The synergistic effect of co-pyrolysis of oil shale and low density polyethylene mixtures and characterization of pyrolysis liquid

In this study, co-pyrolysis of oil shale (Kütahya-Seyitömer, Turkey) and low density polyethylene (LDPE) is performed in a fixed bed reactor under different temperature and mixture ratios. The product yields and characters of co-pyrolysis and individual pyrolysis are compared. The aim of the study is also aimed to find out possible synergistic effects on the yields of tar. Pyrolysis experiments are carried out at various mixture ratios of oil shale/LDPE at the weight ratio of 33%, 50%, 67% and in the temperature range of 600-800 °C. The effects of temperature, LDPE amount in the mixture and catalysts on the thermal degradation of oil shale are investigated in terms of both yield and properties of tar. Tar obtained during the experiments have been characterized with GC-MS and FTIR. The synergistic effect on the formation of valuable products is also discussed. As expected the co-pyrolysis of oil shale and LDPE gave high percentage of tar yields. In addition a remarkable synergetic effect was observed in the co-pyrolysis of oil shale and LDPE and this effect was improved by adding zeolite as a catalyst to the oil shale/LDPE mixture.