Bioenergy potential of different varieties of paddy straw biomass

Pyrolysis is one of the principal routes for production of biogas, bio-oils, and biochar. The current investigation included three popular paddy varieties of different maturity duration to find out the effect of maturity duration on kinetic parameters. The average value of cellulose was found to be 33.85 %, volatiles 65.62 % and HHV 15.79 MJ/kg. The average values of activation energy (E alpha ) were higher for medium (196.97 kJ/mol) and mid early (181.41 kJ/mol) varieties compared to late duration (174.93 kJ/mol) varieties. The A alpha values of 10 12 - 10 15 , 10 12 - 10 15 , 10 13 - 10 15 and 10 13 - 10 15 was recorded under OFW, KAS, S and T models, respectively for the late duration variety. The A values were found to be as high as 10 22 under different models for other two varieties. From the Coats-Redfern and master plot ( Z - alpha) analysis, D4 and D3 diffusion models were found as the best fit models.