%0 Journal Article %@ 19921454 %A Moni, M.N.Z. %A Sulaiman, S.A. %D 2013 %F scholars:3626 %J Asian Journal of Scientific Research %N 2 %P 197-206 %R 10.3923/ajsr.2013.197.206 %T Downdraft gasification of oil palm frond: Effects of temperature and operation time %U https://khub.utp.edu.my/scholars/3626/ %V 6 %X Currently produced more than 40 million tons a year, only a small portion of oil palm frond is used as domestic animals forage and as raw material in small-scale furniture industry, while the rest is left at the plantation floor to naturally decompose. This study introduces oil palm frond as a solid biomass fuel for gasification to produce synthesis gas that can be utilized for heat and energy generation in a cleaner and more efficient manner than &rect combustion. Oil palm frond was gasified in the downdraft gasifier at 700 to 1000°C reactor temperature with a controlled air supply of 180 to 200 L min-1. The effects of reactor temperature and operation time to the quality of syngas produced from oil palm frond downdraft gasification were investigated. At a calorific value around 18 MJ kg-1, oil palm frond was found to produce synthesis gas that sustainably burnt in air with a higher heating value of around 5 MJ N-1 m-1. Oil palm frond was found to be optimally producing syngas with desired energy content at a reactor temperature range of 700-900°C and within the first 45 min of gasifier operation. %Z cited By 12