Pyrolysis of auto shredder residue in hot motor oil

The resource recovery of auto shredder residue (ASR) is of increasing importance as incineration and landfilling becomes much more expensive and the acceptance of these methods is decreasing. Thus, the main purpose of this work was to investigate the feasibility of the ASR pyrolysis in hot used motor oil to recover valuable oil products. Derived kinetic parameters of the individual polymer (PU, PS, ABS, AS, and PVC) calculated from the thermogravimetry experiments provides the basic pyrolysis data for ASR. Experimentally, pyrolysis of ASR in motor oil generated approximately 68% of oils, and 15% of noncondensible gases and 27% of nonliquefiable solid residues. Proton NMR and FTIR spectroscopic data reveal the structural changes of oils that occur during ASR pyrolysis. The cuts of the condensate produced from the ASR pyrolysis into weighted boiling fraction are primarily light naphtha and heavy gas oil. Light naphtha is the main constituents of gasoline. Heavy gas oil may be re-refined into lighter products or sold as a low grade fuel oil.