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ABSTRACT
The study examined the synergy of a 50-50% blend of coal and biomass under Torrefaction conditions. Torrefaction is a thermal treatment process for biomass upgrading that occurs at a temperature range of 390 to 570 degrees Fahrenheit (200 to 300 degrees Celsius) at near atmospheric pressure, in the absence of oxygen. During this process, moisture and volatile organic matter is removed thereby increasing the energy content and prevent biological degradation. Energy plays a crucial role in a nationʼs security, economic development, poverty eradication, and other financial factors. In the current era of increasing energy demand and growing concerns for the environment, the importance of sustainable and renewable energy sources is on the rise. Torrefaction is vital in the improvement of biomass for energy applications. This study provides on the possible generation of energy from the Synergistic Torrefaction of the blend of coal and biomass (1:1). The characterisation techniques involved includes Proximate analysis, Ultimate Analysis, and determination of the calorific value (HHV) of the coal, the biomass and the blend at four different torrefac-tion temperatures. The results obtained for the Proximate Analysis indicated that the biomass can serve as a catalyst during coal combustion. The fuel ratio (FR) also increased at increasing torrefac-tion temperatures, this is because the Fixed Carbon increases as the Volatile matter decreases at increasing temperature and for this blend of coal and biomass, the increase was over 74.1% at the most severe torrefac-tion condition. This indicates the lowest CO2 emissions during combustion which in turn is ecofriendly and aids the reduction of energy related environmental issues. Furthermore, the results obtained from the ultimate analysis shows that blending of the biomass with coal aids the reduction of the sulphur, nitrogen and total carbon content in the coal which in turn aids the reduction of the energy related environmental issues. The results also shows the high oxygen content in the biomass reduce the quality of fuel properties as the more the oxygen content, the lower the heating value. The blend of coal and the biomass under intense torrefac-tion conditions reduced the oxygen content thereby improving it's heating value making it a better fuel. Calorific value of 17.6MJ/Kg for biomass, 24.1MJ/Kg for the coal and 30.1MJ/Kg for the 50-50% blend of the coal and biomass under torrefac-tion conditions. This study clearly shows high level of synergy between the coal and the biomass and how the increased torrefac-tion severity influences the energy properties of the blend.
