Thermal and Thermocatalytic Study of Licuri Oil (Syagrus coronata) Using SBA-15 to Obtain Bioenergy
licuri, biofuel, pyrolysis, AlSBA-15
With an increasing demand for liquid fuels, it is important to research and develop environmentally friendly alternatives. The aviation industry requires a type of fuel that requires specific properties, where alternatives, such as aviation biofuel, must be compatible with existing engines. Biofuel can be synthesized in a number of ways, including thermal pyrolysis and thermo-catalytic pyrolysis. Thus, this paper aims to obtain aviation biofuel from Licuri oil by catalytic pyrolysis in the presence of a mesoporous catalyst. Therefore, the synthesis and characterization of AlSBA-15, as well as impregnation of the catalyst with Nickel (Ni) in percentages of 1%, 5% and 10% by mass were studied. The catalysts were characterized by thermal analysis TG / DTG, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-Transform Infrared Absorption Spectroscopy (FTIR), Nitrogen Adsorption (BET) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM / EDS). The catalysts showed XRD reflections consistent with the hexagonal P6mm structure of the AlSBA-15, demonstrating that the molecular sieve remained structured even with the impregnation of the metals. The thermal and thermo-catalytic pyrolysis of the licuri oil were evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis. The kinetic study was performed using the OFW and KAS model, in which a significant activation energy decrease in the presence of the catalyst with nickel, between 63 and 80 KJ / mol, was observed in comparison with the pure oil sample, in average 110 KJ / mol.