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Application of Pyrolysis Technology as an Effort to Reduce Plastic

Waste
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The 5th Hamzanwadi International Conference of Technology and Education 2019 IOP Publishing
Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1539 (2020) 012068 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1539/1/012068

Application of Pyrolysis Technology as an Effort to Reduce

Plastic Waste

Basransyah1*, Agus Muliadi Putra2, Muhammad Iman Darmawan3

1,2,3
Universitas Hamzanwadi, Lombok, Indonesia
* Email: [email protected]

Abstract: The problem of waste in the tourism area is one of the crucial issues that must be
addressed immediately. The performance of the waste management system is not optimal,
marked by the number of waste that is not managed properly in the tourism area. The purpose
of this study is to conduct a study of the generation and composition of waste in general and to
determine the potential and appropriate handling of plastic waste. The Pananjung Village as a
beach tourism destination of waste generation as much as 5387.83 kg/day with a source of
non-domestic waste generation in the form of hotels, restaurants, homestays, traders, street,
beach, and tourists. The total composition of plastic waste 10.11% which is divided into two
groups of plastic. The recycled plastic group is Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE) plastic
1.62%, 0.02% High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), 0.53% Polypropylene (PP) type, 2.16%
Polyethylene (PE) type, this plastic handling is recycled by made new plastic products
according to its type. While the types of plastic that cannot be recycled include 2.14% Plastic
Bags, 0.34% Polystyrene (PS) and 3.30% other types of plastic. Plastic bag handling is done
by pyrolysis technology. Fuel oil from the plastic bag pyrolysis process is included in the
category of gasoline with C5 to C12 hydrocarbon chains.

Keywords: waste generation, waste composition, plastic waste, pyrolysis

1. Introduction
One indicator of waste management that is less than optimal in tourist areas is characterized by
dirty tourist areas due to a large amount of untreated waste. According to [1], waste management
problems are caused by a lack of waste management infrastructure, lack of knowledge and lack of
collaboration with community-based waste management. Another obstacle in waste management is the
unavailability of the latest waste generation data, making it difficult to project the performance of
waste management to be carried out [2].
Plastic plays an important role in our daily lives due to its versatility, lightweight and low
production cost [3], [4]. Consumption of plastics increasing drastically year by year there is a problem
with plastics [5]. Contamination of the marine environment by human-made plastic litter is a growing
and global problem [6] and this litter results in a wide range of potential impacts on the environment
[7], [8].The estimation that 275 million metric tons (MT) of plastic waste was generated in 192 coastal
countries in 2010, and predicted to increase by an order of magnitude by 2025 [9]. Crackle plastic
bags have become a part of human life and are difficult to separate [10]. It is estimated that each
person consumes 170 plastic bags each year and around 500 billion to one trillion plastic bags are used
worldwide. Plastic is also an organic material composed of chemicals that are quite dangerous for the
environment. Plastic waste is very difficult to be deciphered naturally [11], to decipher plastic waste
requires approximately 80 years to be completely degraded [12].
Pananjung beach is one of the tourist destinations, if the problem of garbage in the tourist area is
not handled properly it will be able to reduce aesthetic value and cause cleanliness problems in the
tourist area. One way to develop plastic waste treatment is to convert it into fuel. Therefore, we need a
method that can process waste but does not cause other new problems. One method of processing
waste that has been developed, the pyrolysis method. Pyrolysis is widely seen as a promising
technology for converting plastic waste into a wax/oil product which can be used as a heavy fuel oil
substitute or as raw material by the petrochemical industry [13].

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The 5th Hamzanwadi International Conference of Technology and Education 2019 IOP Publishing
Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1539 (2020) 012068 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1539/1/012068

2. Research Methods

2.1 Research Location

The research location is a beach tourism area located in Pananjung Village, Pangandaran
Regency, and West Java Province.

2.2 Data Collection

1) Measurement of waste generation and composition in the Pananjung village area is done through
sampling at the source of waste generation for 8 consecutive days using a sampling box measuring
20 x 20 x 1000 cm, concerning [14] concerning Methods for Taking and Measuring Examples of
Urban Waste Increment and Composition.
2) Measurement of waste composition is done by separating waste based on its type then weighed.
Types of waste are grouped into kitchen waste, garden waste, plastic, paper, metal, rubber, cloth,
glass, nappies, hazardous and other types of waste.

2.3 Data Analysis

1) The analysis carried out is a material balance to see the potential form of recycling in each type of
plastic waste.
2) Physical test of fuel oil from the plastic pyrolysis process, namely: viscosity, density, flash point,
and calorific value [15].
3) Chemical test of oil from plastic pyrolysis by using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
(GC-MS) [16], [17].

3. Result and Discussion

3.1 Waste Generation

The total amount of waste generation in Pananjung Village based on measurements of hotels,
homestays, restaurants, trader, roads, beaches and tourists is 5387.83 kg/day or 15.94 m3/day (with an
average density of 338 kg/m3).

3.2 Waste Composition

Waste characterization is the first step to any successful waste management policy [18] and
fundamental importance not only for emissions during waste treatment [19]. The highest composition
of waste is kitchen waste (27.19%), organic waste is generated due to the extensive use of food [20].
garden waste (22.45%), plastic waste (21.99%), then paper type waste (14.7%). The best way to
reduce waste by changing human behavior toward waste management [21]–[23], by sorting waste
from the household. Waste sorting can affect recycling rates [24]. According to [25] waste sorting can
reduce the amount of waste as much as 30%. The details of the composition of waste based on
measurement results as in Table 1.

Table 1. Waste Composition

Type of Waste Komposition (%)
Kitchen Waste 39.07
Parks 22.45
Plastic 10.11
Paper 14.7
Metal 1.45
Rubber 0.52

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The 5th Hamzanwadi International Conference of Technology and Education 2019 IOP Publishing
Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1539 (2020) 012068 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1539/1/012068

Type of Waste Komposition (%)

Textile 1.05
Glass 1.34
Nappies 1.15
Hazardous 4.46
Others 3.7
Total 100

The amount of plastic waste as much as 10.11% is then sorted again based on the type of plastic,
namely Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE), High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Polypropylene (PP),
Polyethylene (PE), Plastic Bags, Polystyrene (PS) and other types of plastic. Then all types of plastics
are grouped again into groups of recyclable plastic waste and plastic waste that cannot be recycled.
Plastic waste groups that can be recycled include Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE), High-Density
Polyethylene (HDPE), Polypropylene (PP) and Polyethylene (PE), the total types of these plastic
groups are 233.29 kg/day. Whereas the group of plastic waste that cannot be recycled includes plastic
bags, Polystyrene (PS) and other types of plastic with a total of 311.42 tons/day. Detailed composition
and weight of each type of plastic waste as shown in Table 2.

Table 2. The composition and weight of plastic waste by type

Plastic Type Composition ( %) Weight (kg/day) Information
Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE) 1.62 87.28 reusable
High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) 0.02 1.08 reusable
Polypropylene (PP) 0.53 28.56 reusable
Polyethylene (PE) 2.16 116.38 reusable
Plastic Bags 2.14 115.30 nonreusable
Polystyrene (PS) 0.34 18.32 nonreusable
Others Plastic 3.30 177.80 nonreusable
Total 10.11 544.71

This type of recycled plastic waste is used as raw material to make new plastic products based on
its type. The type of plastic waste that cannot be recycled like other types of plastic waste can be
handled by making eco-bricks and other handicrafts. Whereas plastic bag waste can be handled by
processing using pyrolysis technology.

3.3 Pyrolysis
The plastic waste cracking process in this study uses the pyrolysis process which is one of the
cracking processes using high temperatures without the presence of limited air or air. In this study, the
pyrolysis process uses an optimal temperature of 300ᴼC with a sample of polypropylene type plastic
waste with a sample mass of 3 kg.
The thermal and catalytic processes of converting waste plastics into fuels are promising
techniques to eliminate the refuse which otherwise is harmful to the environment and decreases the
dependence on fossil fuels [26]. Oil from the pyrolysis process of the plastic had a high calorific value
[27]. The oil obtained by the pyrolysis of waste plastics can be used as an alternative fuel for a diesel
engine without making any modification to the engine [28].

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The 5th Hamzanwadi International Conference of Technology and Education 2019 IOP Publishing
Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1539 (2020) 012068 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1539/1/012068

Fig. 1. Materials, reactors, and plastic pyrolysis products

The starts of the pyrolysis process in plastic waste are marked by the release of fuel oil produced
through the outlet pipe in the reactor. Fuel oil from the reactor starts in the 110th minute with a reactor
temperature of 170ºC. Effect of temperature and time on the amount of oil in the pyrolysis process as
in Fig.2.

Fig. 2. Effect of temperature and time on the amount of oil in the pyrolysis process

The reduction of plastic waste using pyrolysis technology can reduce the volume of plastic waste
by up to 96% with a residue of 4% of the 3 kg amount of waste. The amount of fuel oil produced was
477.5 ml. The results of physical testing of fuel oil from the plastic pyrolysis process have a viscosity
value of 0.828 cSt, density 0.88 gr/ml, flash point 42°C and calorific value of 11.819 Cal/gr.
according to the [29], if the high calorific value is a significant increase compared to conventional
diesel fuel.
Based on GC-MS testing on oil pyrolysis plastic fuel samples that the oil contains many
compounds, it can be seen from the number of peaks in the GC spectra. Pyrolysis oil chromatogram
as Fig. 3.

Fig 3. Results of GC-MS analysis of plastic pyrolysis fuels

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The 5th Hamzanwadi International Conference of Technology and Education 2019 IOP Publishing
Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1539 (2020) 012068 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1539/1/012068

Table 3. The fraction of plastic pyrolysis oil content resulted from GC-MS analysis
Retention Time % area Compound Formula
1.885 2.26 Cyclohexane (CAS) Hexanaphthene C6H12
3.954 4.57 Heptane, 4-methyl- (CAS) 4-Methylheptane C8H18
5.943 2.24 Cyclohexane, 1,3,5-trimethyl- C9H18
6.146 3.43 2-Hepten-4-one, 2-methyl- C8H14O
6.593 19.15 2,4-Dimethyl-1-heptene C9H18
7.075 3.23 Cyclohexane, 1,3,5-trimethyl- C9H18
9.428 3.12 2-Pentanone, 3-[(acetyloxy)methyl]-3,4-dimethyl C5H10
13.979 2.04 1-Decene C10H20
14.503 2.49 Heptane, 2,5,5-trimethyl- (CAS) 2,5,5-Trimethylheptane C10H22
14.623 2.56 Decane, 4-methyl- (CAS) 4-Methyldecane C11H24
16.247 2.90 1-Decene, 2,4-dimethyl- C12H24
20.444 2.44 2-Isopropyl-5-methyl-1-heptanol C11H24O

The fraction contained in pyrolysis oil type plastic bags according to Table 3. It has a range of C5-
C12 hydrocarbon bonds. This result can be concluded that the oil resulting from the pyrolysis process
of plastic bags is close to the gasoline type of fuel oil which is composed of C5 to C12 hydrocarbon
chains [30], [31]. The characteristics of HDPE and PP pyrolytic sample oils are similar to
conventional transportation fuel [32], [33]. Oil product of the plastic pyrolysis is potential as an
alternative energy source for electricity generation [34].

4. Conclusion
Knowing the generation and composition of waste will make it easier to handle waste, especially
in recycling and determining waste processing technology. The activity of recycling waste that can be
renewed greatly impacts on environmental cleanliness in the form of a reduction in the form of
recycling to make new plastic products according to its type, while also having an economic impact
on the surrounding community. In principle, pyrolysis technology is very good as a solution to
reducing plastic waste. Besides being able to reduce the amount of plastic waste in an environmentally
friendly way, the pyrolysis of plastic waste also obtained by-products in the form of fuel oil with
gasoline category C5 to C12 hydrocarbon chain.

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