Steam Gasification of Palm Kernel Shell (PKS): Effect of Fe/BEA and Ni/BEA Catalysts and Steam to Biomass Ratio on Composition of Gaseous Products

This work presents the hydrogen production from steam gasification of palm kernel shell (PKS) at 700 C in the presence of 5% Ni/BEA and 5% Fe/BEA as catalysts. The steam gasification was performed in two-staged reactors to evaluate the effect of calcinations temperature and the steam to biomass ratio on the product gas composition. The catalytic activity of Ni/BEA catalyst decreases with increasing calcinations temperatures from 500 to 700 C. The highest H2 concentration is produced by Fe/BEA (600) with more than 71 vol%. The catalytic activity of the catalysts tested is found to correspond to its physicochemical properties. The optimum range for steam to biomass ratio if found to be between 2 to 4. Excess steam content results in temperature drop in the gasifier which is undesirable for the gasification reactions. Keywords—Hydrogen, Palm Kernel Shell, Steam gasification, Ni/BEA, Fe/BEA