Abstract
Energy shortages and rapid increase in its demand are amongst the major problems facing the world today. In response to the rapid depletion of fossils fuels, other alternative energy sources have been explored. One of the methods of generating energy is converting plastics into usable fuel. Two major problems facing the world today prompting to pyrolysis are disposal of plastic waste due to their non -biodegradable nature and depletion of fossil fuels as a result of the continuously rising demand. The feedstock for the pyrolysis plant was selected to be Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) in the form of flakes ranging from 8 - 12 mm and were supplied by PETRECO. The binary dominance matrix was used to examine the optimal heat exchanger. The helical heat exchanger was designed to reduce cost by elimination of a water pump as the heat transfer fluid lost heat to the atmosphere. It was easier to obtain liquid paraffin from the chosen raw materials since it was already in the paraffin chemical structure. In the pyrolysis plant, the temperature in the reactor increased at a maximum rate of 6°C/min regulated by a temperature controller and each batch took 60 minutes. The percentage weight of paraffin yield was a maximum of 40% weight of the feedstock. Therefore, 1 kg of plastic waste was converted to 286 ml of paraffin fuel. The presence of oxygen in the PET structure enhanced the solid residue of the product. The properties of the solid residue left in the reactor were sufficient to recommend for PET bricks. The solid residue had a maximum compressive strength of 10 N/mm2 which was within the standard range and had less water absorbing tendencies and hence a longer lifespan. Catalytic pyrolysis can also be explored for future research in order to improve product quality.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 362-366 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Procedia CIRP |
Volume | 91 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2020 |
Event | 30th CIRP Design on Design, CIRP Design 2020 - Pretoria, South Africa Duration: 5 May 2020 → 8 May 2020 |
Keywords
- carbon
- paraffin
- plastic waste
- pyrolysis
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Control and Systems Engineering
- Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering