Enhancing biomass gasification: A comparative study of catalyst applications in updraft and modifiable-downdraft fixed bed reactors

This study aims to investigate the effects of different catalysts on biomass gasification. Therefore, red mud (RM) and Aluminum - Nickel alloy were used as catalysts with biomass mixture (BM) for the lab-scale gasification studies by using an updraft and a modifiable-downdraft fixed bed reactor. The maximum volumetric percentage of H 2 , ranging from 51% to 65%, was achieved at 900 degrees C in both gasifiers. Al - Ni catalyst significantly boosted H 2 content, reaching 65% in the updraft gasifier at 900 degrees C with 0.05 L/min dry air. H 2 /CO ratio varied from 2 to 4 for BM, while catalyst use expanded the range to 1.6 - 7 with the Al - Ni catalyst demonstrating the most effective performance. In general, it was seen that RM increased the H 2 component in the syngas between 1 and 7 vol% at 900 degrees C in updraft gasifier. In the modifiable-downdraft reactor, on the contrary, H 2 concentration in the syngas decreased by 2 - 6% with the addition of RM.