Douglas Alberto Rocha De Castro

By C. C. Fereira, E. C. Costa, D. A. R. de Castro, M. S. Pereira, A. A. Mâncio, M. C. Santos, D. E. L. Lhamas, S. A. P. da Mota, M. E. Araújo, Luiz E. P. Borges and N. T. Machado

This work aims to investigate the fractional distillation of organic liquid products (OLP) obtained by catalytic cracking of palm oil (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) at 450°C, 1.0 atm, with 5, 10, and 15% (wt) Na2CO3, using a stirred tank reactor of 143 L. The fractional distillations of OLP were carried out in laboratory scale with and without reflux using columns of different heights, and a pilot‐packed distillation column with internal reflux. OLP and distillation fractions (gasoline, kerosene, light diesel, and heavy diesel) were physicochemically characterized for density, kinematic viscosity, acid value, saponification value, refractive index, flash point, and copper strip corrosion. The OLP and light diesel fractions were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR) and gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry (GC‐MS). For the experiments in laboratory scale, the yields of distillates decrease along with column height, with and without reflux, while those of bottoms products increase. The yields of distillates and gas increase with increasing Na2CO3 content, while those of bottoms products decrease. The densities of gasoline, kerosene, and light diesel produced in laboratory scale with reflux superpose exactly those of kerosene, light diesel, and heavy diesel produced in laboratory scale without reflux. The kinematic viscosity decreases with increasing column height for the experiments in laboratory scale. The acid values of distillation fractions decrease along with the column height for the experiments with and without reflux. The FT‐IR of distillation fractions in pilot and laboratory scales identified the presence of aliphatic hydrocarbons and oxygenates. The GC‐MS analysis identified OLP composition of 92.84% (area) hydrocarbons and 7.16% (area) oxygenates. The light diesel fraction contains 100% hydrocarbons with an acid value of 0.34 mg KOH/g, proving the technical feasibility of OLP de‐acidification by the fractional distillation process.

Part of the book: Distillation

By Douglas Alberto Rocha de Castro, Haroldo Jorge da Silva Ribeiro, Caio Campos Ferreira, Márcio de Andrade Cordeiro, Lauro Henrique Hamoy Guerreiro, Anderson M. Pereira, W. G. dos Santos, Marcelo Costa Santos, Fernanda B. de Carvalho, Jose Otavio Carrera Silva Junior, R. Lopes e Oliveira, Sergio Duvoisin, Luiz Eduardo Pizarro Borges and Nélio Teixeira Machado

In this work, the seeds of açaí (Euterpe oleracea, Mart), a rich lignin-cellulose residue, has been submitted to pyrolysis to produce a bio-oil-like fossil fuels. The pyrolysis carried out in a reactor of 143 L, 450°C, and 1.0 atm. The morphology of Açaí seeds in nature and after pyrolysis is characterized by SEM, EDX, and XRD. The experiments show that bio-oil, gas, and coke yields were 4.38, 30.56, and 35.67% (wt.), respectively. The bio-oil characterized by AOCS, ASTM, and ABNT/NBR methods for density, kinematic viscosity, and acid value. The bio-oil density, viscosity, and acid value were 1.0468 g/cm3, 68.34 mm2/s, and 70.26 KOH/g, respectively. The chemical composition and chemical functions of bio-oil are determined by GC-MS and FT-IR. The GC-MS identified in bio-oil 21.52% (wt.) hydrocarbons and 78.48% (wt.) oxygenates (4.06% esters, 8.52% carboxylic acids, 3.53% ketones, 35.16% phenols, 20.52% cresols, 5.75% furans, and 0.91% (wt.) aldehydes), making it possible to apply fractional distillation to obtain fossil fuel-like fractions rich in hydrocarbons. The distillation of bio-oil is carried out in a laboratory-scale column, according to the boiling temperature of fossil fuels. The distillation of bio-oil yielded fossil fuel-like fractions (gasoline, kerosene, and light diesel) of 4.70, 28.21, and 22.35% (wt.), respectively.

Part of the book: Fractionation