Thermal degradation of heterogeneous plastic waste fractions: A hybrid DAEM & parallel reaction approach
Access Status
Embargo Lift Date
Authors
Date
2024Type
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Source Title
Faculty
School
Collection
Abstract
Assessment of polymer decomposition rates through kinetic estimations is crucial considering the design and operation of process reactor systems. This study experimentally analyses weight loss patterns of pure plastic components (LDPE, HDPE, PP and PS) to evaluate decomposition kinetics through iso-conversional methods. Activation energy estimate for thermal degradation of the polymers follow normal distribution with accuracy of estimated kinetic parameters established though best fit of isoconversional plots. Evaluated parameters are applied with first order Distributed activation energy model (DAEM) and linear mixing rule to predict decomposition rate of pure as well as mixed plastic fractions. DAEM model predicts the activation energy distribution for degradation of LDPE, HDPE, PP and PS as 256, 257, 209 and 159 kJ/mol as mean values. Rate predictions for mixed plastic fractions are compared with literature through lower statistical parameter values ( ) ranging from 1.49 × 10−5 - 9.21 × 10−6. Rate estimations for custom selected plastic combinations evaluated through developed approach specify dispersion of rate curves, represented through reduction in degradation temperature in the range of 15 – 60 °C characteristic of interactions. Further, study helps in predicting rate of any mixed plastic waste stream by minimizing experimentations, with seamless integration into commercial reactor design packages.
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Zaman, Atiq ; Newman, Peter (2021)Background: Plastics were considered as a magical material owing to their strong, non-degradable and versatile characteristics. After five decades of mass application, plastics’ property of non-biodegradability has become ...
-
Alamri, Hatem Rashed (2012)In recent years, cellulose fibre-reinforced polymer composites have been gaining a great attention in several engineering applications due to their desirable properties, which include low density, low cost, renewability ...
-
Zahir, Aishath Zehereen (2008)E-glass has been widely used as a reinforcing material for years, especially as a plastic reinforcer in the production of GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic). Failure of GRP materials under stress came in to the picture quite ...