Carbon and H-2 recoveries from plastic waste by using a metal-free porous biocarbon catalyst

• Published in: Journal of cleaner production Vol. 404
• Main Authors: Jin, Yanghao, Yang, Hanmin, Guo, Shuo, Shi, Ziyi, Han, Tong, Gond, Ritambhara, Jönsson, Pär, Yang, Weihong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Biocarbon catalyst; Catalytic cracking; Hydrogen; Plastic pyrolysis
• ISSN: 0959-6526; 1879-1786
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136926

Carbon and H2 recoveries from plastic waste enable high value-added utilizations of plastic waste while mini-mizing its GHG emissions. The objective of this study is to explore the use of a metal-free biocarbon catalyst for waste plastic pyrolysis and in-line catalytic cracking to produce H2-rich gases and carbon. The results show that the biocarbon catalyst exhibits a good catalytic effect and stability for various plastic wastes. Increasing the C/P ratio from 0 to 2, induce an increase in the conversion rate of C and H in plastics to carbon and H2 from 57.1% to 68.7%, and from 22.7% to 53.5%, respectively. Furthermore, a carbon yield as high as 580.6 mg/gplastic and an H2 yield as high as 68.6 mg/gplastic can be obtained. The hierarchical porous structure with tortuous channels of biocarbon extends the residence time of pyrolysis volatiles in the high-temperature catalytic region and thereby significantly promotes cracking reactions.