Hazel Chem - 2021-03-21
hey you all! this is the third update on the plastic waste to fuel pyrolysis project. I hope you like it. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/hazelchem mfg hazelChem
Hey man, you're an incredible friend to me, one of the best, and I am exceptionally happy to have you as such every single day. I'm here for you man, and I'm glad to see you're doing better. Love you man!
woow man! thanks for being such a good friend. Sometime I will return the favor :D
mfg hazelChem
@Hazel Chem one day we'll meet up and I'll return the favor back
Hope you recover soon and wish you the best health! Thank you for these interesting videos! Would you happen to know if it is possible to hydrogenate vegetable oil for fuel (similar to HVO100 fuel) in the setting of a "advanced home laboratory" like yours?
PID controlled & hold temperatures, should allow for cuts on various fractions, eliminating the need for a fractional column. This would require your heat source to be electrical, not gas. So straight from the crude you should be able to control your temperature to get gasoline, naphtha, kerosene, diesel, and maybe even residual fuel (bunker fuel). The art of distillation is mostly about slowly increasing temperature and holding it there, allowing for a given fraction to complete, before moving onto the next. The fractional columns are nice, but are more difficult to fine tune.
I'm working on a pyrolysis reactor myself. So far I've managed to obtain a tiny amount of smelly oil and polluted the whole neighbourhood in the process 😂 your videos have been helpful with my experimentation
did you flush the reactor with CO2? you also can add carbon black as a catalyst to yield more diesel/kerosene fraction
@Humbulla93I'd love to speak with you about the pyrolysis project. Working on a new reactor.
Really cool work!
I'd be curious to know the yields of the different fractions.
you could look into spouted bed and fluidized bed reaction chambers. I have never built a reactor of this scale, but I have read about them in some journal articles. Journal of analytical and applied pyrolysis may be of interest to you! thanks for these videos they are awesome and inspiring to me as a graduate student researching pyrolysis.
You're making a great work! thanks for the update. I would love to see you test the combustion qualities of the oil.
So happy to see this project continued! Your chemistry background is quite impressive and as I continue to educate myself on this topic, I'm wishing I learned more about chemistry and pyrolysis when I was in public school. I was initially inspired to learn more about this process by a self sufficient family on a remote island using washed up plastic as an energy source and continued education through this series made me motivated to give it a try. Recently, I started building my own pyrolysis reactor out of a scavenged (and modified) 100lb propane tank and some old fire extinguishers for collecting and funneling out oil and waste at atleast 2 different points. While I am planning on heating the bottom of the reactor with a Nichrome heating element from a dryer, it definitely seems that my design will have significantly less heat transfer throughout the pyrolysis reactor as a whole when compared to a fully insulated reactor. I'm am by no-means an expert at anything, but I do have a question for you about a catalyst and it's purpose. In some pyrolysis setups I've seen a second reactor labeled as the catalytic reactor which from my (very limited) understanding helps to achieve a more desirable end product. My question is, how important is a catalyst to the pyrolysis process, and how what kind of catalyst(s) would work with the end product goal being a diesel fuel fraction?
Very excited by your results, videos, and experience in this field and I'm looking forward to your future details and designs regarding DIY pyrolysis.
Man this is amazing, I send you a message on Instagram hope you’ll see it ! This is future. Hope you recovered well too !
Hey you all
It´s been quite a while since I uploaded a video the reason being that I was in hospital for several months. Now I am somewhat cured but still must take care that I don´t overwork myself. To answer the question many of you will ask right away: NO it wasn´t due to chemistry! It lies more in the direction of chronical illness, but I do not want to discuss such things here! Because this is a science channel.
So now let´s get you guys updated on the pyrolysis project! In the time before the hospital stay, I was able to make some more improvements to the system. The first being the lid which is now cast out of refractory concrete. This helps better seal the upper part of the combustion chamber and increases the insulation capacity.
Again, as it is common with this project there have been more problems. This time the tubes I was using failed. They were rated for the temperature I used them at but nethertheless they couldn´t withstand. For this reason, I changed them out for Teflon tubes. Teflon as you might know can withstand temperatures of 260°C with ease and the hot solvent media won’t affect it. They are a bit pricy if you must buy them… but luckily, I got them from some friends who now own a business for used laboratory equipment. By the way a quick test to see if you have Teflon is to use a water-resistant marker on it. If it comes off with ease it’s a sign for Teflon.
As I was already working on the column, I also fixed the K-type thermocouples to the right spots and wrapped it into some ceramic insulation material. This should increase its efficiency.
Furthermore, I acquired some ceramic column packing to build an even better column. The ceramic packing is also used in the lab for the purification of chemicals via fractional distillation.
Now let’s answer some commonly asked questions.
The first question concerns what is left in the reaction chamber after the pyrolysis. Here you can see the so-called petroleum coke. It is carbon with contaminants which are left over from the feed stock. In future I plan on analysing the composition of this biproduct to determine the possible usages. For example, if it is clean enough it can be used to fertilise soil. If not, its usage is limited to burning. Keep in mind that in every system there is a build up of carbon and so-called fouling in the pipes and reactor vessel. This means that you must regularly clean all parts of the system! Otherwise you risk blocked pipes which can lead to catastrophic failure!
Second question YES I do know that I can use the flare gases to heat the system and I am already working on a solution for it but it is not my top priority.
Third question YES I do know that the design of the reaction chamber is not good but currently I do not have access to the space where I could build a better one. If you have an idea for a reaction chamber which maximises heat transfer or seems in general better fitted, please leave a comment. maybe you and I can come up with the next and better variant of the reaction chamber.
If you have questions, I haven´t answered yet feel free to leave a detailed comment. I will then answer it directly in the comments or even in the next video.
So guys this has been it for this update. But don´t worry I am already working on new videos. I´d like to thank all my patreon supporters. With your help I was able to get the refractory cement and the flow meter. If you also like to support the channel you can do so via patreon the link is in the video description.
So only one thing left to say…….. have fun and do not kill yourself
Are you still alive, Hazel Chem? I sure hope you are, because your channel is such a great gift to humanity.
I hope you’re doing well, but you haven’t posted in seven months, so it’s not looking good.😞
@Trevor Risley yes I am... just very busy with university :/ got 75h a week right now
Have you considered using induction heating for the reaction chamber?
Hello! I have previously worked in the manufacture of brewing vessels for beermaking. Some of our kettles were "direct fired" with gas burners heating an inner vessel, much like your reactor. To improve heat transfer and increase residence time of the combustion gases, we welded partial ring-shaped baffles to the outside of the inner vessel. This forced the gases in a spiral winding path around the inner vessel. I suspect this could be a relatively simple modification to your current reactor.
Another efficiency improvement is converting to a power burner - you can make your own, as many hobby blacksmiths do, which should reduce your fuel consumption. This opens the door for later using the pyrolisis gases without a gas compresser.
Finally, your could build a recuperating/regenerative air burner, with your combustion air preheated by drawing it through a tube in your combustion chamber.
Just had a meeting with my partner and we directly incorporated the fin idea!
For the new Reactor we will be using a forced air burner design and the recuperating burner is also quite interesting in that way.
It always makes me happy to see how much this project has is benefiting from my community.
So a big thank you for the informative comment!
mfg hazelChem
Fantastic! I'm glad to hear it!
I think multiple runs with specifc plastics would be good (PP, PET, PE, etc)
I was so excited to see this in my recommended! Glad to have you back, hope you continue to feel better!
Think outside the box a self sustaining continuous feed system would be ideal. Use a rotating retort rolling on steel casters at 10% grade incased in a oven. Heat the oven to 1200F using natural gas. Then introduce materials using a hydraulic repeating ram into a tapered pipe at one end creating a new seal with every stroke. Material will decompose in minutes down to a gas and char. Use 15% of produced gasses to sustain the system the rest can be sent to a gas turbine or steam boiler. Char empties into a bin as a closed system and can be sold as a filtering agent. If using MSW it’s wet send the shredded material through a similar drier above the retort tube heated by the waste heat from below. System is sustained using conveyer belts from hopper to dryer dropping in front of ram thus injected into rotating retort for gasification. This is a basic explanation of a system I was involved with, the technology was solid as a continuous flow 7/24 it was the regulation process that killed it but the emissions were below EPA requirements in the toughest counties on the planet without any filters or scrubbers installed. Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties in California USA. Demonstration facility was located in a business park and nobody but the regulators knew it was there. No smoke, noxious odors or dioxins were created or released into atmosphere from a stack located 10ft above a single story office building. Any questions I will share my experience with you would like to see someone repeat the process before I die. It was an excellent solution held back by idiotic regulations.
Hi thank you for these very interesting videos! Very interested in your work. Is this scalable for commercial use?
go electric for the heating. easy, accurate and even heating .
try adding bit of waste motor oil for better mixing of the molten mass. also they have tiny steel particles that might help catalyze the reaction also as gas generation nucleate sites.
Great video.
I have two questions:
1. What the efficiency that you could realistically achieve with a setup like this? Or, instead of efficiency, how much more fuel energy do you get out than you put heat energy in?
2. Is a CO2 purge necessary or would a vacuum pump do the trick?
Would like to see you do a video on cleaning used motor oil, mostly removing the suspended combustion products from the oil which are suspended there using detergents. I've tried using baking soda and citric acid to separate them into phases without success.
Do you think it would be possible to use the solid residue to make carbon electrodes, like those used in aluminium smelting?
Hi, are you still working on this project? I'm currently working full time as a process engineer on a full scale (2x25 ton plastic/day) pyrolysis process plant. We just started erecting it in Denmark. I find your videos remarkably interesting. Excellent job!
hello Thomas,
yes I am still working on the project. I am currently putting the team together for building a improved reactor with the mechanical engineering department of my university.
If you like to it would be amazing having some input from someone working in the industry. In case you have some time to spare here is my mail hazelchemistry@gmail.com
mfg hazelChem
Suggestion: cheapest and best column packing, just smash a garden pot and use the shards over a metal screen as condensation plates.
Also, if you want to remove the contaminating water, in a cheap way, why not use a filtered cheap roughing vacuum pump to remove the gas?
Love the channel man, the pyrolysis project is super cool!
I’m glad you are feeling better! I built a system that is similar to yours. I have an idea to increase efficiency by using heat from the exhaust gas to preheat the incoming air. I did this on a test burner and was able to achieve frameless oxidation. I also have been working on a continuous feed / char removal system.
thanks for the feedback i will devinetly consider it!
What is your take on the char removal system? If you like to you can share your progress with me :D
mfg hazelChem
a reactor that increase the thermal efficiency means a reactor with a small wall thickness as possible and leave the steel... maybe a aluminum vessel
Hola! Podrías explicar cómo construiste los condensadores? Gracias por compartir tus conocimientos!
Hello Hazel Chem,
Not sure if I asked already or not, but could you weigh the propane tank before and after the next run? Also, please provide the unit cost for your propane. I am curious to see what the energy input to the system is and if it is possible to extract some sort of motor fuel at a reasonable cost. Big fan of the channel!
Thanks,
Steve
Thank goodness you are back and you are ok, I love your videos and you have inspired me to build a pyrolosis reactor myself! I am looking into fractionally condensing the hot hydrocarbon fumes using a vortex filter that will move the uncondensed purer fumes up and pull the contaminants down. I feel like this is the most efficient because why distill when you can condense and have many different outputs at the same time? Anyways, thanks for coming back!
thank you for the nice words! It really makes my day to know that my videos inspired people to make their own projects :D Also the idea with the cyclone filter to get rid of particulates is a good one!
mfg hazelChem
@Hazel Chem No problem! Also, do you have any idea of the potential contamination in the byproduct of coke/coal? Because I'm thinking of using it in my compost pile if it's not super toxic
Would any of these fractions work straight in a diesel or gasoline engine? You know, disregarding any long-term lifespan concerns
I'm glad you're feeling better. Why don't you fashion the pipes out of steel brake lines or copper water pipe? Is there a unexpected reaction with said materials?
thank you so much for producing these videos. i too want to build a plastic pyrolysis reactor
Today I was reading some comments and I notice that you was in hospital so first of all I wish you the best and I hope you getting well. I have a question about fractional distillation pipe, it will function alone or I need to pack with steel scrubs or other material? Thanks 😊 in advance.
Hazel, can you tell me, where can I get the main chamber for pyrolising plastic? I'm kind of interested in training myself to craft some fuel, so I may use made fuel when I need it, on example blackout and I gotta power my generator and/or impress Chemistry teacher.
Glad to hear your feeling better. Love Your videos. Very interesting.
Love what you are doing.
Why are you not using steel tubing instead of plastic pipes?
It can't be that much more expensive than Teflon.
Am I the only one who wants to see a home plant heated by concentrated solar? Parabolic mirrors and/or fresnel lenses on a heliostat run by a small solar panel. C'mon backyard engineers? Let's see it!
You could use the gas burning torch to power a hydro generator for a fan to assist the cooling element
Is that column packed or trayed? In future videos can we get more details about it? Thank you for your high quality videos! :)
It's stated in the video, the column is packed with ceramic media.
also i was thinking about places that have high amounts of plastic waste and low quality of life. wouldn't a plastic pyrolysis plant be most beneficial to raising quality of life as well as removing contaminating plastics
Maybe a big old copper pot still for rxn vessel? I wouldnt know about side reactions but it conducts heat very well
Hope you’re feeling better all the best wishes!
Appreciate you! Working on pyrolysis designs at the moment
What kinds of plastic do you use as a feedstock? Do you vary up operating conditions like temperature, heating rate, inert gas sweeping rate, particle size, and feedstock ratios? Why would there be a solid residue after pyrolysis if the feedstock is plastic. Besides, Biomass pyrolysis does generate biochar. How do you select up your operating conditions? Did you studied their thermal degradation behaviour in a Thermogravimetric analyser?
You should use a round foundry type of build where the burning nozzle comes in at an angle. This will create a vortex which is way more efficient.
he had one one of those , check his earlier video's.
Good work man! Btw, im just wondering how did you install the condenser
thanks! what exactly do you mean?
mfg hazelChem
Hey! How did you build the colum? Can you explain? How is the inside build?
Thanks for the video! That TIG welding at the end is the new column?
Do you use any catalytics inside column or pipes, or is that only fraction distillation apparatus?
How long would it take, to make one liter of bio oil through this proces?
Bearcat Ben - 2021-03-21
I'm glad you're feeling better now, and I am so happy this series is continuing