Review of Catalysts for Tar Elimination in Biomass Gasification Processes

A project is carried out to develop a process for tar elimination downstream of a gasifier making use of cheap and active materials as catalysts. In the first stage of the project, screening of catalysts was carried out in a fixed-bed tubular reactor. The results of the fixed-bed experiments will be used in the design of the process. This paper presents a review of the various types of catalysts that have been used in several research works to reduce the tars in the producer gas derived from the biomass gasification process. The catalysts are divided into two classes according to their production method: minerals and synthetic catalysts. A summary of the review and recommendations for good catalyst candidates and future work are also provided.