Catalytic pyrolysis of rice straw over ZSM-5: Production of olefins and aromatics over a range of temperature and catalyst/biomass ratio

With the declining stock of fossil fuel, a new raw material to produce light olefins and aromatics as petrochemical industries feedstock is needed. Such material should be renewable and eco-friendly. Lignocellulosic biomass can be a promising alternative for it is obtained from plants and is carbon neutral. Lignocellulosic biomass can be converted into olefins and aromatics by catalytic pyrolysis. Previous experiment has been done using zeolite-based catalyst (ZSM-5) and resulting highest olefins and aromatics yield among other catalyst. This study focused in performing rice straw pyrolysis over varieties of temperatures and catalyst/biomass feed mixtures and analyze the pyrolysis vapor using GC-MS. From the experiment, higher temperature and higher catalyst mass resulting in higher olefins appearance. While olefins do not really come in constant substance, aromatics such as benzene and toluene peak area increase in higher temperature.