Synthesis of H2-enriched syngas using waste pterospermum acerifolium fruits: Comparative analysis of oxidizing agents and their concentration

In this manuscript experimental investigation is presented in regards to the gasification of waste Pterospermum Acerifolium fruits (PAF) in downdraft configuration. The mass balance and gas composition results indicated that the gasifier can successfully gasify the PAF at an equivalence ratio of 0.27 to generate a gas of lower heating value of 5.37 MJ Nm ⁻³. An equilibrium model of the gasifier is also developed using the software Aspen Plus®. In air gasification, H ₂ and CO accounted for just 35% of the total volume fraction, which rises to 83% when O ₂ is used as the gasifying agent. The oxy-gasification of biomass at an equivalence ratio of 0.18 is found to generate gas at the highest lower heating value of 10.71 MJ Nm ⁻³, hence the optimum for heat/power applications. For Fischer-Tropsch and methanol synthesis, the optimum equivalence and steam-to-biomass ratios are found to be 0.18 and 0.641–0.668, respectively. This study presents a solution to manage forestry waste.