LAUSR

Abstract In this present work, HZSM-5 zeolite was synthesized by two-steps process. Firstly, the reactant mixtures were pre-heated by microwave radiation under five different microwave powers in the range of 400–1200 W for 1 min. Then, the pre-heated mixtures were further crystallized under hydrothermal condition at 160 °C for 24 h. HZSM-5 zeolites treated by microwave power at 800 and 1000 W had high crystallinity and surface area (407–412 m 2 /g) and were used to evaluate the catalytic performance. Non- and catalytic fast pyrolysis of Jatropha residues using HZSM-5 zeolites synthesized by microwave heating were investigated using an analytical pyrolysis-GC/MS at 500 °C with different biomass to catalyst ratios of 1:1, 1:5, and 1:10. After catalytic process, HZSM-5 catalysts remarkably promoted the formation of aromatic hydrocarbon, especially BTX compounds. HZSM-5 treated by microwave at 800 W revealed high catalytic performance on upgrading of pyrolytic vapors resulting in the highest selectivity of aromatics, 94%, which are usually considered to be valuable products because of their high heating values. In addition, it decreased unfavorable oxygenated and nitrogenated compounds to 1.3% and 2.8%, respectively at moderate biomass to catalyst ratio of 1:5. HZSM-5 treated by microwave energy also exhibited superior performance in terms of aromatic selectivity (94%) compared to conventionally processed HZSM-5 (72%). The results showed that HZSM-5 prepared by microwave assisted synthesis was an effective catalyst for fast pyrolysis application.