Kinetics of Thermal Degradation of Waste Polypropylene and High-Density Polyethylene

Abstract

A kinetic analysis of the thermal degradation of waste polypropylene (PP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) has been studied using a conventional thermogravimetric technique under a nitrogen atmosphere at several heating rates between 10 and 30 degrees C/min. To obtain the kinetic parameters to describe the thermal degradation of waste PP and HDPE, dynamic thermogravimetric analysis curves and their derivatives were analyzed using a variety of analytical methods. The waste PP and HDPE samples were obtained from a recycling center for waste plastics. Our results suggest that the best methods for the kinetic analyses of the thermal degradation of waste PP and HDPE are the Dynamic and Friedman methods. In addition, we found that the activation energy for a waste blend was smaller than those of waste PP and HDPE.