Obtenção da energia de ativação, a partir da Equação de Arrhenius, envolvida na degradação térmica e catalítica da biomassa Passiflora edulis.

Abstract

The use of fossil fuels has been a predominant source of energy since the Industrial Revolution, promoting global economic and industrial growth. However, the depletion of these resources and the associated environmental impacts are driving the search for more sustainable alternatives. In this context, lignocellulosic biomass emerges as a promising option due to its availability, renewability, high energy efficiency and low economic value. In general, lignocellulosic biomass is a complex mixture of natural polymers found mainly in the cell walls of plants, mostly formed by cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and small amounts of extractives and minerals. This plant matter comes from photosynthesis, a process that converts solar energy into chemical energy. Therefore, when subjected to thermochemical transformation processes, the bonds between carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in biomass are broken, releasing previously stored chemical energy. This makes it possible to convert biomass into solid, gaseous and/or liquid fuels. The main purpose of converting biomass is to transform it into an economically viable product that can be used to replace non-renewable energy sources. In this work, an analysis was carried out with the seed and bark lignocellulosic biomasses of Passiflora edulis sims to determine the activation energy (Ea ) involved in the thermal degradation of these materials and the influence of the catalysts Al-MCM-41 and La-MCM-41 in determining this parameter using the Arrhenius equation as a basis for this feat. Based on the results obtained, the studied catalysts are not suitable for the degradation of passion fruit peel biomass as they increase the activation energy involved in the process, while for seed degradation they make a significant contribution to reducing this energy.