Pyrolysis of waste tires in a circulating fluidized-bed reactor

Using a circulating fluidized bed (CFB) as the main reactor, an integrated process development unit was operated aiming at the pyrolysis of waste tires. The main chemical processes in the CFB can be divided into two zones corresponding to pyrolysis and secondary reactions. The pyrolysis of tire powder was carried out at various pyrolysis temperatures, particle sizes of tire powder and feed positions. The effects of temperature, residence time and heating rate on pyrolysis were analyzed based on the experimental data. The main trends are that (1) a long residence time contributes to secondary reactions and (2) lower temperature and heating rate favor carbonization, which reduces the oil yield. Analysis of the pyrolytic oil shows that the predominant components are aromatics, followed by alkanes, non-hydrocarbons and asphalt.