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Thomas H Deluca - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Charcoal effects on soil solution chemistry and growth of Koeleria macrantha in the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem
Biology and Fertility of Soils, 2007Co-Authors: Michael J Gundale, Thomas H DelucaAbstract:We conducted laboratory and greenhouse experiments to determine whether Charcoal derived from the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem may influence soil solution chemistry and growth of Koeleria macrantha , a perennial grass that thrives after fire. In our first experiment, we incubated forest soils with a factorial combination of Douglas-fir wood Charcoal generated at 350°C and extracts of Arctostaphylos uva-ursi with and without the addition of glycine as a labile N source. These results showed that Charcoal increased N mineralization and nitrification when glycine was added, but reduced N mineralization and nitrification without the addition of glycine. Charcoal significantly reduced the solution concentration of soluble phenols from litter extracts, but may have contributed bioavailable C to the soil that resulted in N immobilization in the no-glycine trial. In our second experiment, we grew K. macrantha in soil amended with Charcoal made at 350°C from ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir bark. Growth of K. macrantha was significantly diminished by both of these Charcoal types relative to the control. In our third experiment, we grew K. macrantha in soil amended with six concentrations (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, and 10%) of Charcoal collected from a wildfire. The data showed increasing growth of K. macrantha with Charcoal addition, suggesting some fundamental differences between laboratory-generated Charcoal and wildfire-produced Charcoal. Furthermore, they suggest a need for a better understanding of how temperature and substrate influence the chemical properties of Charcoal.
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Estimating Charcoal content in forest mineral soils
Geoderma, 2006Co-Authors: Valerie J. Kurth, M. D. Mackenzie, Thomas H DelucaAbstract:Abstract Traditional methods for estimating Charcoal in soils can be time consuming, expensive, and not entirely quantitative. A standard analytic method that is inexpensive, rapid, and simple would be of great value to scientists needing to quantify Charcoal in soils or sediment. Preliminary laboratory investigations analyzed the efficacy of several digestion methods for the determination of the Charcoal content of soils. Concentrated nitric acid digestions were found to consume a portion of the Charcoal leading to an underestimation of soil Charcoal content by as much as 70%. Herein we test two alternative approaches to the determination of Charcoal content of forest soils. Subsurface soil samples (60–120 cm) were taken from areas not exposed to fire (Charcoal deposition) for 100 years and amended with Charcoal ranging in content from 0–50 g kg− 1. Samples were analyzed using two different approaches: the Walkley–Black method and a digestion using 30% H2O2 and dilute (1 M) HNO3. Using the Walkley–Black method, organic C, measured by colorimetry, was subtracted from total C, measured by dry combustion, to estimate total Charcoal content. This method estimated about 80% of soil Charcoal, which is an improvement over current digestion methods, but was found to be unreliable for soils containing less than 0.5% (w/w) or 5 g kg− 1Charcoal. The H2O2/dilute HNO3 digestion effectively estimated soil Charcoal contents in soils with 0.5% to 5% (w/w) Charcoal, and had substantially less variation than the Walkley–Black method. This new digestion procedure shows promise for estimation of total Charcoal contents of soil and can be used in paleoecological evaluation of Charcoal in mineral soil or sediment.
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temperature and source material influence ecological attributes of ponderosa pine and douglas fir Charcoal
Forest Ecology and Management, 2006Co-Authors: Michael J Gundale, Thomas H DelucaAbstract:Abstract Charcoal has numerous physical and chemical properties that allow it to influence a variety of ecological processes. The objective of this study was to evaluate how several ecological properties of Charcoal vary as a function of formation temperature and the source of woody material from which it is formed in ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ( Pinus ponderosa/Psuedotsuga menziesii ) ecosystems. We generated Charcoal in the laboratory at two temperatures (350 and 800 °C) and from four source materials (bark and wood from mature Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine trees), collected in western Montana. In an incubation experiment, where soils were amended with Charcoal and glycine, all Charcoal types resulted in higher rates of net ammonification relative to the no-Charcoal control, and all Charcoal types (except 800 °C ponderosa pine bark) increased net nitrification rates relative to the control. All Charcoal types were also effective at sorbing catechin (±), an allelochemical produced by the invasive species Centaurea maculosa ; however, higher temperature Charcoals had a higher sorption capacity. High temperature Charcoals also demonstrated higher extractable NO 3 − , pH, electrical conductivity, total C content; whereas, soluble and total phenol concentrations, extractable PO 4 3− and NH 4 + , and density were lower in high temperature char relative to low-temperature Charcoal. The species (ponderosa pine or Douglas-fir) and material (wood or bark) from which Charcoal formed also resulted in variation in several properties; however, this variation was of minor importance relative to differences caused by temperature, and thus is likely a less significant source of variation in natural systems. These data suggest that charring temperature, which may be correlated with fire severity during fire events, is likely the greatest source of variability in these Charcoal properties in the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem.
Michael J Gundale - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Charcoal effects on soil solution chemistry and growth of Koeleria macrantha in the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem
Biology and Fertility of Soils, 2007Co-Authors: Michael J Gundale, Thomas H DelucaAbstract:We conducted laboratory and greenhouse experiments to determine whether Charcoal derived from the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem may influence soil solution chemistry and growth of Koeleria macrantha , a perennial grass that thrives after fire. In our first experiment, we incubated forest soils with a factorial combination of Douglas-fir wood Charcoal generated at 350°C and extracts of Arctostaphylos uva-ursi with and without the addition of glycine as a labile N source. These results showed that Charcoal increased N mineralization and nitrification when glycine was added, but reduced N mineralization and nitrification without the addition of glycine. Charcoal significantly reduced the solution concentration of soluble phenols from litter extracts, but may have contributed bioavailable C to the soil that resulted in N immobilization in the no-glycine trial. In our second experiment, we grew K. macrantha in soil amended with Charcoal made at 350°C from ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir bark. Growth of K. macrantha was significantly diminished by both of these Charcoal types relative to the control. In our third experiment, we grew K. macrantha in soil amended with six concentrations (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, and 10%) of Charcoal collected from a wildfire. The data showed increasing growth of K. macrantha with Charcoal addition, suggesting some fundamental differences between laboratory-generated Charcoal and wildfire-produced Charcoal. Furthermore, they suggest a need for a better understanding of how temperature and substrate influence the chemical properties of Charcoal.
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temperature and source material influence ecological attributes of ponderosa pine and douglas fir Charcoal
Forest Ecology and Management, 2006Co-Authors: Michael J Gundale, Thomas H DelucaAbstract:Abstract Charcoal has numerous physical and chemical properties that allow it to influence a variety of ecological processes. The objective of this study was to evaluate how several ecological properties of Charcoal vary as a function of formation temperature and the source of woody material from which it is formed in ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ( Pinus ponderosa/Psuedotsuga menziesii ) ecosystems. We generated Charcoal in the laboratory at two temperatures (350 and 800 °C) and from four source materials (bark and wood from mature Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine trees), collected in western Montana. In an incubation experiment, where soils were amended with Charcoal and glycine, all Charcoal types resulted in higher rates of net ammonification relative to the no-Charcoal control, and all Charcoal types (except 800 °C ponderosa pine bark) increased net nitrification rates relative to the control. All Charcoal types were also effective at sorbing catechin (±), an allelochemical produced by the invasive species Centaurea maculosa ; however, higher temperature Charcoals had a higher sorption capacity. High temperature Charcoals also demonstrated higher extractable NO 3 − , pH, electrical conductivity, total C content; whereas, soluble and total phenol concentrations, extractable PO 4 3− and NH 4 + , and density were lower in high temperature char relative to low-temperature Charcoal. The species (ponderosa pine or Douglas-fir) and material (wood or bark) from which Charcoal formed also resulted in variation in several properties; however, this variation was of minor importance relative to differences caused by temperature, and thus is likely a less significant source of variation in natural systems. These data suggest that charring temperature, which may be correlated with fire severity during fire events, is likely the greatest source of variability in these Charcoal properties in the ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem.
Michael Jerry Antal - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Carbonization of Biomass in Constant-Volume Reactors
Energy and Fuels, 2018Co-Authors: Maider Legarra, Trevor Morgan, Scott Turn, Øyvind Skreiberg, Liang Wang, Michael Jerry AntalAbstract:© 2017 American Chemical Society. A novel carbonization process that realizes near-theoretical fixed-carbon yields in ∼3 h is presented. Norwegian spruce and birch sawdusts were carbonized in a hermetically-sealed reactor at an initial nitrogen pressure of 0.1 MPa. During a carbonization test, the reactor vessel retained all pyrolytic products inside the hot reaction zone invoking high pressures as the temperature was raised. Given the elevated partial pressures of volatiles and their extended residence times, secondary, heterogeneous, char-forming reactions between the hot solid and the tarry vapors appeared to be promoted. This resulted in Charcoals with a remarkably high fixed-carbon yield, non-condensable gases mainly composed of CO2 and negligible amount of free tars. This work presents a reproducibility study on the experimental method and explores the effects of heat treatment temperature, particle size, mass loading and immersion time on product distributions and Charcoal properties. Proximate and elemental analyses, heating values and scanning electron microscope images of Charcoal are presented. Higher heat treatment temperatures (from 300 to 400°C), smaller grains (from < 2 to < 0.2 mm), longer immersion times (from 30 to 190 min) and greater mass loadings (from 130 to 165 g of biomass per liter of reactor) intensified wood devolatilization without losing Charcoal fixed-carbon yields. Final Charcoal products had lower volatile matter contents and improved fixed-carbon contents. Temperature produced the strongest effect transforming the virgin spruce with a fixed-carbon content of 15% to Charcoals with fixed carbon contents of 52% at 300°C and 73% at 400°C. The increase in temperature resulted in a transient plastic phase that changed the char appearance from loose, particulate matter to a smooth, shiny solid product with the appearance of coke.
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Charcoal volatile matter content influences plant growth and soil nitrogen transformations
Soil Science Society of America Journal, 2010Co-Authors: Jonathan L Deenik, Michael Jerry Antal, Tai Mcclellan, Goro Uehara, Sonia CampbellAbstract:A series of short-term greenhouse experiments and laboratory incubations were conducted to evaluate the effect of macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia Maiden & Betche) nut shell (MNS) Charcoal with varying volatile matter (VM) content on soil properties and plant growth in two tropical soils. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and corn (Zea mays L.) were planted in an Andisol amended with four rates of MNS Charcoal (0, 5,10, and 20% w/w) containing relatively high VM content (225 g kg -1 ) with andwithout N fertilizer. Increasing rates ofCharcoalwithout N caused a significant decline in both lettuce and corn growth. Corn growth declined significantly with or without N at the two highest Charcoal rates. In a third experiment, corn growth also declined significantly in an Ultisol amended with the MNS Charcoal (5% w/w) with and without fertilizers. In a fourth experiment, Charcoals with high VM (225 g kg -1 ) showed negative effects on plant growth while the low-VM (63.0 g kg -1 ) Charcoal supplemented with fertilizer showed a significant positive effect on corn growth. Results from the 2-wk incubation experiments showed that high-VM Charcoal caused a significant decline in soil NH 4 + -N and a significant increase in soil respiration compared with the soil amended with low-VM Charcoal and the soil alone. We propose that phenolic compounds and other products in the high-VM Charcoal stimulated microbial growth and immobilization of plant-available N. Our results demonstrate that VM content appears to be an important property of Charcoal that has short-term effects on soil N transformations and plant growth. Longer incubation experiments and field trials are needed to further elucidate the role of Charcoal VM content on soil processes and plant growth.
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Do all carbonized Charcoals have the same chemical structure? 2. A model of the chemical structure of carbonized Charcoal
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2007Co-Authors: Jared Bourke, Chihiro Fushimi, Teppei Nunoura, Kiyoshi Dowaki, Merilyn Manley-harris, Michael Jerry AntalAbstract:Charcoals and carbonized Charcoals (i.e., biocarbons) were prepared from a wide variety of biomass substrates, including pure sugars containing five- and six-membered rings with furanose and pyranose configurations, lignin, agricultural residues (corncob and nut shells), and a hard wood. These biocarbons were subject to proximate and elemental analysis, gas sorption analysis, and analysis by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron spin resonance (ESR), 13C cross-polarization magic-angle spinning (CPMAS) NMR, and matrix-assisted, laser desorption ionization coupled with time-of-flight mass spectroscopy (MALDI-TOF MS). All the carbonized Charcoals contained oxygen heteroatoms, had high surface areas, and were excellent conductors of electricity. Doping the biocarbon with boron or phosphorus resulted in a slight improvement in its electrical conductivity. The XRD analysis indicated that the carbonized Charcoals possess an aromaticity of about 71% that results from graphite crystallites with an average size of about 20 Å. The NMR analysis confirmed the highly aromatic content of the carbonized Charcoals. The ESR signals indicated two major types of carbon-centered organic radicals. MALDI-TOF spectra of the Charcoals and carbonized Charcoals greatly differed from those of synthetic graphite. The biocarbons contained readily desorbed discrete ions with m/z values of 317, 429, 453, 465, 685, and 701. These findings were employed to develop a model for the structure of carbonized Charcoal that is consistent with the biocarbon’s oxygen content, microporosity and surface area, electrical conductivity, radical content, and its MALDI-TOF spectra.
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Combustion Kinetics of Corncob Charcoal and Partially Demineralized Corncob Charcoal in the Kinetic Regime
Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5−13 μm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the...
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Combustion kinetics of corncob Charcoal and partially demineralized corncob Charcoal in the kinetic regime
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5-13 µm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the oxygen content of the ambient, and functions describing the conversion dependence of the partial processes.
Jared Bourke - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Do all carbonized Charcoals have the same chemical structure? 2. A model of the chemical structure of carbonized Charcoal
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2007Co-Authors: Jared Bourke, Chihiro Fushimi, Teppei Nunoura, Kiyoshi Dowaki, Merilyn Manley-harris, Michael Jerry AntalAbstract:Charcoals and carbonized Charcoals (i.e., biocarbons) were prepared from a wide variety of biomass substrates, including pure sugars containing five- and six-membered rings with furanose and pyranose configurations, lignin, agricultural residues (corncob and nut shells), and a hard wood. These biocarbons were subject to proximate and elemental analysis, gas sorption analysis, and analysis by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron spin resonance (ESR), 13C cross-polarization magic-angle spinning (CPMAS) NMR, and matrix-assisted, laser desorption ionization coupled with time-of-flight mass spectroscopy (MALDI-TOF MS). All the carbonized Charcoals contained oxygen heteroatoms, had high surface areas, and were excellent conductors of electricity. Doping the biocarbon with boron or phosphorus resulted in a slight improvement in its electrical conductivity. The XRD analysis indicated that the carbonized Charcoals possess an aromaticity of about 71% that results from graphite crystallites with an average size of about 20 Å. The NMR analysis confirmed the highly aromatic content of the carbonized Charcoals. The ESR signals indicated two major types of carbon-centered organic radicals. MALDI-TOF spectra of the Charcoals and carbonized Charcoals greatly differed from those of synthetic graphite. The biocarbons contained readily desorbed discrete ions with m/z values of 317, 429, 453, 465, 685, and 701. These findings were employed to develop a model for the structure of carbonized Charcoal that is consistent with the biocarbon’s oxygen content, microporosity and surface area, electrical conductivity, radical content, and its MALDI-TOF spectra.
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Combustion Kinetics of Corncob Charcoal and Partially Demineralized Corncob Charcoal in the Kinetic Regime
Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5−13 μm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the...
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Combustion kinetics of corncob Charcoal and partially demineralized corncob Charcoal in the kinetic regime
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5-13 µm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the oxygen content of the ambient, and functions describing the conversion dependence of the partial processes.
Gabor Varhegyi - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Biomass Charcoal Properties Changes during Storage
Energy Procedia, 2017Co-Authors: Liang Wang, Endre Jakab, Øyvind Skreiberg, Eszter Barta-rajnai, Kathryn Hu, Charissa Higashi, Morten Grønli, Zsuzsanna Czégény, Viktor Myrvågnes, Gabor VarhegyiAbstract:Abstract In this work, effects of storage time and conditions on the properties of one woody Charcoal were studied. Prior to the storage test, the untreated Charcoal was characterized by thermogravimetry/mass spectrometry (TG/MS). Weight loss (TG) and evolution profile curves of selected gaseous products were obtained from Charcoal pieces that have various appearances, apparent densities and sizes. The result implies that the Charcoal pieces have experienced different carbonization conditions. The Charcoal samples were collected during the storage test under well controlled conditions and further characterized. It was found that the volatile content of the collected Charcoal samples decreases along the storage time. The ash content of sampled Charcoal only changed slightly. Accordingly, the fixed carbon content of sampled Charcoal decreased about 3% in comparison to the initially loaded untreated Charcoal samples. Such decrease of fixed carbon content of Charcoal during storage might cause considerable reduction of profitability for an industry that consumes large amounts of Charcoal at a relatively high price.
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Combustion Kinetics of Corncob Charcoal and Partially Demineralized Corncob Charcoal in the Kinetic Regime
Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5−13 μm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the...
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Combustion kinetics of corncob Charcoal and partially demineralized corncob Charcoal in the kinetic regime
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2006Co-Authors: Gabor Varhegyi, Jared Bourke, Erika Mészáros, Michael Jerry Antal, Endre JakabAbstract:Charcoals produced by a modern, efficient method were studied in the kinetic regime, at oxygen partial pressures of 0.2 and 1 bar by thermogravimetric experiments and their reaction kinetic modeling. The Charcoals were ground to an average particle size of 5-13 µm. A partial removal of minerals from the feedstock (corncobs) by an acid-washing procedure resulted in ca. 6 times higher specific surface area in the Charcoal. Despite the increased surface area, this sample evidenced a much lower reactivity. A model based on three reactions gave an adequate description over a wide range of experimental conditions. Thirty-eight experiments on four Charcoal samples were evaluated. The experiments differed in their temperature programs, in the ambient gas composition, and in the grinding of the samples. Characteristics of the combustion process were determined including activation energy values characteristic for the temperature dependence of the burnoff, formal reaction orders characterizing the dependence on the oxygen content of the ambient, and functions describing the conversion dependence of the partial processes.
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Electrical and physical properties of carbonized Charcoals
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 2003Co-Authors: Kazuhiro Mochidzuki, Florence Soutric, Katsuaki Tadokoro, Borbála Zelei, Maria Toth, Michael Jerry Antal, Gabor VarhegyiAbstract:Because coal does not conduct electricity and graphite is costly and inert, little attention has been given to the development of a carbon fuel cell (i.e., a battery that utilizes a consumable carbon anode to generate electrical power). In this work we show that a packed bed of carbonized Charcoal particles subject to a compressive pressure (ca. 8 MPa) can be a good electrical conductor (σ < 0.2 Ω·cm). Low electrical resistivities σ are manifest by many different Charcoals after carbonization at a heat treatment temperature (HTT) of 950 °C. The 5 orders of magnitude decrease in the electrical resistivity of Charcoal with increasing HTT from 650 to 1050 °C is not associated with any dramatic change in the carbons' X-ray diffraction spectrum, its Fourier transform infrared spectrum, or its elemental analysis. Our findings cause us to visualize carbonized Charcoal to be a macromolecular, cross-linked, three-dimensional, aromatic structure replete with conjugation and π bonds that facilitate the movement of electrons, as well as nanopores, and micromolecular cracks. Because Charcoal powder is competitive in price with fossil fuels and because carbonized Charcoal is extremely reactive with a volumetric energy density (in a compacted packed bed) comparable to conventional liquid fuels, compact packed beds of carbonized Charcoal hold promise for use as electrodes and consumable anodes in fuel cells. The packed-bed apparatus we describe is a prototype anode for use in a biocarbon fuel cell. Because coal does not conduct electricity and graphite is costly and inert, little attention has been given to the development of a carbon fuel cell (i.e., a battery that utilizes a consumable carbon anode to generate electrical power). In this work we show that a packed bed of carbonized Charcoal particles subject to a compressive pressure (ca. 8 MPa) can be a good electrical conductor (σ < 0.2 Ω·cm). Low electrical resistivities σ are manifest by many different Charcoals after carbonization at a heat treatment temperature (HTT) of 950 °C. The 5 orders of magnitude decrease in the electrical resistivity of Charcoal with increasing HTT from 650 to 1050 °C is not associated with any dramatic change in the carbons' X-ray diffraction spectrum, its Fourier transform infrared spectrum, or its elemental analysis. Our findings cause us to visualize carbonized Charcoal to be a macromolecular, cross-linked, three-dimensional, aromatic structure replete with conjugation and π bonds that facilitate the movement of electrons, as well as nanopores, and micromolecular cracks. Because Charcoal powder is competitive in price with fossil fuels and because carbonized Charcoal is extremely reactive with a volumetric energy density (in a compacted packed bed) comparable to conventional liquid fuels, compact packed beds of carbonized Charcoal hold promise for use as electrodes and consumable anodes in fuel cells. The packed-bed apparatus we describe is a prototype anode for use in a biocarbon fuel cell.