ARKHANGELSK, August 28. /TASS/. Scientists of the Northern Arctic Federal University in Arkhangelsk developed a method to make efficient fuel from hydrolyzed lignin - a peat-rich product that can be used in industry, the university's First Deputy Chancellor for Strategic Development and Science Pavel Maryandyshev, who runs the laboratory for alternative energy sources in the Arctic, told TASS.
Lignin is a polymer, found in cells of deciduous, coniferous and herbaceous plants. It is almost a third of trees' dry matter. Hydrolyzed lignin is a byproduct of cellulosic ethanol production processes. Torreficate is a product of limited oxygen access thermal treatment of biomass.
"We have practiced the technology for obtaining torreficate, and we have obtained torreficate that may be used in the metallurgical industry. Thus, it is a high-calorie fuel with good reactivity. Presently, hydrolyzed lignin is stored in landfills, polluting the soil. From it we can receive high-calorie fuel of a good reactivity, that can easily ignite and burn, and it has high heat transfer abilities, it may be used in industries that require high temperatures - the metallurgical industry's blast furnaces," the expert said.
The project featured the university's post-graduate students. Earlier, they succeeded in obtaining biofuels from peat, but working with hydrolyzed lignin differs. Due to its low density and a higher ash and sulfur content, the material requires different production conditions.
"Until recently, many have doubted obtaining peat from hydrolyzed lignin and sawdust, but we have modified our reactor to required conditions and by bringing the temperature to 430 degrees we managed to receive first samples of torreficated fuel," the scientist added.
The university's industrial partner has got interested in the technology to make biofuels from hydrolyzed lignin. The GreenArTech Company plans to produce it on an industrial scale for the metallurgical industry.