Molecular-Level Understanding of Municipal Solid Waste Thermo-Catalytic Valorization (Wasteomics)

The pressing need for more sustainably produced fuels has highlighted the co-feeding of plastics with conventional feedstocks as a promising alternative. However, challenges such as effective feeding, in-depth product characterization, or process optimization require thorough analysis to establish the feasibility of the overall process. This study demonstrates the validity of a workflow for the quantitative and kinetic analysis of the hydrocracking reaction of vacuum gas oil and plastic pyrolysis oil blends using a NiW on HY-zeolite catalyst in a semi-batch reactor. The reaction products are characterized using a combination of gas chromatography with various detectors, Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry, and simulated distillation. The workflow refines and integrates data from these techniques into comprehensive quantitative datasets applied to continuous lumping kinetic modeling. Hydrocracking of the blend converts 83 % of heavy cycle oil at 440 °C, yielding substantial amounts of naphtha and middle distillates. The continuous lumping kinetic model accurately predicts product distribution while providing key insights into the reactivity of heavy fractions and S and N removal.