Kinetics of rice husk char gasification

The gasification of rice husk char in carbon dioxide and steam was investigated for determining the kinetic parameters. Experiments were conducted with rice husk char in its original grain form in a silica tube reactor with steam at temperatures of 750 degreesC, 800 degreesC, 850 degreesC and 900 degreesC and experiments were conducted with rice husk char powder in a thermogravimetric balance in a carbon dioxide medium at temperatures of 750 degreesC, 800 degreesC, 850 degreesC and 900 degreesC. The data was analysed based on the volume reaction and shrinking core models. The activation energies obtained for the rice husk grain sample were 200 kJ/mol and for the rice husk powder, about 180 kJ/mol respectively. The results obtained are in good agreement with literature values of different char gasification reactions. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.