The man, named by state media as Ji Zhongxing, 34, from central Shandong province, was injured and taken to hospital.
No-one else was hurt in the blast, which filled part of the Terminal 3 arrivals hall with smoke.
An online microblog attributed to the man says the explosion was to protest at his ill-treatment by Chinese police.
The blog suggests his lower body was paralyzed after he was alleged to have been heavily beaten by security agents in southern China in 2005.
Mr Ji, who is alleged to have been operating an unlicensed motorbike taxi service, was also apparently dissatisfied with the way his complaints against the authorities had been dealt with.
State news agency Xinhua said he detonated the device - a package of gunpowder taken from fireworks - after being prevented from distributing leaflets.
Photos posted on China's Weibo microblogging site showed a dark-haired man waving a white package in the air before the explosion.
Later images from the airport showed the wheelchair on its side with officials treating him on the floor.
Smoke drifted through the terminal after the blast, which occurred shortly before 18:30 (10:30 GMT) near one of the arrival gates.
Xinhua showed several medical workers providing emergency treatment, with police officers also at the scene.
Officials say order has been restored at the airport and there is no disruption to flights.

A woman in her 20s was pushed to the ground and assaulted by a man on a bike on Boundary Road near Bournemouth University's Talbot campus on Thursday.
Dorset Police said they believe it could be linked to two attempted sexual assaults on women in September.
Thursday's attacker is described as white and in his late 20s or early 30s.
Officers said he was approximately 5ft 7in (1.7m), of slight to medium build with short dark hair and wearing a black thigh-length coat and dark trousers.
The victim was walking down a footpath at about 21:40 GMT when the cyclist approached and then assaulted her.
The attacker was riding a dark-coloured mountain bike with silver handle bars and rode off towards Columbia Road after the assault.
Det Ch Insp Sarah Derbyshire said it could be linked to the attempted assaults of women on 13 and 14 September at Boundary Road and Slades Farm.
She is appealing for witnesses.

Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust has 285 full-time vacancies across three sites, which cover Surrey and Berkshire.
The high cost of living in the south of England is said to be a factor affecting recruitment.
Each successful applicant will receive a maximum of £1,340 in subsidies.
Nurses will be offered accommodation at Wexham Park Hospital in Slough, Frimley Park near Camberley and Heatherwood Hospital in Ascot.
Marko Novosil moved from Croatia to become a nurse at Wexham Park after hearing about the incentive.
"The crucial thing for coming here was the support. I realised that when I started I would get the free accommodation which helped me settle in", he said.
Wexham Park Hospital matron Helen Noakes said: "Rental prices are higher in this area, which means people do struggle and the one thing that we can offer people is the free accommodation when they start.
"Longer term we would look to help them find somewhere in the local area to live."
Currently the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom property in Slough is £897, whereas the average for the same sort of property in Camberley is £930.
The average cost for a room in both areas ranges from £500 to £550.
A man in a wheelchair with an apparent grievance has detonated a small device at Beijing International Airport.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
A sex attack on woman near a university campus could be linked to two other attempted assaults, investigators have said.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Nursing job applicants are being offered two months free accommodation in a bid to quell staff shortages at a hospital trust.