Tar decomposition-reforming conversion on microwave-heating carbon receptor

Abstract Gasification technology is known to be useful for recovering energy from organic waste and biomass, and the obtained gas can be used as fuel for gas turbines, engines, and fuel cells. However, gasification gas includes tar that can damages equipment, so it is necessary to clean the gas before using it. This study entailed analyzing the cracking and CO2-steam reforming conversion of toluene, as a model tar, to combustible fuel through microwave heating. The toluene conversion (higher heating value) percentages were 73% (1.2 MJ/m3) for toluene cracking, 92% (7.5 MJ/m3) for CO2 reforming, 80% (12 MJ/m3) for CO2-steam reforming, and 82% (5.4 MJ/m3) for steam reforming only. This indicates that it is preferable to supply CO2 and steam as reforming agents at a proper ratio to ensure that the tar conversion produces suitable gases.