CATALYTIC DEGRADATION OF HIGH DENSITY POLYETHYLENE OVER NANOSTRUCTURED MATERIAL EVALUATED BY TG

The aim of the current work was evaluate the process of catalytic degradation of High Density PolyEthylene (HDPE) using AlMCM-41 nanostructured catalyst. This study was carried out by thermogravimetry and pyrolysis coupled to gas chromatography. The AlMCM-41 material was synthesized from an hydrogel containing cethyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTMABr) as template, pseudobohemite, fumed silica, sodium silicate and distilled water as solvent. These reactants were mixed in order to obtain a gel with the following composition: 1CTMABr:4SiO2:0.04 Al2O3:1Na2O:200H2O. The kinetic relative to the process of HDPE degradation was evaluated using Flynn-Wall model, in order to verify the influence of the AlMCM-41 material on the process. Clear differences were observed in the thermogravimetry behavior of the samples. Results obtained shown a remarkable effect of the catalyst in the acceleration of the degradation processes. The kinetic parameters obtained revealed a reduction in the activation energy of the catalytic decomposition as compared to the thermal process.