Thermofuel is a process that converts waste plastics into valuable liquid hydrocarbon products that can be used as an energy source for many purposes such as diesel engines, generators, vehicles, etc. The gaseous by-product obtained in the process can be used for domestic use by filling it in the cylinders and also to run gas turbines. Therefore, the THERMOFUEL process can be considered as another source of unconventional energy. We all know that crude is the ultimate source of plastics and most chemicals. Of the total 100 million tonnes of plastics produced each year around the world, 25 million tonnes are dumped. By dumping so much plastic waste, we are wasting a lot of energy in the form of crude oil that is used to make plastics. This wasted energy can be recovered using the THERMOFUEL process. By doing this, we can save our conventional energy source, that is, crude oil and, ultimately, foreign exchange.
Plastics are polymeric materials, a material constructed from long, repeated chains of molecules. Polymers like rubber occur naturally, but it was not until the development of synthetic polymers around 1910 that polymers adapted to the engineer's needs began to appear. One of the first developed commercial plastics was bakelite and was used for the wrapping of early radios. Because the first
Plastics were not completely chemically stable, they gained a reputation for being cheap and unreliable. However, advances in plastic technology since then, mean that plastics are a very important and reliable class of materials for product design. Plastic is a marvel of polymer chemistry, plastics have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. But the repeated reprocessing of plastic waste, and its elimination causes environmental problems, poses health risks, besides being a public nuisance. The biggest current threat to the conventional plastics industry is likely to be environmental concerns, including the release of toxic pollutants, greenhouse gases and the non-biodegradable impact of the landfill as a result of the production and disposal of oil and petroleum-based plastics.
It can be understood in the following video: