Pyrolysis of Burley Tobacco: Impact of Process Parameters on Bio-oil Composition and Yield

Pyrolysis of biomass is a renewable process technology that can produce bio-oil for fuels or chemicals. The pyrolysis of non-cured Japanese burley tobacco leaves was carried by varying tobacco particle sizes, temperature, and nitrogen gas flow rates. Linear regression and statistical analysis using ANOVA were conducted to investigate the significance of the parameters in bio-oil yield and nicotine concentration in bio-oil. The flow rate of nitrogen gas showed a direct correlation with a decrease in liquid yield and an increase in gas yield. On the other hand, the temperature and size of particles showed only a slight impact on the liquid yield. These two parameters also strongly affected bio-oil chemical composition, particularly the nicotine concentration, which has promise for medicinal applications. These results show that the particle size can change the selectivity of tobacco bio-oil chemical compounds and should be carefully examined as a key process parameter.