Solar pyrolysis technology for sustainable fuel production from OCC waste
This innovative solar pyrolysis technology transforms OCC screen rejects into sustainable fuels. By combining solar concentration with pyrolysis, it efficiently reduces waste and produces valuable volatile products that can replace conventional fuels, enhancing sustainability metrics.
Overview
This cutting-edge technology leverages solar pyrolysis to convert OCC screen rejects, predominantly composed of paper and plastics, into sustainable fuels. By harnessing solar energy as a heat source, the process efficiently transforms waste into volatile products that can substitute conventional fossil fuels. This method not only reduces waste mass by up to 80% but also contributes to significant sustainability improvements by revalorizing materials that would otherwise be discarded.
Technical specifications
The process involves the thermal transformation of organic matter through pyrolysis, conducted in an oxygen-free environment. Utilizing a solar concentrator, temperatures as high as 2,000 °C can be achieved, facilitating the conversion of waste into paraffinic and olefinic hydrocarbons. The key features include:
- A quartz tube reactor heated by solar concentration
- Expected volatile product yields with high heating values (15-20 MJ/kg)
- Efficient conversion of up to 100% waste mass into volatile products
- Controlled parameters to optimize product yield, such as heating rate and residence time
Technology readiness level
Currently at Technology Readiness Level 4, this technology has been validated in a laboratory setting with a focus on improving yield and characterizing the fuel potential of the products. Future plans include building a prototype reactor and conducting real OCC reject pyrolysis tests to refine the process further and assess scalability.
About Itesm
Tecnológico de Monterrey (ITESM) is a private, non‑profit, multi‑campus research university system in Mexico, recognized for scale, applied research, and an entrepreneurial culture. Corporate partners engage through an innovation district around the Monterrey campus and a nationwide network of maker and prototyping spaces, incubators, and accelerators. An integrated university health system supports clinical studies and translation, while challenge‑based academic models embed faculty and student teams in company projects across Mexico’s major industrial corridors. Research is backed by national science and innovation agencies, philanthropic foundations, and industry‑sponsored agreements. A dedicated technology transfer office supports IP strategy, licensing, and startup formation with streamlined contracting.
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