Effects of pretreatment procedure, compositional feature and reaction condition on the devolatilization characteristics of biomass during pyrolysis process: A review

Biomass is a plentiful and renewable energy source. Currently, the conversion of biomass into gaseous product, bio-oil, and biochar through pyrolysis is one of the significant technologies in the development of the energy recycling economy. The application research of three-phase products of biomass has gradually reached the commercial level. This paper reviewed the latest advancements in biomass pyrolysis technology, especially the impacts of pretreatment processes, types of biomass materials, and pyrolysis parameters on the products derived from biomass pyrolysis. Through detailed analyses of physical, chemical, physicochemical, and biological pretreatment technologies, the potential of different pretreatment methods for enhancing the quality of three-phase products was revealed. Moreover, the effects of different biomass materials on the pyrolysis products was also discussed systematically, elucidating how pyrolysis temperature, heating rate, reaction duration, gas atmosphere and pressure affecting the distribution and properties of pyrolysis products. Finally, this paper presented the challenges and future directions in the field of biomass thermal conversion, providing a theoretical foundation and technical support for the efficient conversion and utilization of biomass based solid waste. •Variations in pretreatment procedure affected biomass devolatilization characteristics.•Rising pyrolysis severity promotes the yield of liquid and gaseous products.•Prolonging pyrolysis duration was beneficial to enhancing the generation of tar.•Reaction atmosphere affects the feature of products derived from biomass pyrolysis process.