Abstract
Bench and pilot plants with moving-bed reactors were constructed and examined to demonstrate the effective features of the new reactor. Polystyrene was readily decomposed to liquid products under the controlled temperature and residence time. The bench-scale experiments showed that the oil yields were varied, especially by the residence time rather than the reactor temperature under the pyrolysis and catalytic conditions. The product composition in catalysis, however, were varied with the residence time. Catalytic decomposition of polystyrene at the higher temperature and the longer residence time resulted in the increase of ethylbenzene, which is a stable component as fuel oil and organic solvent. Based on the performance of the pilot plant operation, the treatment cost was estimated at 50-60 yen/kg for 2000 t/y-commercial scale.
