Structural features of chars from the pyrolysis of cane trash in a fluidized-bed/fixed-bed reactor under bothslow and fast heating rate conditions were investigated using Raman spectroscopy. Chars from the pyrolysisof coals were also investigated for comparison. Spectra were curve-fitted using 10 Gaussian bands representingdifferent structural features of the chars. Differences in the total Raman intensity between cane trash chars andthe chars of 3 coals of varying rank were great at low pyrolysis temperature (600
C) but decreased as thepyrolysis temperature was increased to 900
C. Both low (10 K min
-1) and high (>10
3-10
4 K s
-1) particleheating rates resulted in increased aromatization and relative aromatic ring size with increasing pyrolysistemperature from 600 to 900
C. However, pyrolysis at slow and fast heating rates gave chars of very differentstructural features as revealed by Raman spectroscopy.