SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND COMPOSITIONS RELATING TO COMBUSTIBLE BIOMATERIALS
A method for making a combustible material is described. The method includes: (i) receiving one or more types of biomass, each of which includes an inorganic material; (ii) rupturing lignocellulose in one or more types of the biomass to produce ruptured biomass including the inorganic material; (iii) washing the ruptured biomass with solvent to drive the inorganic material from the ruptured biomass into the solvent to produce an inorganic-material-enriched solvent and an inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass; (iv) pyrolyzing the inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass to produce a combustible biomaterial.
1 . A method for making a combustible material, comprising:
receiving one or more types of biomass, each of which includes an inorganic material;
rupturing lignocellulose in said one or more types of biomass to produce ruptured biomass including said inorganic material;
washing said ruptured biomass with solvent to drive inorganic materials from said ruptured biomass into said solvent to produce a inorganic-material-enriched solvent and a inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass;
pyrolyzing said inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass to produce a combustible biomaterial.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said rupturing is carried out by crushing or chopping said lignocellulose in said biomass.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of said one or more types of biomass includes at least one member selected from a group consisting of rice straw, sugar cane leaves, cotton stalks, mustard stalks, pine needles, coffee husks, coconut husks, rice husks, mustard husks, weed straw, corn stover, sugar cane bagasse, millet stalks, pulses stalks, sweet sorghum stalks, nut shells, animal manure, guar husk, acacia totalis, julia flora, jatropha residue, wild grass, pigeon beans, pearl millet, barley, dry chili, gran jowar, linseed, maize/corn, lentil, mung bean, sunflower, til, oil seed stalks, pulses/millets, black gram, sawan, soybean stalks, cow gram, horse gram, finger millet, turmeric, castor seed, meshta, sannhamp, and hemp.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said solvent includes H 2 O or H 2 SO 4 .
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said solvent has a pH that is between about 4 and about 7 .
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said ruptured biomass including said inorganic material is washed for a time that is between 20 minutes and 60 minutes.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said solvent is maintained at a temperature that is between about 10° C. and 90° C.
8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein said solvent is maintained at a temperature of about 50° C.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said washing includes washing ruptured biomass using recycled solvent.
10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein said recycled solvent is maintained at a temperature of between about 30° C. and about 70° C.
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein said recycled solvent is maintained at a temperature of about 50° C.
12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said pyrolyzing is carried out at temperature that is between about 200° C. and about 400° C.
13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein said pyrolyzing is carried out at a temperature that is between about 200° C. and about 350° C.
14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said pyrolyzing is carried out in the absence of oxygen.
15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said pyrolyzing is carried out for a time that is between about 10 minutes and about 24 hours.
16 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising densifying said combustible biomaterial to produce biocoal.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein said densifying is carried out using a pelletizer to produce biocoal pellets.
18 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising soaking said ruptured biomass in said solvent before said washing said ruptured said biomass.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein said soaking is carried out at a temperature that is between about 30° C. and about 70° C.
20 . The method of claim 18 , wherein said soaking is carried for a duration that is between about 5 minutes and about 90 minutes.
21 . The method of claim 18 , wherein said solvent has a pH that is between about 4 and about 7.
22 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising pressing said inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass to squeeze out the residual solvent after said washing said ruptured biomass.
23 . The method of claim 22 , further comprising drying said inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass after said screw pressing.
24 . The method of claim 23 , wherein said drying includes air drying said inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass or drying said inorganic-material-depleted ruptured biomass using syngas produced from said pyrolyzing, and wherein said syngas includes one member selected from a group consisting of alcohols, aldehydes, carboxylic acids, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, butane, propane, and hydrogen.
25 . A method for producing combustible biomaterial, comprising:
receiving one or more types of biomass, each of which includes an inorganic material;
washing said biomass with a solvent to drive said inorganic materials from said biomass into said solvent to produce an inorganic-material-enriched solvent and an inorganic-material-depleted biomass;
pyrolyzing said inorganic-material-depleted biomass to produce a combustible biomaterial and carbon dioxide; and
drying said inorganic-material-depleted biomass using said carbon dioxide to produce a dried-inorganic-material-depleted biomass.
26 . The method of claim 25 , wherein said biomass includes at least one member selected from a group consisting of rice straw, sugar cane leaves, cotton stalks, mustard stalks, pine needles, coffee husks, coconut husks, rice husks, mustard husks, weed straw, corn stover, sugar cane bagasse, millet stalks, pulses stalks, sweet sorghum stalks, nut shells, animal manure, guar husk, acacia totalis, julia flora, jatropha residue, wild grass, pigeon beans, pearl millet, barley, dry chili, gran jowar, linseed, maize/corn, lentil, mung bean, sunflower, til, oil seed stalks, pulses/millets, black gram, sawan, soybean stalks, cow gram, horse gram, finger millet, turmeric, castor seed, meshta, sannhamp, and hemp.
27 . The method of claim 25 , wherein said solvent includes H 2 O or H 2 SO 4 .
28 . The method of claim 25 , wherein said solvent has a pH that is between about 4 and about 7.
29 . The method of claim 25 , wherein said inorganic-material-depleted biomass has a consistency of sludge.
30 . The method of claim 25 , further comprising rupturing lignocellulose in said one or more types of biomass to produce ruptured biomass including said inorganic material, and said rupturing performed before said washing said biomass.
31 . The method of claim 25 , further comprising air drying said inorganic-material-depleted biomass, said air drying is performed before said pyrolyzing.
32 . The method of claim 31 , wherein said air drying is performed during said drying.
33 . The method of claim 31 , wherein said drying is performed at a temperature that is between about 20° C. and about 50° C.
34 . The method of claim 25 , further comprising conveying said carbon dioxide produced from said pyrolyzing for said drying.