Pyrolysis of coconut cloth in a microwave reactor: Effect of pyrolysis parameters on product yield and characterization of liquid product and biochar

Pyrolysis of coconut cloth was investigated with the influence of pyrolysis process parameters on the maximum products yield and their chemical compositions. With the microwave reactor, the process parameters were as follows: temperature (450 °C to 650 °C), heating rate (10 °C/min to 30 °C/min), and nitrogen flow rate (80 °C/min to 120 cm3/min). The highest liquid yield of 38.3% was observed at 550 °C for the heating rate of 20 °C/min. The characteristics of bio-oil and biochar were analyzed using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques, such as nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (HNMR), Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS), scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-Ray (SEM-EDX), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), and elemental analysis. The bio-oil contained a higher amount of phenolic compounds at 79.6%. The obtained biochar had a calorific value of 27.8 MJ/kg, which made it a promising candidate for solid fuel.