Pyrolysis of Plastics to Liquid Fuel Using Sulphated Zirconium Hydroxide Catalyst

• DOI: 10.1007/s12649-019-00841-4
• Publication Date: 2019-10-18T11:59:51Z
• Authors: Achyut K. Panda; Abdullah Alotaibi; Ivan V. Kozhevnikov; N. Raveendran Shiju
• Keywords: 13. Climate action; 02 engineering and technology; 540; 0210 nano-technology; 7. Clean energy; 620; 12. Responsible consumption

Abstract A world without plastics is unimaginable now and probably also in future. With the growing use of plastic, the problem of waste plastic disposal is also growing. Recycling the plastics is a promising option to avoid the serious environmental challenge caused by them. Among the various options for recycling, catalytic conversion of plastics to hydrocarbons is very attractive. Catalytic pyrolysis depolymerizes the plastics to an oil which can be used as a liquid fuel. This is a sustainable way to utilize the waste, simultaneously promising to meet the energy demand. We studied the use of sulphated zirconium hydroxide as a catalyst for the pyrolysis of different types of plastics such as polypropylene, low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene and a mixture of all three. The objective was to understand the effect of the catalyst and the temperature on the composition of the oil as well as to find an optimum condition for maximum oil yield. Various reaction conditions and their influence on the product distribution are studied. The catalyst is effective in enhancing the reaction rate, altering the product selectivity and narrowing the product distribution of the reaction. At optimum conditions, we obtained more than 79% yield of oil which contains mainly C10–C24 hydrocarbons. The fuel properties are suitable to be used as a fossil fuel substitute.

Graphic Abstract