Intertek Caleb Brett provides comprehensive pyrolysis oil testing and analysis services, helping companies globally to comply with environmental regulations, produce sustainable products, and contribute to the circular economy.
In response to recent legislative developments, including the European Green Deal, EU Directives on waste and single-use plastics, and the UK Plastics Packaging Tax, companies across the polymers and plastics value chain are rethinking wasteful production practices. They are considering the end-of-life of their products and developing strategies for a circular economy. These changes are driving innovation processes aimed at achieving sustainable, high-performing products that stand out in the marketplace. Pyrolysis oils, produced from the conversion of plastics and hard-to-recycle materials, are emerging as critical intermediates in the circular plastic economy and the production of sustainable fuels.
There are three main classes of pyrolysis oils:
Waste Plastic Pyrolysis Oil (WPPO)
Polyolefins such as Polyethylene (PE) or Polypropylene (PP) or hard to recycle materials.
Tyre Pyrolysis Oil (TPO)
End of Life Tyres
Biomass Pyrolysis Oil (BPO, Bio-oil or Bio-crude)
Agricultural Wastes or Wood Waste etc.
Intertek Caleb Brett Capabilities
Intertek collaborates with stakeholders across the value chain to provide a comprehensive slate of testing services that enable pyrolysis oil producers to demonstrate the value of their products to potential buyers.
Hydrocarbon Composition Analysis
Intertek's specialists can assist with the determination of the hydrocarbon composition, including:
- Classification of Hydrocarbons: Identifying paraffins, isoparaffins, olefins, naphthenes, and aromatics.
- Targeted Mass Spectrometry: Determining individual molecular species.
We offer detailed analysis of non-carbon elements within hydrocarbon materials, including Instrumental Oxygen Analysis by Combustion.
Assay Labs
Our specialist labs can distill pyrolysis oil into component fractions, mimicking a refinery distillation column, allowing for further analysis of specific hydrocarbon ranges.
Pyrolysis oils, being complex mixtures of chemicals, can face stability issues such as volatility or polymerization. Intertek's specialists can help understand these issues and the changes in content arising from storage.
Intertek provides high-quality REACH testing data for structural and compositional information on materials like pyrolysis oil, including impurity analysis. We also support REACH dossier production. Pyrolysis oils may be classified as UVCBs (unknown or variable composition) under REACH. Our extensive knowledge of UVCB testing allows us to overcome analytical challenges and provide suitable data for submission.
Determination of Biogenic Content
With the rise in bionaphtha production globally, the quantity of sustainable bioplastics is increasing. Tyre pyrolysis oil also has inherent biogenic content due to natural rubber used in tyre production. Intertek can determine the biogenic content of feedstocks and finished products by analyzing Carbon-14 levels, supporting the sustainability of subsequent products.
Depending on its content and source, pyrolysis oil can be used as a sustainable fuel, either directly for heat generation or as a blend stock for transport fuels like diesel or marine fuels. Intertek's global network assists with blending studies, compatibility assessments, and final specification testing of pyrolysis oil/fuel blends.
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