Abstract
High energy consumption and catalyst deactivation hinder thermal plastic waste decomposition for chemical production. This study employs a microwave-assisted catalytic process with Ru/ZSM-5 as the catalyst for polyethylene waste. At 300 °C under the first cycle of microwave heating, gas yield reaches 90 wt%, with 23 wt% aromatics selectivity and 30 wt% light olefins selectivity. In the first cycle of thermal heating, gas yield is 72 wt%, with 67 wt% alkanes and 32 wt% light olefins selectivity. In microwave cycle reactions, gas yield remains around 88 wt% through seven cycles over the spent catalyst (without regeneration), shifting product composition to 80 wt% light olefins in the 7th cycle. In contrast, in thermal cycle reactions, catalyst activity is lost after one cycle, and gas yield drops from 72 wt% to 45 wt%. Microwave-assisted catalytic technology shows potential for economically producing valuable chemicals from plastic waste, as lower reaction temperature and high catalyst reusability.
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