Thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin

Abstract

The thermal degradation of samples of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin have been investigated using the techniques of thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) between room temperature and 600°C. The results calculated from static and dynamic TGA indicated that the activation energy E for thermal degradation for different cellulosic, hemicellulose, and lignin samples is in the range 36–60, 15–26, and 13–19 kcal/mole, respectively. DTA of all the wood components studied showed an endothermic tendency around 100°C in an atmosphere of flowing nitrogen and stationary air. However, in the presence of flowing oxygen this endothermic effect was absent. In the active pyrolysis temperature range in flowing nitrogen and stationary air atmospheres, thermal degradation of Avicel cellulose occurred via a sharp endothermic and a sharp exothermic process, the endothermic nadir and exothermic peak being at 320° and 360°C, respectively. In the presence of oxygen, combustion of Avicel cellulose occurred via two sharp exothermic processes. DTA studies of different cellulose samples in the presence of air showed that the shape of the curve depends on the sources from which the samples were prepared as well as on the presence of noncellulosic impurities. Potassium xylan recorded a sharp exothermic peak at 290°C in a nitrogen atmosphere, and in a stationary air atmosphere it yielded an additional peak at 410°C, while in the presence of oxygen the curve showed two sharp exothermic peaks. DTA traces of periodate lignin in flowing nitrogen and air were the same and showed two exothermic peaks at 320° and 410°C, while in the presence of oxygen there were two exothermic peaks in the temperature range 200°–500°C.