Experimental Study of Thermal and Catalytic Pyrolysis of Plastic Waste Components

Azubuike Francis Anene, Siw Bodil Fredriksen, Kai Arne Sætre and Lars-Andre Tokheim
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Azubuike Francis Anene: Department of Process, Energy and Environmental Technology, University of South-Eastern Norway, 3918 Porsgrunn, Norway
Siw Bodil Fredriksen: Norner Research AS, 3962 Stathelle, Norway
Kai Arne Sætre: Norner Research AS, 3962 Stathelle, Norway
Lars-Andre Tokheim: Department of Process, Energy and Environmental Technology, University of South-Eastern Norway, 3918 Porsgrunn, Norway

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 11, 1-11

Abstract: Thermal and catalytic pyrolysis of virgin low-density polyethylene (LDPE), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP) and mixtures of LDPE/PP were carried out in a 200 mL laboratory scale batch reactor at 460 °C in a nitrogen atmosphere. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was carried out to study the thermal and catalytic degradation of the polymers at a heating rate of 10 °C/min. The amount of PP was varied in the LDPE/PP mixture to explore its effect on the reaction. In thermal degradation (TGA) of LDPE/PP blends, a lower decomposition temperature was observed for LDPE/PP mixtures compared to pure LDPE, indicating interaction between the two polymer types. In the presence of a catalyst (CAT-2), the degradation temperatures for the pure polymers were reduced. The TGA results were validated in a batch reactor using PP and LDPE, respectively. The result from thermal pyrolysis showed that the oil product contained significant amounts of hydrocarbons in the ranges of C 7 –C 12 (gasoline range) and C 13 –C 20 (diesel range). The catalyst enhanced cracking at lower temperatures and narrowed the hydrocarbon distribution in the oil towards the lower molecular weight range (C 7 –C 12 ). The result suggests that the oil produced from catalytic pyrolysis of waste plastics has a potential as an alternative fuel.

Keywords: thermal pyrolysis; catalytic pyrolysis; TGA; plastics; HDPE; LDPE; gasoline; diesel; catalyst (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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