Production and chromatographic characterization of bio-oil from the pyrolysis of mango seed waste

Abstract Mango seed waste consists of tegument and almond and represents a considerable environmental problem in Brazil, due to the large amounts produced in the industrial processing of the fruit. An interesting alternative of utilising the mango seed waste is in the production of bio-oil by pyrolysis. The aim of this study was to produce bio-oil by pyrolysis of mango seed waste and observe its detailed chemical composition. The biomass, tegument and almond, were submitted to a pyrolysis in a fixed bed reactor at different final temperatures (450 °C/550 °C and 650 °C). The higher bio-oil yield obtained for tegument was 38.8% at 650 °C and for almond 28.1% at 450 °C. The bio-oils detailed compositions were investigated using GC × GC/TOFMS allied to software tools, retention index and dispersion graphics. A total number of 108 and 120 compounds tentatively identified in tegument-bio-oil and almond-bio-oil, respectively were found. The chemical compositions in each bio-oil were different. The major classes were: phenols (32.6%) and ketones (22.9%) in tegument-bio-oil and ketones (20.6%), acids (16.8%) and hydrocarbons (7.2%) in almond bio-oil. This is the first time that bio-oil has been produced by pyrolysis of mango seed waste and these bio-oils showed potential for the production of chemical and liquid fuels, proving to be a good option for the destination of this waste.