Turning plastic grocery bags into sustainable fuel
Using pyrolysis, dewaxing catalyst to upcycle plastic waste into fuel
source

Date:
November 3, 2021
Source:
American Institute of Physics
Summary:
Researchers report using catalytic pyrolysis to turn plastic
wastes into a valuable fuel source. They focused on recycling
plastic and upgrading plastic into other products or converting
it to a vapor with heat, which met a catalyst and turned into the
desired fuel-like product. This pyrolytic process transforms primary
organic waste into a sustainable fuel or other valuable chemical.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
More than 300 million tons of plastic waste are produced annually, which
causes serious environmental issues because of plastic's life cycle and
the difficulty of eliminating it.


========================================================================== Consequently, most plastic waste ends up in either a landfill or the
ocean. A significant number of plastics break down into microplastics,
which are ingested by fish and other marine life causing havoc to marine ecosystems.

In Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy, by AIP Publishing,
researchers from California State Polytechnic University report
using catalytic pyrolysis to turn plastic wastes into a valuable fuel
source. Pyrolysis is the thermochemical decomposition of carbon-based
matter in the absence of oxygen.

Researchers focused on recycling plastic and upgrading plastic into other products or converting it to a vapor with heat, which met a catalyst
and turned into the desired fuel-like product. This pyrolytic process transforms primary organic waste into a sustainable fuel or other
valuable chemical.

"The innovative part of the experiment is the catalyst," said author
Mingheng Li. "The catalyst is critical to this particular pyrolysis
process, because it only requires one step to get to the desired fuel
product at relatively mild temperatures." The catalyst was prepared
by dipping a zeolite substrate in an aqueous solution containing nickel
and tungsten and drying it in an oven at 500 degrees Celsius.

The synthesized catalyst was used in conjunction with a lab-designed,
single- stage pyrolytic reactor, which ran at a set point of 360 C to
break down a mixture of plastic grocery bags.

The catalytic process used in this experiment on plastic waste could also
be used to process other wastes, such as manure, municipal solid waste,
and used engine oil, to make usable energy products.

"This pyrolysis process serves as a definitive step in reducing reliance
on fossil-based fuels," said Li.

The researchers found the pyrolysis product was very similar to a
standard diesel fuel product via gas chromatographic analysis, a type of chromatography used in analytical chemistry for separating and analyzing compounds that can be vaporized without decomposition.

Going forward, the team will work to explain the cracking mechanism
that occurs on the surface of the catalyst. In addition, they will try
to optimize diesel fuel production from various mixed plastic wastes.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by American_Institute_of_Physics. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Michael Arnold, Baron Boghosian, Mingheng Li. Catalytic production
of
diesel-like oils from plastic wastes. Journal of Renewable and
Sustainable Energy, 2021; 13 (6): 064701 DOI: 10.1063/5.0066218 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211103135908.htm

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