Abstract:
Due to increased oil imports, Thailand is taking steps to increase the use of renewable fuels. Meanwhile, non-biodegradable plastic wastes have created incremental problems due to their huge quantities. Converting plastic waste to pyrolysis oil becomes one of the potential alternatives for a replacement to import petroleum fuel. Therefore, the objectives of this research are to study the maximum blended ratio of pyrolysis oils which meet diesel fuel specification and also study the economic analysis of diesel fuel replacement. The performance of two different pyrolysis oils were investigated by testing 6 items based on ASTM testing standard which are specific gravity, viscosity, pour point, sulfur, flash point and distillation. The results show that the first pyrolysis oil (1PO) produced from plastic is able to blend at the greater ratio of 10% by volume which meets diesel specifications. However, the second pyrolysis oil (2PO) produced from various sources including tires, plastic and used lubricants can blend at the ratio less than 10% by volume. An investigation of the first pyrolysis oil was further observed to study in terms of diesel fuel replacement. The results show that the first pyrolysis oil can be maximum blended at 18% by volume (1PO18). For the economic analysis, by comparing the prices at the diesel oil ex-refinery. It was found that the pyrolysis oil is able to replace diesel with the cheaper price at 0.19 baht/liter comparing to diesel ex-refinery. Therefore, it is possible to further support pyrolysis oil as one of the promising alternative fuel in the transportation sector.