What is Pyrolysis?

Posted on April 11, 2016 : News, Waste to Energy

Pyrolysis is a thermochemical decomposition of organic material at elevated temperatures in the absence of oxygen.

It involves the real -time change of chemical composition and  physical phase, and is irreversible. The word is coined from the Greek-derived elements pyro “fire” & lysis “separating”.

The process has been used for thousands of years. In its simplest form materials are heated in a retort in the absence of oxygen. Pyrolysis is a type of thermolysis, and is most commonly observed in organic materials exposed to high temperatures. It is one of the processes involved in charring wood, starting at 200–300 °C (390–570 °F). It also occurs in fires where solid fuels are burning or when vegetation comes into contact with lava in volcanic eruptions. In general, pyrolysis of organic substances produces gas and liquid products and leaves a solid residue richer in carbon content, char.

Our system has taken this known and well used process and refined it using the latest technologies so that it can be used at almost any scale to convert fuels with latent energy back into their original constituents so that a usable energy can be produced from the process. They have also made the process continuous and efficient for a variety of input fuel types. The output of the system is all in the form of usable products. The main output is syngas that can be converted to energy.