Co-pyrolysis of Göynük-oil shale and Şirnak-asphaltite from Turkey and analysis of co-pyrolysis products by capillary GC total stream sampling technique

Temperature-programmed co-pyrolysis of Göynük-oil shale (GOS) with Şirnak-asphaltite (ASP) from Turkey was investigated. The aim of this research was to determine the volatile product distribution and product evolution rate of co-processing of GOS with ASP. A series co-pyrolysis operation was performed with GOS and ASP using a 1/2, 1/1, 2/1 total carbon ratio of GOS to ASP. A fixed-bed reactor was used to pyrolyse small sample of GOS and ASP mixture under an inert gas flow (Argon). A special sampling technique was used for collecting organic products eluted from the reactor at different temperature and time intervals. The co-pyrolysis products were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography and the total product evolution rate was investigated as a function of temperature and time. n-Paraffins and 1-olefins in aliphatic fraction of pyrolysis products were classified as a carbon number. In addition, the recovery of total organic carbon as an organic volatile product was determined. The assessments were based on incorporating the results on temperature-programmed pyrolysis of GOS and ASP. The effect of co-processing of GOS with ASP was determined by calculating the difference between the experimental and the hypothetical mean value of conversion of total organic carbon into volatile products. © 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.