Effects of interactions between corncob volatiles and lignite on their products during rapid co-pyrolysis

Abstract The interactions of corncob volatiles and lignite in the process of rapid co-pyrolysis and the effects on their product distributions and properties were examined for the efficient co-utilization of biomass and lignite. A novel two-stage, three-tube reactor was used to do co-pyrolysis experiments, which allowed the verification of interactions occurred only between corncob volatile and lignite. Raw corncob and its demineralized sample were employed for studying the different interactions of organic radical fragments and AAEMs in corncob volatiles on lignite. It was found that the interactions resulted in the decreased liquid yields but increased gas yields, and varied oxidative reactivity of lignite char by changing its chemical structure. There exist different effects on product distribution and property for organic radical fragments and AAEMs in corncob volatiles. The former could promote the interaction of nascent char-volatiles and accelerate the stabilization of radical fragments, the latter mainly catalyzed the decomposition reaction of corncob matrix below 700 °C, while mainly volatilized and catalyzed the reactions between volatiles in gaseous phase when the temperature was above 700 °C.