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## Meet the editor

Dr. Peter Kusch studied chemistry at the Pedagogical University in Opole and received a doctorate in Organic Chemical Technology at the Poznań University of Technology, Poland. From 1977 to 1988 he worked as an analytical chemist and adjunct at the Institute of Heavy Organic Synthesis "Blachownia" (Kędzierzyn-Koźle, Poland). After moving with his family to Germany, he worked for several years in the Fischer Labor- und Verfahrens-

technik GmbH company (Meckenheim/Bonn, Germany) as a laboratory manager and specialist in analytical pyrolysis and gas chromatography. Since 1998 until his retirement in 2018 he was a scientific coworker at the Department of Applied Natural Sciences of the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences in Rheinbach, Germany. He has been author/coauthor of over 90 scientific publications, one book, 13 invited book chapters, and 11 patents in the area of chromatography, mass spectrometry, analytical pyrolysis, and chemical technology. Dr. Kusch is a reviewer for several international journals in the area of analytical chemistry. He is the Editorial Board Member of the journals *Polymer Testing* and *Heliyon* (Elsevier).

**Preface III**

Pyrolysis - GC/MS(FID) **1**

**Chapter 1 3**

**Chapter 2 9**

Thermal Degradation Study **31**

**Chapter 3 33**

**Chapter 4 59**

**Chapter 5 71**

Introductory Chapter: Analytical Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography/ Mass

Chemical Characterization of Lignocellulosic Materials by Analytical

Release Profile of Nitrogen during Thermal Treatment of Waste Wooden

*by Liuming Song, Xiao Ge, Xueyong Ren, Wenliang Wang, Jianmin Chang* 

*by Silvia Román, Beatriz Ledesma, Andrés Álvarez-Murillo, Eduardo Sabio,* 

Estimation of Energy Potential for Solid Pyrolysis By-Products Using

Hydrocarbonization. Does It Worth to Be Called a Pretreatment?

*J. F. González, Mara Olivares-Marín and Mouzaina Boutieb*

**Section 1**

Contents

*by Peter Kusch*

Pyrolysis

**Section 2**

Packaging Materials

Analytical Methods

*by Gabriela Ionescu and Cora Bulmău*

*and Jinsheng Gou*

Spectrometry of Polymeric Materials

*by Ana Lourenço, Jorge Gominho and Helena Pereira*

## Contents


Preface

The word *pyrolysis*, translated from the original Greek *pyros* = *fire* and *lyso* = *decomposition*, means a chemical transformation of a sample when heated at a temperature higher than ambient in an inert atmosphere in the absence of oxygen. Pyrolysis can be divided into two types: applied pyrolysis and analytical pyrolysis. Applied pyrolysis is concerned with the production of chemicals. When performed on a large scale, pyrolysis is involved in industrial processes such as the manufacture of coke from coal and the conversion of biomass into biofuels. In contrast, analytical pyrolysis is a laboratory procedure in which small amounts of organic materials undergo thermal treatment. Analytical pyrolysis deals with the structural identification and quantitation of pyrolysis products with the ultimate aim of establishing the identity of the original material and the mechanisms of its thermal decomposition. Pyrolysis temperatures of 550–1400°C are high enough to break molecular bonds in macromolecules, thereby forming smaller, simpler volatile compounds. The pyrolytic process is carried out in a pyrolysis unit (pyrolyzer) interfaced with analytical instrumentation such as gas chromatography (GC), mass spectrometry (MS), gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS), or with Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (GC/ FTIR). By measurement and identification of the pyrolysis products with the help of these techniques, the molecular composition of the original sample can often be

Applications of analytical pyrolysis range from research and development of new materials, characterization and competitor product evaluation, medicine, biology and biotechnology, geology, airspace, environmental analysis (microplastics) for forensic purposes or conservation, and restoration of cultural heritage. These applications cover analysis and identification of synthetic polymers/copolymers and biopolymers. Analytical pyrolysis allows the confirmation of the source of a failed product, the identification of contaminants causing failure, competitive analysis, as well as overcoming a problem in product development or quality control. This technique is often used for wood studies due to its ability to provide details of the

This book is the outcome of contributions by experts in the field of pyrolysis. Chapters 1 and 2 include applications of analytical pyrolysis coupled with MS to characterize the structure of synthetic organic polymers and lignocellulosic materials as well as cellulosic pulps and isolated lignins. In Chapter 3 the pyrolysis characteristics of solid wood, waste particle board, and bio-oil are investigated. The pyrolysis products were identified by GC/MS. Chapter 4 presents a thermal degradation study of cellulose and biomass, examined by scanning electron micrography, FTIR spectroscopy, thermogravimetry, differential thermal analysis, and TG/MS. Finally, Chapter 5 describes the calorimetric determination of high heating values of different raw biomass, plastic waste, and biomass-plastic waste mixtures and

reconstructed.

molecular structure of lignocellulose.

their by-products resulting from pyrolysis.
