Improvement of methods for researching the elemental composition of biofuels and raw materials for their production
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31471/1993-9868-2025-2(44)-249-260Keywords:
lignocellulosic biomass; elemental composition; non-destructive testing methods.Abstract
Lignocellulosic biomass is a reliable source of renewable energy and important chemicals for industrial use. Its popularity is due to its high prevalence, limited environmental impact and relatively low price. One of the most promising methods for converting this type of raw material into biofuel is thermal treatment. Thermal treatment allows for the formation of a wide range of useful gaseous, liquid, and solid products depending on the reaction conditions. The main and most important factor determining the efficiency of processing is the elemental composition of the initial biomass, its change during processing, and the composition of the finished products. Rapid and reliable elemental analysis of biomass and its processing products is important for commercialising production. The paper discusses the main methods for determining the composition of biomass, in particular, classical, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray fluorescence analysis. The features of each method are analysed. The classical method used to determine the elemental composition of biomass is highly accurate but, at the same time, labour-intensive, expensive and requires the use of hazardous chemicals that generate large amounts of waste. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) method is quite effective for a faster assessment of the elemental composition of biomass, but it is considered insufficiently sensitive. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a surface-sensitive method and useful for studying the carbon, oxygen and nitrogen content in various organic materials, but to obtain accurate experimental data when using this method to determine the elemental composition of biomass, mathematical dependencies are required to calibrate the measuring instruments using the classical method. The use of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to determine the chemical composition of biomass basically confirms the effectiveness of the method. The experimental data obtained have deviations in the range from ±10% to ±20%, which seems quite satisfactory for many applications. At the same time, for some elements, systematic errors (deviations) can be quite pronounced and amount to 50–100%. Therefore, in our opinion, this direction is at an early stage of development and needs improvement. The research conducted in this work gives grounds to conclude that non-destructive control methods that can be carried out on site are promising for determining the elemental composition of biomass during processing. This approach contributes to the commercialisation of biofuel production processes and trade in both raw materials and finished products.
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