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Steam Explosion Pre-Treatment of Sawdust for Biofuel Pellets

The current study explores steam explosion pre-treatment of wood sawdust to develop high-quality biofuel pellets. In order to determine optimized conditions (temperature and residence time) for steam-treated biomass, seven test responses were chosen, including bulk, particle and pellet densities as well as tensile strength, dimensional stability, ash content and higher heating value (HHV). Parameters tested for steam treatment process included the combination of temperatures 180, 200 and 220 °C and durations of 3, 6 and 9 min. Results showed that when the severity of steam pre-treatment increased from 2.83 to 4.49, most of the qualities except HHV and ash content were favorable for steam pretreated materials. The pellet density of pretreated sawdust in comparison to raw sawdust resulted in 20% improvement (1262 kg/m3 for pretreated material compared with 1049 kg/m3 for non-treated material). Another important factor in determining the best pellet quality is tensile strength, which can be as high as 5.59 MPa for pretreated pellets compared with 0.32 MPa for non-treated pellets. As a result, transportation and handling properties can be enhanced for steam pretreated biomass pellets. After optimization, the selected treatment was analyzed for elemental and chemical composition. Lower nitrogen and sulfur contents compared with fossil fuels make steam pretreated pellets a cleaner option for home furnaces and industrial boilers. High-quality pellets were produced based on optimized pre-treatment conditions and are therefore suggested for bioenergy applications.