Thermodynamic analysis of a carbon capture hydrogen production process for end-of-life tires using plasma gasification

Abstract

In view of the rapid increase in the number of end-of-life tires and their impact on the environment, this study proposes a disposal process for end-of-life tires that uses plasma gasification to convert end-of-life tires into syngas and produce hydrogen. By comparing the effect of oxygen and air with that of steam and air on the hydrogen production performance of end-of-life tires, we found that the carbon conversion rate, energy recovery rate, and exergy efficiency of the gasification process using steam and air as the gasification agent could reach 99.12%, 93.67%, and 80.04%, respectively. In addition, a carbon capture process suitable for this process was explored further. The results show that the CO2 capture rate of the monoethanolamine absorption process was better than that of Rectisol, and the amount of monoethanolamine was only 0.26 times that of methanol. However, the exergy efficiency of the monoethanolamine absorption process was only 40.04%, which was 5.96% lower than that of Rectisol. The best process for hydrogen production from end-of-life tires by plasma gasification used steam and air as the gasification agent and integrated Rectisol to achieve carbon capture. The total exergy efficiency of the process was 36.45%. This study provides theoretical support for end-of-life tire management and pollution minimization.