Characterisation of Fractionated oil from Pyrolysis of Low-Density Polyethylene: Comparison between Catalytic Process and Non-Catalytic Process


Authors : Olugbenga Oludayo Oluwasina; Osaretin Edwin Omoruyi; Gbenga Emmanuel Adekayero; Olabiyi Julius Akinwumi; Adebisi Olayinka Akinola; Babatunde Abraham Okunlol; Labunmi Lajide

Volume/Issue : Volume 9 - 2024, Issue 5 - May

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/yhxfythc

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/se5c9sx9

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/IJISRT24MAY1604

Abstract : The environmental impact of waste plastics and the need to meet the increased demand for energy, coupled with the available technology for the conversion of waste plastic to liquid fuel, triggered this research. Montmorillonite clay was used as a green catalyst for the pyrolysis of low-density polyethylene to liquid fuel. The montmorillonite was calcinated at 600°C, and mixed metal oxides were found as its chemical composition using XRF. The common elements found in CMMR are silica oxide (SiO2 , 51. 34%), iron (ii) oxide (Fe2O3, 16.23%), potassium oxide (K2O, 5.03%), Aluminum oxide (Al2O3 , 19.65%) tin oxide (TiO2 , 3.00%), calcium oxide (CaO,1.47%) and oxides of chlorides (Cl, 1.46%). The gas chromatography-mass spectrometer analysis of the various distillate fractions from the crude pyrolysis liquid revealed the present various chemical differences such as alkane, alkene, alkyne, cycloalkene, cycloalkane, aromatic, alcohol, and ester. Analysis of the pyrolysis oil based on the carbon range revealed the presence of gasoline (C5-C12) (gasoline), diesel (C13-C24) and fuel oil (>C24). The API, specific gravity and kinematic viscosity of some of the oil confirmed them as diesel oil. The research has demonstrated the possibility of waste reduction and the potential of producing hydrocarbon fuel from waste low-density polyethylene waste plastic using pyrolysis.

Keywords : Low-Density Polyethylene, Pyrolysis, GC-MS, XRF, Kinematic Viscosity.

References :

  1. Jeswani, H., Krüger, C., Russ, M., Horlacher, M., Antony, F., Hann, S., and Azapagic, A. (2021). Life cycle environmental impacts of chemical recycling via pyrolysis of mixed         plastic waste in comparison with mechanical recycling and energy recovery. Science of the Total Environment769, 144483.
  2. US Environmental Protection Agency. EPA Textiles 2014—Common Wastes and Materials; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Washington, DC, USA.
  3. European-Plastics. An Analysis of European Plastics Production, Demand and Waste Data; European-Plastics: Brussels, Belgium, 2015.
  4. Maafa, I. M. (2021). Pyrolysis of polystyrene waste: A review. Polymers13(2), 225. doi.org/10.3390/polym13020225
  5. Williams, P. T., and Slaney, E. (2007). Analysis of products from the pyrolysis and liquefaction of single plastics and waste plastic mixtures. Resources, Conservation and             Recycling51(4), 754-769.
  6. Al-Salem, S. M., Lettieri, P., and Baeyens, J. (2010). The valorization of plastic solid waste (PSW) by primary to quaternary routes: From re-use to energy and chemicals. Progress in           Energy and Combustion Science36(1), 103-129.doi.org/10.1016/j.pecs.2009.09.001
  7. Kusenberg, M., Eschenbacher, A., Djokic, M. R., Zayoud, A., Ragaert, K., De Meester, S.,      and Van Geem, K. M. (2022). Opportunities and challenges for the application of post-              consumer plastic waste pyrolysis oils as steam cracker feedstocks: To decontaminate or not       to decontaminate? Waste Management138, 83-115.
  8. Kumar, S., & Singh, R. K. (2013). Thermolysis of high-density polyethylene to petroleum products. Journal of Petroleum Engineering2013, 1-7.doi.org/10.1155/2013/987568
  9. Patil, L., Varma, A. K., Singh, G., and Mondal, P. (2018). Thermocatalytic degradation of     high-density polyethylene into liquid product. Journal of Polymers and the                Environment26, 1920-1929. doi 10.1007/s10924-017-1088-0
  10. Panda, A. K. (2018). Thermo-catalytic degradation of different plastics to drop in liquid       fuel using calcium bentonite catalyst. International Journal of Industrial Chemistry9(2),      167-176.
  11. Jaafar, Y., Abdelouahed, L., El Hage, R., El Samrani, A., and Taouk, B. (2022). Pyrolysis      of common plastics and their mixtures to produce valuable petroleum-like    products. Polymer Degradation and Stability195, 109770.
  12. Ghodke, P. K., Sharma, A. K., Moorthy, K., Chen, W. H., Patel, A., and Matsakas, L.              (2022). Experimental investigation on pyrolysis of domestic plastic wastes for fuel grade hydrocarbons. Processes11(1), 71. doi.org/10.3390/pr11010071
  13. Eze, I. U., Okwonna, O. O., Komi, G. W., Hart, A. I., and Vincent-Akpu, I. (2024).   Comparative Analysis of Kerosene Grade Fuel from Pyrolysis of HDPE and LDPE Waste        Plastics. Journal of Engineering Research and Reports26(2), 1-13.
  14. Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. R., and Law, K. L. (2017). Production, use, and fate of all plastics      ever made. Science advances3(7), e1700782.19–24. doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.170078
  15. Rachtanapun, P., and Rachtanapun, C., (2011). Handbook of Frozen Food Processing and                Packaging, CRC Press, Florida, 861
  16. Driscoll R.H. and Paterson J.L., (1999).  Handbook of Food Preservation, Marcel Dekker,    New York, 687.
  17. Evode, N., Qamar, S. A., Bilal, M., Barceló, D., and Iqbal, H. M. (2021). Plastic waste and    its management strategies for environmental sustainability. Case Studies in Chemical and        Environmental Engineering4, 100142.
  18. Battsetseg, B., Sukhbaatar, S., and Oyunchimeg, T. (2022). Current status and prospects of                 plastic and plastic bag waste recycling. Int. J. Soc. Sci. Humanit. Res2, 1-16.
  19. Rabie, A. M., Mohammed, E. A., and Negm, N. A. (2018). Feasibility of modified bentonite                 as acidic heterogeneous catalyst in low temperature catalytic cracking process of biofuel                production from nonedible vegetable oils. Journal of Molecular Liquids254, 260-266.
  20. Hakeem, I. G., Aberuagba, F., and Musa, U. (2018). Catalytic pyrolysis of waste    polypropylene using Ahoko kaolin from Nigeria. Applied Petrochemical Research8(4),               203-210.
  21. Li, K., Lei, J., Yuan, G., Weerachanchai, P., Wang, J. Y., Zhao, J., and Yang, Y. (2017). Fe,      Ti-, Zr-and Al-pillared clays for efficient catalytic pyrolysis of mixed plastics. Chemical                Engineering Journal317, 800-809.
  22. Attique, S., Batool, M., Yaqub, M., Goerke, O., Gregory, D. H., and Shah, A. T. (2020). Highly efficient catalytic pyrolysis of polyethylene waste to derive fuel products by novel polyoxometalate/kaolin composites. Waste Management & Research38(6), 689-695.
  23. Faillace, J. G., de Melo, C. F., de Souza, S. P. L., and da Costa Marques, M. R. (2017). Production of light hydrocarbons from pyrolysis of heavy gas oil and high-density polyethylene using pillared clays as catalysts. Journal of analytical and applied pyrolysis126, 70-76.
  24. Egirani, D. E., Poyi, N. R., and Wessey, N. (2019). Synthesis of a copper (II) oxide–montmorillonite composite for lead removal. International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy, and Materials26, 803-810.doi.org/10.1007/s12613-019-1788-7
  25. Castellini, E., Malferrari, D., Bernini, F., Brigatti, M. F., Castro, G. R., Medici, L., ... & Borsari, M. (2017). Baseline studies of the clay minerals society source clay montmorillonite STx-1b. Clays and Clay Minerals65(4), 220-233.
  26. Siahpoosh, Z, H., and Soleimani, M. (2017). Trace Cd (II), Pb (II) and Ni (II) ions extraction and preconcentration from different water samples by using Ghezeljeh montmorillonite nanoclay as a natural new adsorbent. Journal of Water and Environmental Nanotechnology2(1), 39-51.
  27. Chaiya, C., Pankumpet, N., Buapibal, B., and Chalermsinsuwan, B. (2020). Alternative liquid fuel from pyrolysis of polyethylene wax. Energy Reports6, 1262-1267.
  28. Pratama, N. N., and Saptoadi, H. (2014). Characteristics of waste plastics pyrolytic oil and its applications as alternative fuel on four-cylinder diesel engines. International Journal of Renewable Energy Development3(1), 13-20.
  29. Anbarasu, K., and Sivakumar, P. (2012). Catalytic pyrolysis of dairy industrial waste LDPE film into fuel. International Journal of Chemistry Research, 52-55.
  30. Hudec, P., Horňáček, M., Smiešková, A., and Daučík, P. (2009). Chemical recycling of waste hydrocarbons in catalytic cracking. Petroleum and Coal51(1), 51-58.
  31. Aboul-Fotouh, M. T., Alaa, E., Sadek, M. A., and Elazab Dr, H. A. (2019). Physico-Chemical Characteristics of Ethanol–Diesel Blend Fuel. Chemical Engineering 8, 740-747
  32. Sharma, A. K., Sharma, P. K., Chintala, V., Khatri, N., and Patel, A. (2020). Environment-     friendly biodiesel/diesel blends for improving the exhaust emission and engine performance to reduce the pollutants emitted from transportation fleets. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health17(11), 3896.
  33. Januszewicz, K., Hunicz, J., Kazimierski, P., Rybak, A., Suchocki, T., Duda, K., and Mikulski, M. (2023). An experimental assessment on a diesel engine powered by blends of            waste-plastic-derived pyrolysis oil with diesel. Energy281, 128330.
  34. Wijayanti, W., Musyaroh, M., and Sasongko, M. N. (2022). Low-density polyethylene          plastic waste to liquid fuel using pyrolysis method: an effect of temperatures on the oil yields physicochemical properties. Journal of Sustainable Development of Energy, Water          and Environment Systems10(3), 1-18.doi.org/10.13044/j.sdewes.d9.0402
  35. Yang, J., Rizkiana, J., Widayatno, W. B., Karnjanakom, S., Kaewpanha, M., Hao, X., Abuliti A., and Guan, G. (2016). Fast co-pyrolysis of low-density polyethylene and        biomass residue for oil production. Energy conversion and management120, 422-429.
  36. Alhikami, A. F., and Wang, W. C. (2021). Experimental study of the spray ignition characteristics of hydro-processed renewable jet and petroleum jet fuels in a constant                 volume combustion chamber. Fuel283, 119286.

The environmental impact of waste plastics and the need to meet the increased demand for energy, coupled with the available technology for the conversion of waste plastic to liquid fuel, triggered this research. Montmorillonite clay was used as a green catalyst for the pyrolysis of low-density polyethylene to liquid fuel. The montmorillonite was calcinated at 600°C, and mixed metal oxides were found as its chemical composition using XRF. The common elements found in CMMR are silica oxide (SiO2 , 51. 34%), iron (ii) oxide (Fe2O3, 16.23%), potassium oxide (K2O, 5.03%), Aluminum oxide (Al2O3 , 19.65%) tin oxide (TiO2 , 3.00%), calcium oxide (CaO,1.47%) and oxides of chlorides (Cl, 1.46%). The gas chromatography-mass spectrometer analysis of the various distillate fractions from the crude pyrolysis liquid revealed the present various chemical differences such as alkane, alkene, alkyne, cycloalkene, cycloalkane, aromatic, alcohol, and ester. Analysis of the pyrolysis oil based on the carbon range revealed the presence of gasoline (C5-C12) (gasoline), diesel (C13-C24) and fuel oil (>C24). The API, specific gravity and kinematic viscosity of some of the oil confirmed them as diesel oil. The research has demonstrated the possibility of waste reduction and the potential of producing hydrocarbon fuel from waste low-density polyethylene waste plastic using pyrolysis.

Keywords : Low-Density Polyethylene, Pyrolysis, GC-MS, XRF, Kinematic Viscosity.

Never miss an update from Papermashup

Get notified about the latest tutorials and downloads.

Subscribe by Email

Get alerts directly into your inbox after each post and stay updated.
Subscribe
OR

Subscribe by RSS

Add our RSS to your feedreader to get regular updates from us.
Subscribe