Pyrolysis of polypropylene plastic waste: An analysis of oil quantity, density, viscosity, and calorific value

Abstract

Owing to the inability of the material to biodegrade, the handling of plastic waste presents a considerable challenge. Pyrolysis is a plastic waste management method that solves the problem of plastic waste volume through chemical recycling. This study aims to assess the quantity and quality of the density, viscosity, and calorific value of oil produced from the pyrolysis of polypropylene (PP) plastic and compare it to commercial oils. This research used 15 kg of PP plastic waste. The pyrolysis process was conducted at temperatures ranging from to 250-350°C. The amount of extracted PP pyrolysis oil was 12.730 L. The oil derived from the pyrolysis of PP plastic had a density of 811 kg/m3 at 250°C and 782 kg/m3 at 350°C. The PP plastic had the highest viscosity at 250°C, and 2.02cP, and the lowest viscosity at 350°C, and 0.86cP. The oil from PP plastic pyrolysis had a maximum calorific value of 10, 870 kcal/g at 350°C and the lowest calorific value of 10, 386 kcal/g at 250°C. Compared with open burning, the pyrolysis treatment of plastic waste can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 99 percent. However, the energy required for the pyrolysis process is 400 times greater than that provided by the pyrolysis oil product.