Optimization of Process Parameters in the Synthesis of TiO2 Nanoparticle Catalyst to Produce Hydrocarbon Oil Using the Catalytic Pyrolysis Process

Plastic wastes such as HDPE, LDPE, PP and PS have a strong potential to produce hydrocarbon oil containing 75–85% carbon and approximately 42 MJ/kg of energy. This oil can be produced by a catalytic pyrolysis process with different catalysts with and without doping and can be utilized as an alternative energy or fuel source. In this paper, process parameters of synthesis of robust, easily available, naturally abundant and inexpensive catalyst titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2) are optimized and analyzed using Taguchi L16 orthogonal array and analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a confidence level of 95%. The catalyst’s particle sizes were analyzed by a particle size analyzer, and their surface morphology characters were studied using scanning electron microscopy. Three different parameters considered here include calcination temperature, calcination time and speed of centrifugation. ANOVA predicts that calcination temperature plays a predominant role in the synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles. Minitab 17 software is used for optimization, while the signal-to-noise ratio, regression analysis and graphs are taken for analysis. © 2022, The Institution of Engineers (India).