Presentation Profile
Extending Oxygenate Characterization of Waste Plastic Pyrolysis Oils Using Total Oxygen Analysis and GC-MS
Main Author
Amey Gonzalez - Lummus Technology
Abstract:
Oxygen-containing compounds in waste plastic pyrolysis oils (WPPOs) can negatively impact product stability, corrosion, and catalyst performance in downstream refining. Previous work combining elemental oxygen analysis with conventional GC oxygenates methods (ASTM D7423) demonstrated that while total oxygen could be quantified, molecular characterization was largely limited to low-boiling oxygenates and failed to adequately account for oxygen present in heavier fractions. This study evaluates gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) paired with sample fractionation as a practical and accessible screening tool for mapping oxygenates in complex pyrolysis oil matrices. Bulk oxygen data obtained using a Rapid OXY cube analyzer were correlated with molecular-level oxygenates identified by GC-MS. By evaluating oxygen distribution across a broad boiling range, this methodology targets a cost-effective workflow for reconciling bulk elemental oxygen measurements with molecular-level speciation in recycled feedstocks and offers improved insight into oxygen-containing species that may impact downstream processing.
