Catalytic hydroconversion of polypropylene-based plastic waste to lubricant base-oils
The present disclosure provides a process for converting plastic comprising a polyolefin polymer to a lubricant. The process comprises contacting the plastic with a catalyst represented by A/[R m Q n ].
1. A process for converting plastic comprising a polyolefin polymer to a lubricant, comprising contacting the plastic with a catalyst represented by the Formula (I):
A/[R m Q n ] (I),
at a temperature between about 200° C. and about 400° C.; wherein
A is a metal selected from a group consisting of ruthenium, rhodium, osmium, platinum, palladium, nickel, cobalt, tin, iron, copper, and a combination thereof;
[R m Q n ] is a supporting material; wherein
R is selected from a group consisting of carbon (C), silicon (Si), aluminum (Al), cerium (Ce), titanium (Ti), tungsten (W), zirconium (Zr), and a combination thereof;
Q is absent or oxygen;
m is 1, 2, or 3;
n is 1, 2, 3, or 4; and
the symbol “/” means that the moiety A is deposited on the moiety [R m Q n ].
2. The process of claim 1 , wherein the plastic comprises a homopolymer of an olefin, a copolymer of olefins, or a mixture thereof.
3. The process of claim 1 , wherein the plastic comprises polyethylene, polypropylene, polybutene, polyisobutylene, polypentene, polyhexene, polyoctene, polystyrene, or a mixture thereof.
4. The process of claim 1 , wherein the plastic comprises high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), or a mixture thereof.
5. The process of claim 1 , wherein the plastic comprises polypropylene.
6. The process of claim 1 , wherein the plastic is selected from the group consisting of isotactic polypropylene, syndiotactic polypropylene, atactic polypropylene, low molecular weight isotactic polypropylene, amorphous polypropylene, polypropylene bottles, polypropylene transparent bags, and a mixture thereof.
7. The process of claim 1 , wherein the process is carried out in a hydrogen atmosphere at a pressure between about 20 bar to about 200 bar.
8. The process of claim 1 , wherein the temperature is between about 200° C. and about 325° C.
9. The process of claim 1 , wherein the process for conversion is carried out for a period of time between about 0.1 hour and about 96 hours.
10. The process of claim 1 , wherein the lubricant is a mixture of hydrocarbons having a carbon number distribution between about 13 and about 60.
11. The process of claim 1 , wherein the KV40 value of the lubricant is between about 30 and about 115.
12. The process of claim 1 , wherein the VI value of the lubricant is between about 139 and about 156.
13. The process of claim 1 , wherein the pour point of the lubricant is between about −15° C. and about −18° C.
14. The process of claim 1 , wherein the DSC oxidation onset temperature of the lubricant is between about 175° C. and about 179° C.
15. The process of claim 1 , wherein the number average molecular weight (M n ) of the lubricant is between about 600 and about 3,500.
16. The process of claim 1 , wherein the polydispersity index (PDI) of the lubricant is between about 1.3 and about 2.8.
17. The process of claim 1 , wherein the viscosity at 100° C. of the lubricant is between about 6.2 and about 42.2.
18. The process of claim 1 , wherein the molecular weight of the lubricant is between about 700 and about 800.
19. The process of claim 1 , wherein the weight ratio between the plastic and the catalyst is about 200:1 to about 1:1.
20. The process of claim 1 , wherein the conversion of the plastics is at least about 70%.
21. The process of claim 1 , wherein the yield of the lubricant is at least about 5%.
22. The process of claim 1 , wherein A is a metal selected from the group consisting of ruthenium, nickel, and cobalt.
23. The process of claim 1 , wherein R is selected from a group consisting of carbon, silicon, aluminum, cerium, and titanium.
24. The process of claim 1 , wherein Q is oxygen.
25. The process of claim 1 , wherein the weight percentage of the component A is about 0.5% to 100% of the weight of the catalyst.
26. The process of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst is selected from a group consisting of Ru/SiO 2 , Ru/C, Ru/Al 2 O 3 , Ru/CeO 2 , Ru/TiO 2 , Ni/SiO 2 , Ni, Co/SiO 2 , and a mixture thereof.
27. The process of claim 1 , wherein R m Q n is a TiO 2 nanopowder.