Co-extraction of Lignite and Waste Tire Mixtures

The present investigation relates to supercritical co-extraction of waste tire and lignite to form a liquid product and characterizing it in order to evaluate the obtaining valuable chemical compounds. The waste tire and lignite are mixed in defined ratios and heated to depolymerization temperature of the rubber in the presence of toluene as a solvent under supercritical conditions. The highest liquid yield was obtained at 500 degrees C and a 50 wt% mixing ratio of waste tire/lignite. Moreover, the liquid product yields obtained by supercritical extraction and by pyrolysis is compared. The liquid yield in supercritical extraction is approximately two times more than that obtained in pyrolysis at the same temperature. The liquid product is analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy. The effect of extraction temperature, waste tire/lignite ratio, catalyst type, and ratio on product distribution was investigated. Moreover, the effect of synergism on co-processing was also discussed.