitirote Wantala

  3. Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand

    Rattabal Khunphonoi

  4. Research Center for Environmental and Hazardous Substance Management (EHSM), Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand

    Rattabal Khunphonoi & Kitirote Wantala

  5. Faculty of Science and Engineering, Kasetsart University, Chalermphrakiat Sakon Nakhon Province Campus, Sakon Nakhon, 47000, Thailand

    Ekkachai Kanchanatip

  6. Department of Environmental Sciences, JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, Mysuru, 570015, India

    Harikaranahalli Puttaiah Shivaraju

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  1. Piyanut Phuthongkhao
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Contributions

Piyanut Phuthongkhao: conceptualization, methodology, data curation, software, formal analysis, writing — original draft, and visualization. Kitanchalee Phasin: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, and data curation. Purita Boonma: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, and data curation. Rattabal Khunphonoi: data curation, writing — review and editing, and validation. Ekkachai Kanchanatip: writing — review and editing, and validation. Totsaporn Suwannaruang: writing — original draft, writing — review and editing, and validation. Harikaranahalli Puttaiah Shivaraju: writing — review and editing and validation. Kitirote Wantala: conceptualization, methodology, data curation, software, formal analysis, writing — original draft, visualization, supervision, writing — review and editing, and validation.

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Correspondence to Kitirote Wantala.

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Phuthongkhao, P., Phasin, K., Boonma, P. et al. Preparation and characterization of hydrothermally processed carbonaceous hydrochar from pulp and paper sludge waste. Biomass Conv. Bioref. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13399-023-03761-5

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