CHARACTERIZATION OF RICE STRAW FOR THE PRODUCTION OF BIO-OIL

This study focuses on development of Auger Bed reactor for the fast pyrolysis of Rice Straw. A 30cm diameter, 180cm long horizontal Auger Bed reactor was fabricated for the Fast Pyrolysis of waste agro biomass in the CO2 Research and Green Technologies Center, VIT University. The heat required for the pyrolysis is provided by 5kW*4external wall electrical heaters. To ensure efficient heat transfer, provisions were made for the introduction of hot Nitrogen gas in the reactor chamber. A 1500 rpm rated speed DC motor is used to rotate the Auger shaft. A three stage condensation of the Pyrolysis vapors take place by providing three heat exchangers maintained at different temperatures. The Rice Straw obtained from the nearby fields was analyzed and Pyrolysis trials were taken on the Rice Straw feed with different process parameters.Characterization tests were performed on the Bio-Oil obtained from the trials. The Auger Bed reactor scheme is less investigated than other Reactor systems, and through this study an attempt has been made to study and develop a robust pilot scale plant for the production of Bio-Oil from agricultural waste biomass.