Investigation on the co-pyrolysis of municipal solid waste and sawdust: pyrolysis behaviors, kinetics, and thermodynamic analysis

ABSTRACT

This paper aimed to disclose the interaction during the co-pyrolysis of sawdust (Wood) and municipal solid waste (MSW) using a thermogravimetric analyzer at the heating rates of 10, 30, and 50 °C/min. The results of thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) indicated that Wood enhanced the depolymerization reaction of plastics in MSW, while MSW could reduce the thermal decomposition temperature of lignocellulosic substances in Wood. In addition, the devolatilization indexes (D_i) for the blended samples were approximately 3 times that of Wood, and the maximum of which was −2.5729 × 10⁻⁶ %·min⁻¹·K⁻³ (in WM11), implying that co-pyrolysis was conducive to the release of volatile matter. Moreover, the apparent activation energy (E_α) was calculated by the Kissinger–Akahira–Sunose (KAS) and Flynn-–Wall–Ozawa (FWO) methods. When the mass ratio of MSW to Wood was 1:1, the value of the average activation energy (E_ave) was optimal, which was 191.37 kJ/mol. Additionally, the experimental E_ave of WM11 was 15.15 kJ/mol lower than the theoretical. Furthermore, thermodynamic parameters (ΔH, ΔG, and ΔS) were calculated, and the results verified that co-pyrolysis was a feasible and advantageous way to convert waste into energy.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• sawdust
• municipal solid waste
• co-pyrolysis
• interaction
• synergistic effect

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Supplemental Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/15567036.2022.2116505

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2022A1515011653); Key Technologies Research and Development Program of Guangzhou (202206010122); Key Project (Natural Science) of Guangdong High Education Institutes (2019KZDXM068).