The effect of the concentration of plastic waste on the formation of reaction products of the Ti–PET system

Abstract

The paper presents research results of the synthesis, phase composition, and structure of products obtained by highly exothermic reactions between Ti and C10H8O4 mixture components, depending on the plastic waste concentration and Ti powder dispersiveness, density of initial samples, and synthesis medium. The dependence of the phase composition and structure of the synthesis products on the concentration of the polymer (plastic) component in the initial Ti -PET (C10H8O4) system was found. When the plastic waste content is 20 wt% to 25 wt%, synthesis products contain TiC0.5O0.5–TiC0.6–0.75 particle agglomerates. Further growth in the polyethylene terephthalate content from 30 wt% to 45 wt% leads to the formation of synthesis products consisting of titanium carbide (TiC0.6–1.0). The gaseous byproduct composition of the exothermic reaction is investigated for the Ti–C10H8O4 mixture composition. It is found that the gaseous by-product mostly contains hydrogen and carbon monoxide as well as impurities of different hydrocarbons (methane, acetylene, ethane, ethene) and carbon dioxide. The maximum adiabatic temperature of the gas combustion temperature is 2080 oC, which demonstrates the possibility of using gas as a fuel for energy generation devices. Based on the data obtained, it is possible to create a basis for a new plastic waste technology to fabricate carbide-containing materials.