A Novel Investigation of the Design of Experiments on Pakistani Wood Biochar and the Impact of Process Constraints on Biochar's Characteristics

Samples of native Pakistani wood looked into as possible locally obtained raw materials for the manufacturing of biochar. The best feedstock found to be pure softwood through screening studies. Using design of experiments, the effects of operating factors, such as flow rate of activating gas (CO2), contact time and heating ramp rate on ultimate biochar properties studied. The response variables that chosen were surface area and biochar yield. The experimental run conditions were determined using Minitab, which also recommended an ideal output of 60 minutes of contact time and a 17 °C/min ramp rate for maximal reactions. Softwood produced the largest surface area (744 m2/g) at 850 °C, despite a 13% yield. The observed surface area, with a yield of approximately 16%, was 593 m2/g under optimal conditions. Pareto charts, which showed a strong correlation with experimental data, indicated that the chosen answers were unaffected by the gas flow rate. The pore structure consisted of a blend of meso and micro pores, with an average point of zero charge of 7.20 ± 0.01 and pore diameters of 2-6 nm. According to proximate analysis, the optimized biochar fixed carbon content increased from 20% in the feedstock to 80%. The biochar’s multilayer carbon structure revealed via morphological investigation. The findings demonstrate the importance of the chosen feedstock as a possible basis of biochar material as well as the significance of the interaction between effective variables and their ultimate properties in the formation of biochar

Kalsoom Sarwar, Zill-i-Huma Nazli, Hassan Munir, Maryam Aslam, Nusrat Shafiq