Specialized fractionation combined with deep analytics of waste plastic cracking oils for petrochemical operations

Waste plastic cracking oils (WPCO) are currently being considered as potential green feedstock for petrochemical/refinery industries in order to promote chemical recycling. However, the WPCO is a very complex material that does not meet the limits of petrochemical processes. In order to assess the possibility of using WPCO as raw material, a comprehensive analytical characterization and distillation of two wide-boiling WPCO samples from the industry was performed. Fractions boiling in typical ranges were prepared: naphtha (30–180 °C), heavy naphtha (30–250 °C), middle distillate (180–350 °C), and atmospheric residue (> 350 °C). Moreover, other distillation cuts were prepared by distilling every 10 wt% as a separate fraction. We performed a study on the distribution of parameters in narrow fractions. The content of aromatics increased with the boiling temperature in the cases of WPCO-1, but decreased for WPCO-2. WPCO-2 had lower alkanes and final boiling point (FBP) compared to WPCO-1. None of the distillation cuts are suitable for “stand-alone” processing on the steam-cracker without additional treatment. However, some of the obtained fractions could be co-processed with a standard feedstock. This study brings an understanding of WPCO material and the possibilities and limitations of its use as petrochemical input.