Adsorption and Kinetic Study of Activated Carbon Produced from Post-Consumer Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) Wastes

Post-consumer polymeric wastes in form of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) can now be considered suitable as a precursor for the synthesis of low-cost activated carbon (AC). This study produced AC from LDPE using sulphuric acid (H2SO4) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) as the activating agent. The reaction conditions for pyrolysis were varied in the range of 0.50 - 2.00 M, 400°C - 500°C, and 45 - 60 minutes. Physico-chemical investigations reveal that AC yield is significantly dependent on both carbonization temperatures and time. The obtained optimum values of 446.50°C and 51.09 mins gave a yield of 24% for the base-activated carbon. The high iodine numbers obtained strongly indicate the presence of large surface area and pore volumes is further confirmed using the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis which reveals the presence of pores on the external surface of the carbons. Fourier Transform Infrared Technique (FTIR) analysis further shows that the synthesized compounds are purely carbon with rich oxy-gen-surface complexes on the surface which is as a result of the introduction of the chemical oxidizing agents. The produced carbons were found to have high adsorption affinity for selected inorganic ions which are: Mn7+, Co2+, and Cr6+. Adsorption isotherm results show the adsorption process to be favourable with the Langmuir isotherm parameter RL having values of <1, while the Freudlich adsorption model was found to perfectly fit the data at selected adsorbent dosages and adsorbate concentrations. The pseu-do-second-order model provides the best correlation for the kinetic analysis. The acid-activated carbon was found to have better adsorption capacities than the base-activated carbon.

Recycling and depolymerization of waste polyethylene terephthalate bottles by alcohol alkali hydrolysis

In this work,a novel alcohol alkali hydrolysis method was explored for the preparation of terephthalic acid(TPA)from waste polyethylene terephthalate(PET).First,a series of single factor experiments on the depolymerization rate of waste PET bottles and the yield of TPA were conducted to determine the optimized experimental conditions,in terms of reaction time,reaction temperature,dosage of ethylene glycol and sodium bicarbonate,amount of distilled water and stirring rate.Then IR spectra and elemental analysis were carried out for the characterization of obtained product.Under optimal experimental conditions,over 98%PET can be depolymerized into the target product(TPA)and the purity and yield of TPA are over 97%and 94%,respectively.Both the experimental and analytical results support a feasible process for the preparation of TPA from waste PET.It is expected that this alcohol alkali hydrolysis method can promise an effective way for the sustainable recycling of waste PET.

Numerical study on waste polyethylene pyrolysis driven by self-sustaining smoldering

Polyethylene is the type of waste plastic that accounts for the most significant proportion of municipal solid waste.Waste polyethylene can be valorized via pyrolysis and produce value-added oil,gas,and char.On the other hand,self-sustaining smoldering is an emerging technical means to deal with sand/soil contaminated by organic matter.The high-temperature heat generated by smoldering can be used as a heat source for pyrolyzing waste polyethylene.Therefore,this study investigates numerically the pyrolysis of waste polyethylene driven by self-sustaining smoldering.A novel 4-step lumped kinetic model is proposed for simulating the pyrolysis of waste polyethylene.The results indicate that the operating parameters can determine the pyrolysis product yields by regulating the pyrolysis temperature and the volatile residence time.Note that higher temperatures and longer residence times favor the generation of shorter-chain pyrolysis products because of the intensified volatiles’secondary cracking.It can be concluded that a high interface-wall heat transfer coefficient(400 W m^(-2)K^(-1)),a low PE content(0.20),a high char concentration(2.4%),and a moderate air velocity(0.040 m s^(-1))are beneficial to oil yield.To some extent,this study may broaden the boundaries for the application of self-sustained smoldering-driven pyrolysis.

Sustainable Practice in Pavement Engineering through Value-Added Collective Recycling of Waste Plastic and Waste Tyre Rubber

Waste plastics,such as waste polyethylene terephthalate(PET)beverage bottles and waste rubber tyres are major municipal solid wastes,which may lead to various environmental problems if they are not appropriately recycled.In this study,the feasibility of collectively recycling the two types of waste into performance-increasing modifiers for asphalt pavements was analyzed.This study aimed to investigate the recycling mechanisms of waste PET-derived additives under the treatment of two amines,triethylenetetramine(TETA)and ethanolamine(EA),and characterize the performances of these additives in modifying rubberized bitumen,a bitumen modified by waste tyre rubber.To this end,infrared spectroscopy and thermal analyses were carried out on the two PET-derived additives(PET–TETA and PET–EA).In addition,infrared spectroscopy,viscosity,dynamic shear rheology,and multiple stress creep recovery tests were performed on the rubberized bitumen samples modified by the two PET-derived additives.We concluded that waste PET can be chemically upcycled into functional additives,which can increase the overall performance of the rubberized bitumen.The recycling method developed in this study not only helps alleviate the landfilling problems of both waste PET plastic and scrap tyres,but also turns these wastes into value-added new materials for building durable pavements.

A novel method for the management of sulfone-rich waste produced in the oxidative desulfurization(ODS) process

The oxidative desulfurization(ODS) process is one of the new desulfurization processes for the production of clean fuels. Despite the benefits of the ODS process, this process faces several important challenges. One of the most important challenges of this process is the management of a waste which is rich of sulfone compounds.In the present study, a new strategy which is the addition of waste to the bitumen with other solid waste such as high density polyethylene(HDPE) waste has been investigated. The experimental design method was applied to investigate the effect of addition of the sulfone and HDPE wastes to the properties of the bitumen blends including degree of penetration, softening point, and mass loss. It was found that the sulfone waste can be added to the bitumen as a softener. The results showed that several grades of bitumen including 50/60, 60/70, 85/100 can be produced through the addition of sulfone waste along with the HDPE waste to the base 60/70 bitumen.In general, the application of simple processes such as mixing the wastes with the bitumen can reduce the cost of waste management, considerably.

Analysis of Highway Asphalt Modified with Recycled Rubber and Waste Plastics

In this study,it is shown how recycled rubber and waste plastics can modify the softening point and penetration of asphalt traditionally used for highways.It is shown that the modified asphalt can meet the performance index requirements when the components are present with a certain proportion or relative ratio(1:3.5).The dispersion process of the masterbatch in base asphalt can effectively be implemented,with good results and a smaller mixing time.The proposed approach may be regarded as a good strategy to achieve energy savings and protection of the environment.

Prediction of Marshall Parameters of Modified Bituminous Mixtures Using Artificial Intelligence Techniques

This study presents the application of artificial neural networks(ANN)and least square support vector machine(LS-SVM)for prediction of Marshall parameters obtained from Marshall tests for waste polyethylene(PE)modified bituminous mixtures.Waste polyethylene in the form of fibres processed from utilized milk packets has been used to modify the bituminous mixes in order to improve their engineering properties.Marshall tests were carried out on mix specimens with variations in polyethylene and bitumen contents.It has been observed that the addition of waste polyethylene results in the improvement of Marshall characteristics such as stability,flow value and air voids,used to evaluate a bituminous mix.The proposed neural network(NN)model uses the quantities of ingredients used for preparation of Marshall specimens such as polyethylene,bitumen and aggregate in order to predict the Marshall stability,flow value and air voids obtained from the tests.Out of two techniques used,the NN based model is found to be compact,reliable and predictable when compared with LS-SVM model.A sensitivity analysis has been performed to identify the importance of the parameters considered.

废旧聚乙烯的再生处理技术(上)

聚乙烯(Polyethylene)是塑料中产量极大、用途极广的热塑性塑料之一,它是由乙烯聚合而成,可用一般热塑性塑料的成型方法加工.聚乙烯可分为低密度聚乙烯(LDPE)、高密度聚乙烯(HDPE)和线型低密度聚乙烯(LLDPE)三大类.……

Preparation,Characterization and Hot Storage Stability of Asphalt Modified by Waste Polyethylene Packaging

Waste polyethylene packaging （WPE） was used to modify asphalt, and hot storage stability of the modified asphalt was studied in this paper. The morphological change and component loss of WPE modified asphalt were characterized by fluorescence microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FT-IR）, differential scanning calorimetry （DSC）, thermogravimetry （TG） and isolation testing. In addition, the mechanism of the hot storage stability of WPE modified asphalt was discussed. The results showed that the modification of asphalt with WPE was a physical process. It was found that the filament or partly network-like structure formed in the modified asphalt system was beneficial to improving the hot storage stability. Moreover, the addition of WPE resulted in a decrease in both the light components volatilization and the macromolecules decomposition of asphalt. It was demonstrated that when the content of WPE in matrix asphalt was less than 10 wt%, the service performances of modified asphalt could be better.