Catalytic hydrocracking of waste plastic pyrolysis oil for production of high-quality naphtha over NiMo/mesoporous HZSM-5 catalyst

• Waste plastic pyrolysis oil (WPPO) was converted into naphtha using NiMo catalysts. • WPPO and hydrotreated WPPO (HWPPO) with reduced impurity content were prepared. • MesoHZSM-5 support promoted high dispersion of NiMo particles. • NiMo/mesoHZSM-5 effectively removed organic nitrogen compounds . • NiMo/mesoHZSM-5 hydrocracked HWPPO into oil with high paraffins and low aromatics. Plastic waste poses a significant environment threat, with only a fraction recycled annually. Pyrolysis, a chemical recycling method, offers a promising solution, through challenges remain in producing usable products. This study explores the use of waste plastic pyrolysis oil (WPPO) as a feedstock for naphtha production through catalytic hydrocracking. Two catalysts, NiMo supported on microporous ZSM-5 and mesoporous ZSM-5, were prepared and characterized via X-ray diffraction, N 2 adsorption–desorption, NH 3 -temperature programmed desorption, and transmission electron microscopy. Their performance in hydrocracking WPPO to naphtha was compared. Mesoporous ZSM-5, with its superior NiMo dispersion, exhibited enhanced hydrodenitrogenation activity, particularly in high-impurity environments. For hydrocracking hydrotreated WPPO, which has lower impurity and olefin content, the NiMo/mesoHZSM-5 catalyst produced naphtha with higher paraffin and lower aromatic content compared to NiMo/microHZSM-5. This indicates that the mesoporous catalyst is more suitable for hydrocracking pyrolysis oil to produce naphtha for the Naphtha Cracking Center process. These findings underscore the potential of NiMo catalysts supported on mesoporous ZSM-5 for the chemical recycling of plastics via pyrolysis, providing a pathway to produce high-quality naphtha for further industrial applications.