Production and characterization of pyrolysis liquids from sunflower-pressed bagasse

Pyrolysis experiments on sunflower (Helianthus annus L.)-pressed bagasse were performed in a fixed-bed tubular reactor. The effects of nitrogen flow rate and final pyrolysis temperature on the pyrolysis product yields and chemical compositions were investigated. The maximum bio-oil yield of 52.10 wt.% was obtained in a nitrogen atmosphere with flow rate of 50 ml min−1 and at a pyrolysis temperature of 550 °C with a heating rate of 5 °C s−1. The chemical characterization results showed that the oil obtained from sunflower-pressed bagasse may be a potentially valuable source as fuel or chemical feedstocks.