Renewable Diesel As a Blend Component to Enhance Olefin Yields of Liquefied Waste Plastics Feedstocks

Demand for polymers and chemicals is increasing, as is their importance to society with the continuous development of advanced materials providing innovative solutions for the most demanding and everyday problems alike. Unfortunately this growth will contribute to an estimated 70% annual waste generation increase by 2050[1]. Steam cracking lies at the heart of meeting this demand and remains closely coupled with consuming fossil resources. In previous works, the suitability of renewable hydrocarbons as a drop-in steam cracker feedstock and the substantial environmental benefits that can be seen in the subsequent products have been presented [2,3]. To complement its commitment to reducing fossil oil dependency and related climate emissions, while offering a viable and scalable solution to address the plastic waste issue, Neste plans to refine liquefied plastic waste into high-quality drop-in raw material for the petrochemical industry. As part of this work it was surprisingly found that, due to their unique composition, renewable hydrocarbons have a synergistic effect when used as the major component in blends with liquefied waste plastic. In this paper the steam cracking performance of hydrocarbon streams originating from liquefied waste plastics is examined and beneficial effects of dilution with renewable hydrocarbons, as opposed to a fossil naphtha, are discussed.

References

1. World Bank (2018), What a Waste 2.0: A Global Snapshot of Solid Waste Management to 2050.

2. Increasing Sustainability of the Steam Cracking Industry Through Drop-In Renewable Feedstock, Muñoz G., A.E., et al, 32nd. Ethylene Producers' Conference, 2020

3. Environmental impact assessments of innovative bio-based products, Task 1 of “Study on Support to R&I Policy in the Area of Bio-based Products and Services “, COWI A/S and Utrecht University EN December, 2018