Article Number: DRJPHET52452965
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26765/DRJPHET52452965
ISSN: 2734-2182
Vol. 5 (8), pp. 130-137, December 2020
Copyright © 2020
Author(s) retain the copyright of this article
Original Research Article
Catalytic Conversion of Waste Plastics to Hydrocarbon Oil
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Abstract
Plastics are polymers containing mostly carbon, hydrogen, and a few other elements. It contributes significantly to the problem of waste management due to its non-biodegradable nature. Conversion of waste plastics into a value-added product is therefore a viable solution. Waste plastic materials, polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS) were subjected to thermal cracking with the aid of a laboratory-scale batch reaction. Eggshell was added as a catalyst, a control was set-up without a catalyst. The hydrocarbon oil obtained was analyzed using GC-FID, (5890 series II) Gas chromatograph. Analysis of the oil obtained showed that the mixture of plastics (PP and PS), gave the highest yield. Most of the hydrocarbons were in the range of C4-C12 which falls within the composition of commercial petrol. The use of this technology thus proffers a solution to the problem of combating plastic waste in addition to poverty alleviation.
Keywords: Waste plastics, catalytic conversion, hydrocarbon oil, gas chromatography
Received: October 10, 2020 Accepted: December 24, 2020 Published: December 30, 2020