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Title: Compatibility Assessment of Fuel System Infrastructure Plastics with Bio-oil and Diesel Fuel

Journal Article · · Energy and Fuels
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [2]
  1. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Fuels, Engines and Emissions Research Center
  2. National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States). National Bioenergy Center
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We report that bio-oil derived via fast pyrolysis is being developed as a renewable fuel option for petroleum distillates. The compatibility of neat bio-oil with 18 plastic types was evaluated using neat diesel fuel as the baseline. The plastic materials included polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), polyoxymethylene (POM), POM copolymer, high density polyethylene (HDPE), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG), polythiourea (PTU), four nylon grades, and four thermosetting resins. Specimens of each material were immersed in the test fuels for a period of 16 weeks to achieve full saturation. Except for PP and HDPE, the plastic materials underwent higher volume expansion in bio-oil than in the baseline diesel (which was negligible in most cases). This volume increase corresponds to the higher polarity of the bio-oil. PPS, PET, and PTFE were unaffected by bio-oil exposure, but modest swelling (between 2 and 5%) occurred for the two acetals (POM and POM copolymer), Nylon-12, PBT, PETG, and the four resin grades. More moderate swelling (8–15%) was noted for Nylon-6, Nylon-6/6, and Nylon-11, and excessive swell (>40%) occurred for PTU. The nonpolar nature of PP and HDPE matches that of diesel, leading to higher solubility (swell) in this fuel type. Finally, the relatively low volume expansion following exposure indicates that many of the existing infrastructure plastics (excluding PTU) should be suitable for use with bio-oil.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Transportation Office. Bioenergy Technologies Office
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725; AC36-08GO28308
OSTI ID:
1415200
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1422872
Report Number(s):
NREL/JA-5100-70994
Journal Information:
Energy and Fuels, Vol. 32, Issue 1; ISSN 0887-0624
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 12 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (11)

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Compatibility Assessment of Fuel System Elastomers with Bio-oil and Diesel Fuel journal July 2016
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Evaluation of Polymer Compatibility with Bio-oil Produced from Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass journal November 2015
Materials Compatibility With Pyrolysis Biofuel
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conference July 2014
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Cited By (2)

Solubility analysis of elastomers in a bio-based lubricant using Hansen parameters journal October 2018
Tests on Material Compatibility of Phase Change Materials and Selected Plastics journal April 2019

Figures / Tables (22)

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Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
bio-oils
pyrolysis
diesel fuel