Fuel Processing Technology, Vol.138, 404-412, 2015
Characterization of the liquid products obtained from Tunisian waste fish fats using the pyrolysis process
The use of organic wastes as new renewable energy sources is becoming necessary to achieve the growing energy demand in Tunisia. In this work, the pyrolysis of abundant waste fish fats provided by a canned Tuna factory was examined in a laboratory fixed-bed reactor. The main objective was to analyze the properties and the composition of the produced bio-oil using in order to implement the suitable valorization strategy. Therefore, high heating value, viscosity, density, flash point, acidity index, moisture content and ash content measurements as well as FTIR and GCMS analyses were carried out to characterize the pyrolytic oil obtained during waste fish pyrolysis at 500 degrees C. The obtained results revealed that waste fish fats can be considered as important feedstock for biofuel production. In particular, the bio-oil characterization showed the presence of many organic compounds such as alkanes, alkenes, alkynes, cyclic hydrocarbons, carboxylic acids, aldehydes and alcohols. These compounds could be used as a valuable and sustainable chemicals source. Moreover, the bio-oil properties indicated a good calorific value (similar to 9391 kcal/kg) compared to Tunisian Diesel and European biodiesel specifications. In contrast, higher acidity (similar to 103 mg KOH/g sample) and viscosity (similar to 7 cSt) compared to conventional fuels were obtained. These properties limit the direct use of bio-oils as alternative fuel in a Diesel engine. An efficient mixture with fossil fuel may be a promising solution to improve the fuel properties. Hence, pyrolysis seems to be an eco-friendly process to recover the fish fatty wastes in Tunisia. The implementation of such management strategy will help Tunisian agri-food industries to reduce their environmental impact and fossil fuel consumption and to promote the renewable energy use. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.