Bio-oil from microwave-assisted pyrolysis (neap) of non-edible/crop residue/contaminated biomass

Bio-oil together with bio-char and biogas may be obtained through thermochemical treatment of biomass. There are several ways to supply the energy required to perform this process. In this review are reported our results through the Microwave-Assisted Pyrolysis (MAP) of nonedible/ crop residue/contaminated biomass. Cellulose and Kraft lignin are the main components of woody biomasses so they were initially tested to evaluate their contribution to generate the bio-oil. After that some biomass residues from agricultural productions (i.e., olive pruning residue, crops from Vitis vinifera), short rotation coppice, Arundo Donax (well known for its invasive properties), wood pellets and solid residue from municipal waste were also tested and analyzed to obtain bio-oils (around (34.9-41.9%) together with a bio-char (17.2-34.9%). Furthermore, end-life or contaminated commercial polymeric material produced from renewable sources (i.e., as corn-derived plastic bags) was tested as feedstock for bio-oil and bio-char production. Finally, poly(lactic acid), a bio-plastic synthesized from natural sources, was pyrolyzed to recover the monomer used for its production. The bio-oils were characterized to evaluate their use as a fuel or source of chemical compounds for a bio-refinery, also biochars were characterized suggesting their use as adsorbent, solid fuel or in carbon sequestration processes.