Systemic Analysis and Synthesis for Modeling the Pyrolysis of Plastics: Estimating the Optimal Operating Temperature

In the reviewed literature, experimental and simulation methods prevail as the main tools for developing technologies for converting plastic waste into synthetic fuels. This paper proposes a methodology for determining the operating parameters for this conversion using high-density polyethylene (HDPE) as an example. To address the problem, a methodological approach based on engineering systems analysis and synthesis was used. This resulted in a conceptual mathematical model for developing HDPE pyrolysis technology, both general for process operation and specific for a basic facility design. A virtual experimental plan was executed using the Aspen Plus process simulation tool under thermodynamic equilibrium conditions. Based on the generated data, approximation functions for the efficiency indicators and the constrained functions required for parameterization were developed. Decisions were then made to determine the optimal pyrolysis temperature by iteratively optimizing the resulting detailed nonlinear multi-objective model, varying the desired values ​​of the efficiency indicators. This procedure allows for the identification of a pyrolysis temperature that satisfies the preferences of potential decision-makers and establishes the conditions for addressing the general problem posed for the operation of the conversion process.