Improving quality and yield production of coconut shell charcoal through a modified pyrolysis reactor with tar scrubber to reduce smoke pollution

Abstract

The two main problems faced by the conventional coconut shell charcoal industry are low charcoal yield and smoke pollution. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to modify the pyrolysis reactor equipped with tar scrubbers as a solution to the problem of smoke pollution and yield, and improve the quality of charcoal. A reactor of the size 2.4 x 1.2 x 1.2 m and the heat coming out of the rocket stove can be blown from the bottom, thus it can propagate evenly through a perforated plate. The reactor was designed with circulating pipes as places for channeling non-condensable gases to be used as fuel. Produced charcoal yield rose from 23% to 28% and the quality of charcoal fulfilled SNI requirements and those of the Republic of Indonesia Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. The morphology of charcoal and mineral composition in SEM-EDX showed an increase in the composition of carbon elements by 83.63%. The FTIR spectrum results decrease in the broad intensity of O-H and the charcoal structure produced was amorphous. The total pore volume was 0.07336 cc/g and the pore surface area was 12.716 m2/g. This modified reactor with tar scrubber produces better yield, and minimal smoke pollution compared to traditional combustion of charcoal.