In the present study, pyrolysis kinetics of the pure and blends of cedar wood (CW), algal biomass (AB), and digested sludge (DS) with and without the catalyst ZSM-5 were examined. Both Kissinger-AkahiraSunose (KAS) and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa (FWO) model-free methods were used to calculate the total activation energy (Ea), change in enthalpy (AH), and change in Gibb's free energy (AG) of 18 different biomass combinations. The highest Ea (548.52 kJ/mol) and AH (532.22 kJ/mol) were found for the CW. The biomass blend of AB: CW at weight ratios of 2:1 with catalyst (2:1 catalyst to biomass weight ratio) resulted in the lowest Ea (57.03 kJ/mol) and AH (50.11 kJ/mol) with a AG value of 243.25 kJ/mol. Statistically significant response surface models were developed to describe the effect of biomass blend composition on Ea and AH. This study demonstrated that catalytic pyrolysis of biomass blends from different sources can be used to significantly reduce the energy requirement for the process. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.