Distillation and multidimensional GC analysis of a biomass pyrolysis oil

PETR 65

Fabrice Bertoncini, fabrice.bertoncini@ifp.fr1, Emmanuelle Durand, Emmanuelle.durand@ifp.fr2, Nadege Charon, Nadege.charon@ifp.fr2, Didier Espinat, didier.espinat@ifp.fr2, and Alain Quignard, alain.quignard@ifp.fr3. (1) Physics and Analysis Division, Institut Francais du Petrole, PO Box 3, Vernaison, 69390, France, (2) Physics and Analysis Division, Institut Français du Pétrole, PO Box 3, Vernaison, 69390, France, (3) Process Development and Engineering Division, Institut Français du Pétrole, PO Box 3, Vernaison, 69390, France
Flash/fast pyrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass produces oils which can be directly used for energy production, but their use for transportation fuels is under development. Knowledge of the chemical composition of pyrolysis oils is essential in order to be able to upgrade them efficiently into fuels. However, the detailed characterization of pyrolysis oils is not directly available because of the sample chemical complexity and thermal stability. In this work, a flash pyrolysis bio-oil has been distilled at different temperature under vacuum conditions before performing structural analyses. Carboxylic acids, furfurals and methoxyphenols have been identified in the light bio-oil fraction by GC-MS analysis. The molecular composition of the middle distillate fraction has been investigated by two-dimensional gas chromatography (GCxGC) that provides boiling point versus polarity structured chromatograms. The GCxGC-TOF/MS analysis indicates that the major families of this fraction are furans and cyclopentenones produced by the pyrolysis of cellulose or hemi-cellulose, as well as alkyl-phenols, alkyl-guaiacols and other phenolic derived compounds which come from lignin degradation.