Preparation of activated clay from Ratchaburi bentonite for pyrolysis oil decolorization

Abstract

Bentonite is a clay mineral which widely used in considerable applications, such as bleaching agent in the oil refining process, lubricant in drilling for civil works, filler and additive as well as used to absorb odors from the waste. It can be achieved that bentonite is very tremendously advantageous and employ in many industries. The aims of this research were carried out to study the preparation of activated clay from bentonite Ratchaburi for pyrolysis oil decolorization. The bentonite was processed by activation with sulfuric acid (H2SO4), hydrochloric acid (HCl). sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH), various the ratio of bentonite to activation agents of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 and soaking time of 30, 60 and 120 min at a temperature of 100 °C. The activated clays were investigated decolorize pyrolysis oil with various activated clay dosages of 10, 30, 50 and 70 g per 100 ml of pyrolysis oil and temperatures of 30, 60, 80, 100 and 120°C then comparable the color of bleached pyrolysis oil with commercial diesel. Regeneration of spent activated clay was carried out by thermal regeneration processes at temperatures of 400, 500 and 800°C. The chemical composition and mineralogical composition of activated clays were determined by X-ray fluorescence analyzer (XRF) and X-ray diffraction analyzer (XRD) respectively. Specific surface area and porosity were analyzed by nitrogen adsorption analyzer (BET) and morphological analysis using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results have shown that activated clays from Ratchaburi bentonite were increased surface area and porosity and effective in decolorize pyrolysis oil with obtaining the color of pyrolysis oil is similar to commercial diesel.