Study on pressurized upgradation of pyrolysis oil for high-value liquid products

Upgradation of pyrolysis oil is a key process to achieve high-quality biofuel. In this study, the effects of different Ar pressures and H₂/Ar ratios in the presence and absence of catalysts on deoxygenation of pyrolysis oil were investigated by autoclaving. When the initial pressure of the reaction is 6MPa and without catalyst addition, the content of carboxylic acid decreases from 51.52 to 41.54%, whereas with the addition of catalyst (10 % Ni/C), the deoxygenation and hydrocarbon content in the product were significantly improved. Hence, 6 MPa was found to be optimum and above which failed to induce such useful changes but can lead to lower high heating value (HHV). However, the presence of hydrogen affects the content of alkanes and olefins in the product.