Abstract
This study presents an empirical investigation into the thermochemical co-pyrolysis of mixed plastic and biomass waste feedstock’s to produce liquid fuels with diesel-comparable properties. Nine experimental runs were performed using high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), corn stover, wheat straw, switch grass, and sawdust agricultural residues widely abundant across the U.S. Corn Belt and Great Plains in varying mass ratios of 50:50, 60:40, and 70:30 plastic-to-biomass. Pyrolysis temperatures were systematically varied from 400°C to 650°C, and the influence of HZSM-5, Al2O3, ZnO, and FCC catalysts on product distribution was evaluated. The results of both the proximate analysis and ultimate analysis confirmed that the higher heating values (HHV) of plastic feedstock’s are significantly higher (43.3-44.8 MJ/kg) than those of biomass (15.2-18.9 MJ/kg), and intermediate values are obtained for mixed feeds (31.4-33.6 MJ/kg). The highest liqu