What is Pyrolysis?

Pyro = heat. Lysis = break down.Plastic Pyrolysis is chemical reaction. This reaction
involves molecular breakdown of larger molecules into smaller molecules in presence of
heat. Pyrolysis is also known as thermal cracking, cracking, thermolysis, depolymerization,
etc.

At any given temperature the molecule is in vibrating stage. This is called molecular
vibration. The frequency at which molecules vibrates is the directly proportional to the
temperature of molecules. During pyrolysis the objects molecules are subjected to very high
temperatures leading to very high molecular vibrations. At these high molecular vibrations,
every molecule in the object is stretched and shaken to such an extent that molecules starts
breaking down into smaller molecules. This is pyrolysis.

Simplest example of pyrolysis is food cooking. When you cook food the temperature of food
increases leading to higher molecular vibrations and breakdown of larger complex
molecules into smaller and simple molecules. After cooking larger food molecules are
pyrolyzed into smaller in simpler molecules which are easy to digest.

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Introduction
Pyrolysis is a process of chemically decomposing organic materials at elevated
temperatures in the absence of oxygen. The process typically occurs at temperatures
above 430C (800F) and under pressure. It simultaneously involves the change of
physical phase and chemical composition, and is an irreversible process. The word
pyrolysis is coined from the Greek words "pyro" which means fire and "lysis" which
means separating.

Pyrolysis is commonly used to convert organic materials into a solid residue containing
ash and carbon, small quantities of liquid and gases. Extreme pyrolysis, on the other
hand yields carbon as the residue and the process is called carbonization. Unlike other
high-temperature processes like hydrolysis and combustion, pyrolysis does not involve
reaction with water, oxygen or other reagents. However, as it is practically not possible
to achieve an oxygen- free environment, a small amount of oxidation always occurs in
any pyrolysis system.

Types of Pyrolysis
There are three types of pyrolytic reactions differentiated by the processing time and
temperature of the biomass.

Slow Pyrolysis
Slow pyrolysis is characterized by lengthy solids and gas residence times, low
temperatures and slow biomass heating rates. In this mode, the heating temperatures
ranges from 0.1 to 2C (32.18 to 35.6F) per second and the prevailing temperatures
are nearly 500C (932F). The residence time of gas may be over five seconds and that
of biomass may range from minutes to days.
During slow pyrolysis, tar and char are released as main products as the biomass is
slowly devolatilized. Repolymerization/recombination reactions occur after the primary
reactions take place.

Flash Pyrolysis
Flash pyrolysis occurs at rapid heating rates and moderate temperatures between 400
and 600C (752 and 1112F). However, vapor residence time of this process is less than
2s. Flash pyrolysis produces fewer amounts of gas and tar when compared to slow
pyrolysis.

Fast Pyrolysis
This process is primarily used to produce bio-oil and gas. During the process, biomass
is rapidly heated to temperatures of 650 to 1000C (1202 to 1832F) depending on the
desired amount of bio-oil or gas products. Char is accumulated in large quantities and
has to be removed frequently.

Microwave Pyrolysis
Fast pyrolysis has been shown to benefit from the use of microwave heating. Biomass
typically absorbs microwave radiation very well, making heating of the material highly
efficient - just like microwave heating of food, it can reduce the time taken to initiate the
pyrolysis reactions, and also greatly reduces the energy required for the process.
Because microwave heating can initiate pyrolysis at much lower overall temperatures
(sometimes as low as 200-300°C), it has been found that the bio-oil produced
contains higher concentrations of more thermally labile, higher value chemicals,
suggesting that microwave bio-oil could be used as a replacement to crude oil as a
feedstock for some chemical processes.

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