Boosting production of useful chemicals and micro-mesopores biochar from in situ catalytic pyrolysis of cellulose with red mud

Catalytic pyrolysis of biomass is an important approach to upgrade the quality of bio-oil. The development of catalyst with high activity and low cost is important for the development of catalytic pyrolysis technology. Red mud (RM), an industrial solid waste from alumina production, was used for the in situ catalytic pyrolysis of cellulose. The effect of the ratio of RM and cellulose was investigated, and the upgraded products were analyzed. The results showed that levoglucosan (LG) from pyrolysis of cellulose could be further catalytically converted into small oxygen-containing compounds. When cellulose was mixed with 40%RM, the production of furan increases significantly by 255%. Moreover, the obtained biochar mixed with RM shows the micro-mesoporous structures. The specific surface area decreases with the increase of RM content.