Pyrolysis and Oxidation Kinetics of Medical Wastes

Abstract

On account of the infectious properties of medical wastes, most are treated carefully by incineration to ensure proper destruction of pathogens. However, the behaviors of medical wastes are not well understood during the process of incineration. Thus, the aim of this work is to investigate pyrolysis and oxidation kinetics of the medical wastes, including cottons, gauzes, saline bottles, stomach medicines with the thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) method. Experimentally, the degradation of cottons and saline bottles in pyrolysis and oxidation occurred at about 530 K and 510 K as well as 630 K and 530 K, respectively. Oxygen affects the degradation reaction of cottons and saline bottles at lower temperatures. The rate equations of the first stage of thermal treatment in different oxygen contents also showed that oxygen would decrease the activation energies of decomposition of cottons, gauzes and saline bottles. But the presence of oxygen did not influence the decomposition of stomach medicines at temperatures below 550 K, while only pyrolysis took place.

Insights into Thermal Degradation Behaviors and Reaction Kinetics of Medical Waste Infusion Bag and Nasal Oxygen Cannula

“…Deng et al carried out thermogravimetric analysis under nitrogen atmosphere to obtain pyrolysis kinetic parameters of tube for transfusion, sample collector for urine, and one-off medical glove by the Coats-Redfern method [3]. Huang et al investigated the pyrolysis and oxidation kinetics of saline bottles to obtain the kinetic parameters based on TGA (thermogravimetric analysis) [15]. However, the pyrolysis of medical plastic waste involves complex reaction due to the evolution of different volatile species.…”