Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202

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Fuel Processing Technology

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/fuproc

Research article

Limits of variations on the structure and the fuel characteristics of

sunflower seed shell through torrefaction
E. Bilgic, S. Yaman ⁎, H. Haykiri-Acma, S. Kucukbayrak
Istanbul Technical University, Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering Faculty, Chemical Engineering Department, 34469 Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Sunflower seed shell (SSS) that is a woody waste biomass was torrefied at 300 °C which is the upper limit of
Received 20 October 2015 torrefaction temperature to monitor the most severe variations on chemistry, morphology, functional groups, and
Received in revised form 19 December 2015 the burning characteristics of biomass. Since, this biomass is rich in holocellulose (hemicellulosics + cellulosics)
Accepted 7 January 2016
and relatively poor in lignin contents, it offers opportunity to observe the heat-induced variations on a woody bio-
Available online xxxx
mass. Besides, the effects of torrefaction on SSS were firstly investigated in this paper. Comparison of H/C and O/C
Keywords:
ratios before and after torrefaction revealed that the composition of SSS moved from nearly a cellulosic model to
Torrefaction a point between lignite and subbituminous coal. It was also concluded that the torrefaction should be implemented
Temperature at around the upper temperature limit to assure effective removal of volatiles and to improve the biomass. However,
Biomass the residence time should be optimized to justify the effectiveness of torrefaction and to avoid the loss of carbon.
Sunflower © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Surface functionalities

1. Introduction
Biomass that offers worldwide great potential is one of the promis-
ing alternatives of fossil fuels since it has several advantages of being
easy to find, abundant, CO2 neutral, low sulfur content and low ash
yield. Unfortunately, biomass species mostly have some drawbacks
such as low heating value and low density, high moisture and volatile
matter contents, and high O/C ratio. In particular, co-firing systems
usually suffer from the high oxygen content in biomass that lowers
the heating value and enhances the thermal reactivity, leading segrega-
tion of fuels in the blends [1]. The pretreatment methods applied to
biomass to improve the fuel characteristics usually rely on torrefaction,
pyrolysis or carbonization to obtain either improved solid fuels called
biochar or secondary fuels or products such as low-calorific value
gases and oxygenated liquid fuels [2]. In case of biochar production,
effective removal of moisture along with partly elimination of volatiles
can be achieved. Accordingly, O/C ratio decreases while the heating
value of biomass increases through pretreatment.
Torrefaction is a mild pretreatment technique which is typically
carried out by slow heating of biomass to a temperature in the range of
200–300 °C under non-oxidizing conditions to produce improved quality
biofuel through the removal of oxygen to get lower O/C ratio in the treat-
ed biomass and consequently enhancement in the heating value. The
bulk density increases and the amount of energy in unit volume
becomes comparable with those of coals [3]. Meanwhile, torrefaction
also destroys the fibrous structure and tenacity that makes the biomass
⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: yamans@itu.edu.tr (S. Yaman).
easy to grind, and increases the hydrophobic properties [4]. Such conse-
quences have favorable effects on the biomass properties involved in the
supply chain (transport, storage and feeding) since an easy-to-fluidize,
low-hydrophobic, not-prone-to-agglomerate and high-energy density
feedstock is obtained [5]. The destruction of hemicellulose and the partial
breakdown of both cellulose and lignin lead the formation of low calorific
value gases [6]. Analysis results of the gases emitted from biomass during
torrefaction showed that the gas is very rich in oxygen content. That is, it
may contain high amounts of CO2 (~80%) and CO (~20%) as well as rel-
atively lower amounts of volatile organic compounds [7]. Approximately
70% of the initial mass of biomass on dry basis is recovered as solid
product (torrefied biomass or biochar), which corresponds to over 90%
of its initial energy content [8]. On the other hand, surface properties
such as the water repellency and adhesion as well as the hydrophilic
nature of biomass are typical characteristics which are under the effect
of oxygen functionalities and so these characteristics are also influenced
from torrefaction. That is, the water absorbing capacity of biomass highly
decreases due to the replacement of OH-groups by unsaturated non-polar
groups. In this way, the moisture uptake capacity that is one of the serious
concerns of biomass is significantly reduced upon torrefaction and it
reduces the susceptibility of the biomass to biological decay [9].
A wide range of biomass species were subjected to torrefaction by
Arnsfeld et al. [10] at three temperature levels of low (200 °C), medium
(250 °C) and high (300 °C) and it was concluded that the effective
reduction in O/C ratio needs high temperature conditions. Similarly,
Chen et al. [7] also reported that the volatile matter content of cotton
stalk and corn stalk changed minimally at temperatures of 200–
230 °C, while noticeable reduction took place at torrefaction tempera-
tures of 260–290 °C. Sarvaramini et al. [6] also showed that torrefaction

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuproc.2016.01.006
0378-3820/© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
198 E. Bilgic et al. / Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202
at 300 °C for 25 min was more efficient than that at 260 °C for 60 min in
terms of the increases in C and the calorific value and decrease in O
content. Shang et al. [11] torrefied the straw in the range of 200–
300 °C for 0.5–3 h and found that the structural changes below 200 °C
were not so important and hemicellulose started to decompose in the
range of 200–250 °C and totally degraded at 300 °C for 2 h. The thermal
decomposition temperatures of hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin are in
the ranges of 150–300 °C, 275–350 °C and 250–500 °C, respectively [12].
Since, temperatures higher than 300 °C are detrimental to the recovery
of carbon and lead serious decreases in the energy yield, torrefaction of
biomass is limited by 300 °C. For this reason, torrefaction carried out at
300 °C shows the ultimate effects of this treatment on the structure
and the properties of biomass.
On the other hand, sunflower, which is also known as Helianthus
annuus, is cultivated worldwide for its seeds as a source of vegetable
oil or as a snack. Turkey is among the top-ten countries globally in
sunflower seed production with an annual capacity of around 1.5
million tonnes. Accordingly, a great potential of sunflower seed shell
(SSS) is obtained after dehulling operation, and this woody by-
product can be regarded as a suitable biomass [13]. However, above-
mentioned concerns of biomass such as high reactivity and high oxygen
content are also in question for this biomass material too, and there has
not enough work in literature on the improvement of fuel properties of
SSS by torrefaction. In addition, SSS is known to have high contents of
holocellulose (hemicellulosics + cellulosics) and relatively lower
content of lignin [13]. Lignin is known to show higher resistance against
decomposition compared to hemicellulose and cellulose. For this
reason, SSS can be allowed a suitable biomass to investigate the extreme
effects of torrefaction. Thus, this study aims to investigate how deep
changes can be achieved on the structure, properties, and the burning
characteristics of SSS through torrefaction carried out at the upper
temperature limit.
2. Material and method
2.1. Sample characterization
SSS provided from Turkish vegetable oil industry was first kept in
open containers in laboratory for a week and then milled and sieved
to a particle size lower than 0.250 mm that is the typical size for testing
such materials according to ASTM standards. Proximate analysis of the
sample was performed according to ASTM standards, while the ultimate
analysis was implemented using Leco TruSpec® CHN ultimate equip-
ment with Leco TruSpec® S module. The higher heating value was
determined by IKA C2000 calorimeter. The particle size analysis was car-
ried out by Malvern Instruments TM Mastersizer 2000 particle sizing in-
strument with Hydro 2000G wet sample dispersion unit. Functional
groups were investigated by FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectros-
copy) technique using KBr pellets by Bruker Alpha FTIR instrument in
the range of 650 and 4000 cm−1. SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy)
images were obtained by Jeol JCM-6000 instrument for morphological
investigation.
The burning characteristics of the torrefied sample as well as the
effects of temperature on the weight loss characteristics during
torrefaction were determined using a thermal analyzer which is TA
Instruments SDTQ600 model device. This equipment has 0.1 μg balance
sensitivity, a temperature range of up to 1500 °C, platinum/platinum–
rhodium thermocouples, temperature sensitivity of 0.001 °C, and alumina
reference material.
Macromolecular ingredients including holocellulose, lignin, and ex-
tractives were specified by wet analytical methods. That is, benzene/
ethyl alcohol extraction method was applied to SSS to remove the extrac-
tives according to ASTM D1105 procedure. The extracted bulk was then
used for determination of holocellulose (cellulose + hemicellulose) and
lignin contents. Wise's chlorite procedure [14] and van Soest method
[15] were applied for isolation of holocellulose or lignin contents from
the extracted bulk, respectively. All the tests were repeated at least
twice and the mean values of the results which are not deviated more
than 5% were taken to assure the repeatability of the experimental data.
2.2. Torrefaction
Torrefaction experiments were carried out at 300 °C to work at the
upper temperature limit of torrefaction. For this, a horizontal tube
furnace containing a silica tube with a diameter of 15 cm and a length
of 72 cm was used and the schematic of the torrefaction set-up is given
in Fig. 1. The radiation zone where heating is applied is just in the center
of the silica tube and has a length of 5 cm and the temperature control is
performed by a PID controller. Approximately 10 g of milled SSS was put
into silica crucibles and then placed through the radiation zone of the un-
heated furnace, air was purged out of the system by nitrogen flow, and
then temperature was increased from ambient to 300 °C with a heating
rate of 10 °C/min under nitrogen flow of 100 mL/min, and the sample
was kept at 300 °C for 60 min. Then, the sample was allowed to cool
down to ambient temperature in the furnace under nitrogen flow. On
the other hand, the effects of torrefaction temperature on the solid recov-
ery ratio were also investigated using the thermal analyzer. That is, the
milled sample was weighed around 10 mg and placed into alumina cru-
cible as a thin layer. Then the sample was heated from ambient to 300 °C
with a heating rate of 10 °C/min under nitrogen flow of 100 mL/min and
60 min of hold-time was allowed at this final temperature.
2.3. Burning tests
Burning of the original biomass and the torrefied biomass was per-
formed in the thermal analyzer described above. For this, temperature
was increased from ambient to 600 °C with a heating rate of 10 °C/min
under dry air at the flow rate of 100 mL/min. 30 min of hold-time was
allowed at the final temperature to assure that the burning is completed.
Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Derivative Thermogravimetry
(DTG), Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA), and Differential Scanning
Calorimetry (DSC) profiles were obtained.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Biomass characteristics
The analysis results of the original SSS and the torrefied SSS are given
in Table 1. These results indicate that SSS has low ash yield and high
volatile matter content as in the case of typical woody biomass species.
Besides, holocellulose that is the sum of hemicellulosics and cellulose
accounts for the most part of the macromolecular structure which is
followed by lignin. These ingredients are the polymers that are rich in
oxygen, and the high oxygen content (46.4%) in the original biomass
is consistent with this molecular composition. Likewise in almost all
oxygen-rich fuels, high reactivity is inevitable for SSS [16].
Fig. 1. Schematic of torrefaction set-up.
 E. Bilgic et al. / Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202
Table 1
Analysis results of untreated biomass and torrefied biomass.
Untreated
biomass
Proximate analysis (%, on dry basis)
Volatiles 81.0
Ash 1.8
Fixed carbon 17.2
Ultimate analysis (%, on dry-ash-free)
C 46.5
H 6.5
N 0.4
S 0.2
Oa 46.4
O/C atomic ratio 0.75
H/C atomic ratio 1.68
HHV (MJ/kg) 18.3
Macromolecular analysis (%, on dry basis)
Holocellulose 67.1
Lignin 27.1
Extractives 5.3
Mean diameter (μm) 189.3
a
By difference.
3.2. Heat-induced variations
3.2.1. HHV recovery and the solid yield
The mass and energy balances for torrefaction were calculated based
on the amounts of the biochars obtained in the tube furnace and in the
thermal analyzer considering the initial weights of the dried biomass.
Actually, the moisture content of the air-dried SSS was 9.9 wt.%. In this
way, the solid product yield was calculated as 51.1 wt.%. Based on this
value and the values in Table 1, it can be concluded that the heating
value recovery is 77.1%. Similarly, the recovery of carbon was 76.4%,
while only 27.1% of oxygen remained in biochar.
The behavior of SSS throughout the heating period is illustrated in
Fig. 2. The profile of the weight loss (TGA) is given in Fig. 2a, while the
heat flow (DSC) curve is shown in Fig. 2b. The original SSS contains
some moisture and it leads to 9.9% loss from the initial weight at
110 °C. The remaining bulk at 110 °C was assumed as the moisture-
free and the further losses in weight were evaluated based on this
dried sample. Therefore, the following percentages of the weight losses
were calculated on dry basis. Actually, the weight changed very limited
after the removal of moisture for a wide temperature range and this is
seen on TGA curve as a horizontal line. That is, the increase in tempera-
ture to 200 °C caused only 1.1% additional loss in weight, and it reached
to 6.4% at 250 °C which can be attributed to the degradation of extrac-
tives and hemicellulose [17]. Then, variations in weight became more
apparent and the weight losses at 275 °C and 300 °C extended to
14.2% and 24.7%, respectively. Furthermore, keeping the biomass at
Fig. 2. Effects of torrefaction temperature on the weight recovery and the heat flow.
199
300 °C for 1 h resulted in severe degradation and 51.1% of the initial
weight of the sample lost due to decompositions. The heat flow pattern
Torrefied on Fig. 2b was given for temperatures higher than 150 °C to eliminate
biomass the huge moisture removal peak that makes the subsequent peaks
relatively difficult to notice. Negligible heat flows between the sample
43.8 and the furnace existed between 150 °C and 250 °C that shows insignif-
3.9 icant endothermic phenomenon in this temperature range. This
52.3
predicts that the weight losses in this temperature range did not require
69.5 any energy uptake since reactive and unstable constituents are almost
5.3 ready for leaving the sample very easily. Besides, the endothermic
0.5 decompositions taken place in the interval of 250–300 °C can be
0.1 regarded as the heat induced part of torrefaction which is influential
24.6
0.27
on the biomass polymers.
0.92 It is clear that torrefaction led to serious changes in the analysis
27.6 results. The content of volatiles reduced nearly the half, and the fixed
carbon became almost three-fold, while the ash yield enhanced more
n/a
than twice. Accordingly, HHV (Higher Heating Value) of the torrefied
n/a
n/a sample so distinctly increased that this treatment promoted the heating
174.8 value of biomass almost to the level of medium quality coals mainly due
to decrease in volatiles. As a consequence, it can be obviously stated that
torrefaction is an effective thermal treatment to improve the fuel qual-
ity. The carbon content was enriched since the C–C bond energy is
higher than that of the C–O bond, leading to an increase in HHV. The
energy densification factor that means the ratio of HHV values after
and before torrefaction is 1.51 and this is higher than the values given
for many biomass species in literature. Tran et al. found this factor as
1.20 and 1.14 from torrefaction at 300 °C for 30 min for spruce stump
and poplar, respectively [8]. However, Chen et al. showed that this factor
may exceed 1.6 in the case of willow [12].
3.2.2. Variations in elemental basis
On elemental basis, carbon content increased from 46.5% to 69.5% at
the expense of oxygen content that it lowered almost to the half. It is
noteworthy that the reduction ratios of volatiles and oxygen are highly
similar. Hydrogen removal performance of a thermal treatment is an
indicator of the effectiveness of the treatment on the sample [18]. Ac-
cordingly, reduction in hydrogen content took place relatively limited
in this study since the conditions of torrefaction was not so severe.
The ratio of fixed carbon to volatiles is a reliable indicator of the fuel
quality. In case of high ratio less smoke forms during combustion and
the forming emissions will be limited. As a result, the fuel quality will
be closer to coal. This ratio in the original SSS sample is only 0.21 that
is too low for being a promising solid fuel. On the other hand,
torrefaction improved this ratio to 1.20 that makes it a higher quality
fuel. In Fig. 3, O/C and H/C atomic ratios of SSS before and after
torrefaction were placed on the template of van Krevelen diagram
that contains the positions of biomass, peat, lignite, bituminous coal,
and anthracite as well as pure cellulose and lignin. That is, the place of
200 E. Bilgic et al. / Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202
Fig. 3. Positions of the samples on van Krevelen diagram.
the original sample was between pure cellulose (C6H10O5) and pure
lignin (C10H13O4) and rather closer to cellulose. However, torrefaction
carried the position nearly to the border between lignite and bitumi-
nous coal. It is likely to suggest that torrefaction may provide an option
for high substitution ratios of biomass in the co-firing systems [8].
3.2.3. Morphological variations
The SEM micrographs of the original and the torrefied SSS shown in
Fig. 4 display the morphological variations arising from torrefaction.
Namely, the original biomass has a disordered multilayered structure
that is very rich in several-micrometer size fine particles. Also, it is
evident that the original biomass has a leafy nature which creates an in-
dented shape, whereas the torrefied sample has relatively smoother
surface with repeating parts that are highly ordered. Although, the exis-
tence of small particles can also be seen in the torrefied sample, they are
not as abundant as the original sample, and the indented characteristics
of the original sample disappeared effectively. Besides, the removal of
volatiles changed the structure in such a way that torrefied sample
looks like being fragile and fractal because of the forming splits. There
is not a widely accepted agreement in literature on the morphological
changes on biomass structure upon torrefaction. Wu et al. reported
that besides structural depolymerization, there is also a rearrangement
phenomenon during biomass torrefaction that makes the biomass brit-
tle [19]. Chen et al. also compared the SEM images of untreated and
torrefied biomasses such as bamboo and banyan and they pointed out
that torrefaction leads to tiny holes in bamboo surface while banyan
surface turned to a tubular structure [12]. Torrefaction also led to reduc-
tion in the mean diameter of the particles from 189.3 μm to 174.8 μm.
Fig. 4. SEM micrographs of the original and torrefied SSS.
3.2.4. Functional groups
Comparison of FTIR spectra before and after torrefaction is given in
Fig. 5. The variations between these spectra were highly difficult to in-
terpret since there are several decomposition mechanisms taking
place simultaneously. Nevertheless, there were apparent changes in
the FTIR spectra stem from the thermal treatment. It can be concluded
that the most apparent change in FTIR spectra resulted in the character-
istic region of polysaccharides between 1200 and 800 cm−1 [20]. Name-
ly, it is known that polysaccharides such as hemicellulose and cellulose
are interconnected with weak ether bonds and they are sensitive to
thermal effects [21]. The region that has a maximum absorbance at
1043 cm−1 in FTIR spectrum of the original SSS can be attributed to
C–O stretching vibrations and the ether-type structures, and this region
was affected seriously due to the thermal treatment. This confirms that
the torrefaction process directly influences the oxygen content of
biomass. Actually, glucomannan, α-glucan, xyloglucan, mannose, and
galactan, which are oxygen rich components of hemicellulose, have
characteristic FTIR bands at 1034, 1041, 1064, and 1078 cm−1, respec-
tively [22]. The destroying effect of torrefaction on hemicellulose
avoided the detection of strong absorbance in the mentioned area. In
addition, the band at 1160 cm− 1 is attributed to the antisymmetric
stretching of C–O–C glycosidic linkages in both cellulose and hemicellu-
loses [23]. Reduction in the intensity of this band is attributed to
depolymerization and this band is also reported to be practically absent
at 300 °C [23].
Meanwhile, the band at 1660 cm−1 that predicts the presence of
conjugated C_O bonds to aromatic ring lost its intensity after
torrefaction. This also demonstrates the fact that not only the single
bonded oxygen but also double bonded oxygen could be eliminated
from biomass under investigated conditions. Although, this way of
oxygen removal is not as effective as the removal of ether type oxygen
due to bigger bond energy, it still contributes to the deoxygenation of
biomass. Similarly, Shoulaifar et al. investigated the amounts of the
carboxylic groups in untreated and torrefied spruce wood, and found
that the amount of carboxylic acid reduced significantly [24]. Oxygen
containing surface functionalities generally have acidic characteristics
and they contribute to the hydrophilic nature of woody biomass.
There are various types of organic acids in woody biomass, including
carboxylic acids, fatty and resin acids, phenolic groups in lignin as very
weak acids, and aliphatic hydroxyl groups which are even weaker. The
carboxylic groups exist primarily in uronic acids in hemicelluloses
[24]. Thus, their loss changes the surface properties in the favor of
decreasing hydrophilicity and water uptake, and this facilitates the use
of wood in humid environment.
Relatively a small but sharp peak at 1430 cm−1 may be attributed to
both vibration of the aromatic ring of lignin as well as C–H bending
in cellulose [25]. This peak did not show important variation over
 E. Bilgic et al. / Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202
Fig. 5. FTIR spectra for original and torrefied SSS.
torrefaction. In fact, the upper limits of decompositions for cellulose and
lignin are 350 °C and 500 °C, respectively, and only limited parts of these
ingredients could be decayed. It is also pointed out in literature that cel-
lulose may not show any degradation at temperatures lower than 320 °C
[10]. Besides, lignin that has a low O/C ratio compared to hemicellulose
and cellulose is relatively less reactive and it shows resistance to thermal
degradation under investigated conditions.
Besides, since lignin is the only aromatic constituent in biomass, the
peak at 1559 cm− 1 that shows C_C bonds and aromaticity can be
assigned to lignin, and similarly this peak was not diminished owing
to torrefaction. In contrast, the increasing content of carbon changed
the shape of the spectrum in such a way that C_C stretching and
C_C vibration bands in an absorbance range of 1578–1459 cm− 1
Fig. 6. TGA, DTG, and DTA curves from burning of original and torrefied samples.
201
became the most evident area. Zhao et al. investigated thermal degrada-
tion of both softwood lignin and hardwood lignin and concluded that
the decomposition of lignin occurs in three stages such as before
180 °C, between 180 and 380 °C, and between 300 and 650 °C [26]. Of
which, the third one (300–650 °C) were reported to have the most im-
portant contribution to the mass loss and the second stage that has the
conditions of torrefaction was not so effective on lignin decomposition.
On the other hand, some reductions took place in the intensities of
C–H stretching bands at 2917 (asymmetric vibrations of –CH2) and
2849 cm−1 (symmetric vibrations of –CH2) due to the decreasing hy-
drogen content. The former is linked with C–H stretching in aromatic
methoxyl groups and in methyl and methylene groups [27]. Therefore,
it is a strong indicator of lignin structure that has resistance to thermal
decomposition under the working conditions, and the intensity of this
band was not changed. Thus, elimination of methylene from biomass
is rather limited and consequently these bands are still very strong in
case of torrefied biomass.
Furthermore, the region between 3400 and 3200 cm−1 that
represents O–H stretching bands can be attributed to the hydroxyl groups
in phenolic and aliphatic structures. Upon torrefaction, this region
became quite straight due to carbohydrate dehydration, reduction in car-
boxylic acids and alcohols, and the removal of moisture [28–30]. Liu et al.
found out that phenols are present in the volatiles released from lignin
between 150 and 287 °C, and it is consistent with the lowering intensities
of O–H stretching bands [31].
3.2.5. Variations in burning characteristics
Fig. 6 shows the thermal analysis curves of TGA, DTG, and DTA
obtained from the burning of the samples. Low temperature reactivity
of the original SSS almost disappeared through torrefaction and the
main burning region shifted to the higher temperature interval in which
disproportionally higher burning rates were detected. Reduction in the
content of volatiles limited the decompositions at low temperatures and
202 E. Bilgic et al. / Fuel Processing Technology 144 (2016) 197–202
consequently the homogeneous combustion stage of the forming volatiles
lost the importance in the burning process. Accordingly, the exothermic
region forming due to char burning became the principal burning
mechanism. In this way, more stable heat generation can be carried out.
4. Conclusion
Torrefaction of holocellulose-rich biomass under the upper temper-
ature limit of this thermal treatment led to significant variations on the
structure and the fuel properties. The ratio of fixed carbon to volatiles
increased from 0.21 to 1.20 that improves the fuel quality from nearly
cellulose to an energy intensive coal-like solid fuel. Although, SSS is a
very reactive biomass species, mass losses from biomass up to 250 °C
were quite limited except the moisture removal, and this confirms
that the torrefaction should be implemented around the upper temper-
ature limit. However, keeping the biomass at 300 °C accompanied with
degradation in biomass structure and the recovery of the solid material
decreased to 51.1 wt.% in 60 min during this isothermal process.
Therefore, the hold time at the final temperature should be optimized
regarding the improvements in the fuel properties and the carbon
recovery. This study revealed how deep variations can be taken place
on structure and properties of a biomass through torrefaction.
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