Effect of acid catalysts on yield and selectivity of plastics waste pyrolysis from municipal solid waste in Samui Island, Thailand
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Since the plastic waste problem has raised concerns for solid waste management, pyrolysis has become an intriguing technology. Pyrolysis not only helps to reduce the use of natural resources by converting plastic waste to valuable energy with low air pollution emissions, but it also generates profits by using the pyrolysis products as an alternative fuel for engines, increasing the sustainability potential. In this study, Samui Island plastic waste was used as feedstock for pyrolysis. The process was carried out at different temperatures (425 ºC, 450 ºC, and 475 ºC), different amounts of catalyst loading (0, 1, 3, 5 wt.%), and different types of catalysts (HY zeolite, NaY zeolite, spent fluid catalytic cracking (FCC), and Fe/Al2O3). The results showed that the pyrolysis at 450 ºC with 3 wt.% of spent FCC catalyst provided the highest amount of liquid product. In addition, the pyrolysis of polystyrene (PS) produced the most liquid product (91.44 wt.%), while the liquid products from the pyrolysis of polyethylene (PE) exhibited the highest percentage of diesel (36.60 wt.%). After improving product yield from a mixture of PE/polypropylene (PP)/PS (80:15:5), a representative sample of plastic waste from Samui Island, the results demonstrated that the pyro-diesel was comparable to commercial diesel, with a low operating cost (0.33 USD/L) and improved pyrolysis oil quality (0.65 USD/L).
Source: Results in Engineering
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,940
Funder: Chulalongkorn University
OpenAlex ID: W4415257659