Methods for producing higher alcohols from waste plastic pyrolysis oil and the higher alcohols obtained therefrom
A method for producing a higher alcohol from a waste plastic feedstock is disclosed, comprising: (a) providing a hydrocarbon feed stream comprising a pyrolysis oil feed obtained from pyrolysis of plastic waste, wherein the pyrolysis oil comprises at least 20 wt % higher olefins with a carbon number in the range C5-C20, based on its total hydrocarbon content; (b) contacting the hydrocarbon feed stream with synthesis gas under hydroformylation conditions in the presence of a hydroformylation catalyst and recovering a hydroformylation product; (c) subjecting the hydroformylation product to hydrogenation and/or a distillation to recover a higher alcohol product.
1 . A method for producing a higher alcohol from a waste plastic feedstock, comprising:
(a) providing a hydrocarbon feed stream comprising a pyrolysis oil feed obtained from pyrolysis of plastic waste, wherein the pyrolysis oil feed comprises at least 20 wt % higher olefins with a carbon number in the range C5-C20, based on its total hydrocarbon content;
(b) contacting the hydrocarbon feed stream with synthesis gas under hydroformylation conditions in the presence of a hydroformylation catalyst and recovering a hydroformylation product;
(c) subjecting the hydroformylation product to hydrogenation and/or a distillation to recover a higher alcohol product; and
the method further comprises prior to step (b) one or more of:
subjecting at least a portion of the hydrocarbon feed stream to a selective reduction of diolefins in the presence of a nickel-containing catalyst;
contacting at least a portion of the hydrocarbon feed stream with a water solution to thereby at least partially remove water-soluble contaminants; and
contacting at least a portion of the hydrocarbon feed stream with one or more adsorbents suitable to thereby at least partially remove one or more contaminants selected from: water, metals, chlorides, nitrogen-containing compounds, oxygenates, and phosphorous-containing compounds.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the hydrocarbon feed stream consists essentially of pyrolysis oil obtained from pyrolysis of plastic waste.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the hydrocarbon feed stream further comprises a higher olefins conventional feed, wherein the higher olefins conventional feed is a petroleum-based higher olefins feed.
4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the petroleum-based higher olefines feed is a higher olefin feed obtained by oligomerization of C3=, C4=, C5= olefins.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the pyrolysis oil feed comprise at least 50 wt % linear alpha-olefins, based on its total olefin content.
6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the pyrolysis oil feed is characterized by an average number of branches per molecule that is less than 1.
7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
prior to step (b), subjecting the pyrolysis oil feed to a distillation thereby separating one or more fractions corresponding to any narrow cut range within the range C7-C20.
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the pyrolysis oil feed comprise at least 60 wt % linear alpha-olefins, based on its total olefin content.
9 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the pyrolysis oil feed is characterized by an average number of branches per molecule that is less than or equal to 0.8.