The experimental research of n-butane pyrolysis using an agitator

Abstract

This research aims to improve the thermal processes of oil sludge treatment. The goal of this research is to determine the impact of the agitator on the output of hydrocarbon gas mixes and hydrogen during the catalytic pyrolysis of n-butane (C4H10), the product of stage one of the complex oil sludge treatment. To conduct the research, the authors developed a setup for the testing of a pyrolysis reactor with an agitator to assess its efficiency in terms of target n-butane breakdown products, namely hydrocarbon mixes and hydrogen. In this research, the authors used 70Ni–20Cu–10Al2O3 as a catalyst. The components of the obtained gas mix were analyzed using the chromatographic method. The results show that the use of the agitator during the catalytic pyrolysis of n-butane can increase the output of the target product. In particular, the hydrogen output increased by ~7.2% over the reaction period (12 hours) compared to the setup without an agitator. The authors determined that the optimal reaction time for the production of hydrogen and butane-hydrogen mix is 4 hours. Keywords: petroliferous sludge; hydrocarbon gas mix; n-butane; catalytic pyrolysis; experimental setup; reactor; agitator.