TITLE:
ZSM5 as a Potential Catalyst for Glycerol Pyrolysis
AUTHORS:
Margarida L. Castelló, Jo Dweck, Donato A. G. Aranda, Rosana C. L. Pereira, Manoel J. R. Guimarães Neto
KEYWORDS:
Glycerol; ZSM5; Pyrolysis
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Sustainable Bioenergy Systems,
Vol.4 No.1,
March
27,
2014
ABSTRACT:
Glycerol is a
substance known to humankind for many years now, and among other products, in
which composition it is used, are the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food, paints
and varnishes REF _Ref382993082 \r \h [1]REF _Ref382993086 \r \h [6]. The abundance of
its supply leads to search for new uses, whether as a plasticizer for
biodegradable polymers REF _Ref382993096 \r \h [7], its
transformation into other substances like propylene and derivatives or other
hydrocarbons [8] [9], the production
of hydrogen for energy purposes REF _Ref382993109 \r \h [10], or even direct
burning, making glycerol a fuel for boilers, for example. The aim of this work
was to investigate the action of the zeolite ZSM5 on glycerol fast pyrolysis at
600°C. The tests were done with a mixture of glycerol-ZSM5 recently prepared using approximately
equal volumes of glycerol and the catalyst, and the effluent gases from the fast pyrolysis
have been analyzed in a chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) system. Experiments showed that ZSM5 acts in the pyrolysis of glycerol leading
to a large number of substances, from oxygenated products to hydrocarbons,
which are part of typical compositions of naphtha, diesel and gasoline
petroleum derived products.