CLASSIFICATION OF VOLATILE PRODUCTS EVOLVED DURING TEMPERATURE-PROGRAMMED CO-PYROLYSIS OF TURKISH OIL SHALES WITH LOW-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE

Temperature programmed co-pyrolysis of Turkish oil shales with LDPE wa s investigated. The aim of this research was to determine the volatile product distribution and product evolution rate of coprocessing of oi l shale with LDPE. A series co-pyrolysis operation was performed with oil shale and LDPE using a 1:3, 1:1, 3:1 total carbon ratio of oil sha le to plastic. A fixed bed reactor was used to pyrolyse small sample o f oil shale and LDPE mixture under an inert gas flow (Argon). A specia l sampling technique was used for collecting organic products eluted f rom the reactor at different temperature and time intervals. The co-py rolysis products were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography and the total product evolution rate was investigated as a function of temper ature and time. n-Paraffins and 1-olefins in aliphatic fraction of pyr olysis products were classified as a carbon number. In addition, the r ecovery of total organic carbon as a organic volatile products was det ermined. The assessments were based on incorporating the results on te mperature-programmed pyrolysis of oil shale(1,2) and LDPE. The effect of coprocessing of oil shale with LDPE was determined by calculating t he difference between the experimental and the hypothetical mean value of conversion of total organic carbon into volatile products. The eff ect of kerogen type of oil shale on co-pyrolysis operation was also in vestigated. Conversion into volatile hydrocarbons was found lower with increasing LDPE ratio in oil shale-LDPE system while C16+ hydrocarbon s and the amount of coke deposit were higher in the presence of LDPE. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.