A comparison of the decomposition of biomass gasification tar compound in CO, CO2, H2 and N2 carrier gases using non-thermal plasma

Abstract In this study, a comparative decomposition of toluene was investigated using a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor. The first-time decomposition of the tar model compound was investigated in pure CO gas. The effect of each carrier gas (N2, H2, CO2 and CO), which exists in product gas from the gasifier, was studied on the decomposition of tar analogue (toluene) and product distribution. The specific input energy (SIE) was also varied from 2.5 to 8.5 kJ/L to investigate the optimal removal of tar analogue. The maximum removal of toluene was 89.1% using N2 as carrier gas at 8.5 kJ/L and 1.43 s. However, the minimum removal of toluene was 62% using CO carrier gas under the same conditions. The decomposition of toluene in different carrier gases increased in the following order: CO