Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases

Etminan, Azita; Holliman, Peter; Mabbett, Ian; Martin, Ciaran; Davies-Smith, Chay

doi:10.1016/j.egyr.2025.05.043

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Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases

Azita Etminan, Peter Holliman

, Ian Mabbett

, Ciaran Martin, Chay Davies-Smith

Energy Reports, Volume: 13, Pages: 6079 - 6088

Swansea University Authors: Azita Etminan, Peter Holliman , Ian Mabbett

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DOI (Published version): 10.1016/j.egyr.2025.05.043

Abstract

Industrial decarbonization requires scalable pathways to recycle carbon-rich waste and produce low-emission fuels. Steelmaking emits substantial CO and CO₂ via off-gases, while plastic waste particularly polypropylene (PP) offers a hydrogen-rich feedstock. This work presents a thermodynamic simulati...

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Published in:	Energy Reports
ISSN:	2352-4847
Published:	Elsevier BV 2025
Online Access:	Check full text
URI:	https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa69553

first_indexed	2025-05-22T11:57:15Z
last_indexed	2025-06-07T05:09:59Z
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Steelmaking emits substantial CO and CO₂ via off-gases, while plastic waste particularly polypropylene (PP) offers a hydrogen-rich feedstock. This work presents a thermodynamic simulation that employs Gibbs free energy minimization to optimize methane synthesis from steelmaking off-gases (CO and CO₂). The process is driven by hydrogen produced through polypropylene ((–C₃H₆–)ₙ, PP) pyrolysis, enabling the conversion of two industrial waste streams into synthetic methane (CH₄). Energy and exergy efficiencies were evaluated to assess the viability and performance of this integrated approach. PP pyrolysis at 650 °C and 1 bar was found to yield 7 mol h⁻¹ of H₂, achieving energy and exergy efficiencies of 65 % and 35 %, respectively. This H₂ was directly coupled to methanation of CO and CO₂ at 250 °C and 10 atm, yielding CH₄ with an 82 % selectivity and complete (100 %) conversion of both carbon sources. The methanation step displayed peak energy and exergy efficiencies near 78 %, while coke formation remained suppressed due to effective carbon reconversion at ≤ 300 °C. The synergy process enables enhanced thermodynamic performance and system integration, transforming waste plastics and metallurgical off-gases into clean, usable fuels. 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spelling	2025-06-06T11:25:21.3342245 v2 69553 2025-05-22 Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases d5a3f47a4f165a951b8500ec34b03085 Azita Etminan Azita Etminan true false c8f52394d776279c9c690dc26066ddf9 0000-0002-9911-8513 Peter Holliman Peter Holliman true false 5363e29b6a34d3e72b5d31140c9b51f0 0000-0003-2959-1716 Ian Mabbett Ian Mabbett true false 2025-05-22 Industrial decarbonization requires scalable pathways to recycle carbon-rich waste and produce low-emission fuels. Steelmaking emits substantial CO and CO₂ via off-gases, while plastic waste particularly polypropylene (PP) offers a hydrogen-rich feedstock. This work presents a thermodynamic simulation that employs Gibbs free energy minimization to optimize methane synthesis from steelmaking off-gases (CO and CO₂). The process is driven by hydrogen produced through polypropylene ((–C₃H₆–)ₙ, PP) pyrolysis, enabling the conversion of two industrial waste streams into synthetic methane (CH₄). Energy and exergy efficiencies were evaluated to assess the viability and performance of this integrated approach. PP pyrolysis at 650 °C and 1 bar was found to yield 7 mol h⁻¹ of H₂, achieving energy and exergy efficiencies of 65 % and 35 %, respectively. This H₂ was directly coupled to methanation of CO and CO₂ at 250 °C and 10 atm, yielding CH₄ with an 82 % selectivity and complete (100 %) conversion of both carbon sources. The methanation step displayed peak energy and exergy efficiencies near 78 %, while coke formation remained suppressed due to effective carbon reconversion at ≤ 300 °C. The synergy process enables enhanced thermodynamic performance and system integration, transforming waste plastics and metallurgical off-gases into clean, usable fuels. The combined pathway offers a circular, low-carbon solution for hydrogen and methane synthesis using industrial residues, supporting both energy transition goals and waste management. Journal Article Energy Reports 13 6079 6088 Elsevier BV 2352-4847 Steel off-gas; Polypropylene (PP) pyrolysis; Gibbs free energy minimization; Thermodynamic optimization; Hydrogen production; Methane synthesis 1 6 2025 2025-06-01 10.1016/j.egyr.2025.05.043 COLLEGE NANME COLLEGE CODE Swansea University External research funder(s) paid the OA fee (includes OA grants disbursed by the Library) UKRI (2748804 - studentship; 220106) 2025-06-06T11:25:21.3342245 2025-05-22T12:55:22.6989251 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Materials Science and Engineering Azita Etminan 1 Peter Holliman 0000-0002-9911-8513 2 Ian Mabbett 0000-0003-2959-1716 3 Ciaran Martin 4 Chay Davies-Smith 0000-0002-4912-7470 5 69553__34410__cd30c471c7fe49b89477cc5463a2353c.pdf 69553.VoR.pdf 2025-06-05T17:17:49.2349534 Output 4526008 application/pdf Version of Record true © 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CC BY license. true eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
spellingShingle	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases Azita Etminan Peter Holliman Ian Mabbett
title_short	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
title_full	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
title_fullStr	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
title_full_unstemmed	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
title_sort	Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases
author_id_str_mv	d5a3f47a4f165a951b8500ec34b03085 c8f52394d776279c9c690dc26066ddf9 5363e29b6a34d3e72b5d31140c9b51f0
author_id_fullname_str_mv	d5a3f47a4f165a951b8500ec34b03085_*_Azita Etminan c8f52394d776279c9c690dc26066ddf9__Peter Holliman 5363e29b6a34d3e72b5d31140c9b51f0_**_Ian Mabbett
author	Azita Etminan Peter Holliman Ian Mabbett
author2	Azita Etminan Peter Holliman Ian Mabbett Ciaran Martin Chay Davies-Smith
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container_start_page	6079
publishDate	2025
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doi_str_mv	10.1016/j.egyr.2025.05.043
publisher	Elsevier BV
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description	Industrial decarbonization requires scalable pathways to recycle carbon-rich waste and produce low-emission fuels. Steelmaking emits substantial CO and CO₂ via off-gases, while plastic waste particularly polypropylene (PP) offers a hydrogen-rich feedstock. This work presents a thermodynamic simulation that employs Gibbs free energy minimization to optimize methane synthesis from steelmaking off-gases (CO and CO₂). The process is driven by hydrogen produced through polypropylene ((–C₃H₆–)ₙ, PP) pyrolysis, enabling the conversion of two industrial waste streams into synthetic methane (CH₄). Energy and exergy efficiencies were evaluated to assess the viability and performance of this integrated approach. PP pyrolysis at 650 °C and 1 bar was found to yield 7 mol h⁻¹ of H₂, achieving energy and exergy efficiencies of 65 % and 35 %, respectively. This H₂ was directly coupled to methanation of CO and CO₂ at 250 °C and 10 atm, yielding CH₄ with an 82 % selectivity and complete (100 %) conversion of both carbon sources. The methanation step displayed peak energy and exergy efficiencies near 78 %, while coke formation remained suppressed due to effective carbon reconversion at ≤ 300 °C. The synergy process enables enhanced thermodynamic performance and system integration, transforming waste plastics and metallurgical off-gases into clean, usable fuels. The combined pathway offers a circular, low-carbon solution for hydrogen and methane synthesis using industrial residues, supporting both energy transition goals and waste management.
published_date	2025-06-01T05:24:14Z
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Thermochemical simulations of hydrogen production from polypropylene plastic waste coupled with methanation of CO & CO₂ from steelmaking off-gases

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