Project Details
- Project Location
- Changde, Hunan Province, China
- Configuration
- Six XY-8-P batch-type horizontal rotary pyrolysis units (Φ2800×8800 reactor class, 12 TPD design capacity per unit)
- Combined Design Capacity
- 72 TPD (6 × 12 TPD)
- Feedstock
- Waste tires (whole or cut)
- Project Year
- 2018
- Original Project Status
- Delivered and commissioned in 2018; documented six-unit batch configuration with two archive photographs
- Current Operating Status
- Not independently verified
- Supplier
- Shangqiu Jinpeng Industrial Co., Ltd.
A Scale That Changes the Nature of the Operation
A six-unit batch plant is not a scaled-up two-unit site. When the line count grows, the operation changes: a combined design capacity of 72 TPD only makes sense as a regional collection and processing point, drawing waste tires from a catchment larger than any single city. That role drives intake planning, storage footprint, product handling, and - most of all - how the reactors are rotated so loading, pyrolysis, cooling, and discharge do not collide. The Changde, Hunan project of 2018 shows how that coordination was designed into the configuration.
Project Background & Configuration Logic
Changde sits in northern Hunan on the western edge of the Dongting Lake plain, where road corridors connect Changsha, Yiyang, and surrounding prefecture-level cities. For a waste-tire operation the design implication is direct: a six-unit site needs a steady inbound flow of tens of tonnes of tires per day - more than any single locality reliably produces. The configuration was therefore designed around a regional catchment, with multiple supply sources feeding one processing point. Intake arrives from many directions in many forms, so the design had to absorb variability in tire type, size, and condition, and plan batches around what actually arrives. The six-unit scale provides the buffer - in throughput, and in the flexibility to keep processing while individual lines load, cool, or discharge.
Core Technology & Production Analysis
A Catchment-Sized Configuration
The hub role starts with the equipment count. Six batch units at 12 TPD design capacity each give a combined 72 TPD - large enough to absorb the waste-tire output of a multi-city region, while remaining batch-type, which suits the varied, unsorted nature of a regional stream. Batch plants accept whole or cut tires directly, without the shredding-to-crumb preparation a continuous line requires. For a hub taking what the catchment produces, that tolerance is a design advantage.
Intake Diversity and Feedstock Handling
A regional stream is rarely uniform. Passenger, truck, light-commercial, and agricultural tires differ in rubber content, steel share, and construction, and the differences carry into each batch's yields - more oil from some types, more steel and recovered carbonaceous material from others. Because the mix shifts by week and season, storage and handling were planned to decouple inbound arrivals from the processing schedule: tires stockpiled in volume, cut or sorted as needed, loaded batch by batch. A hub should be resilient to what its catchment sends, not dependent on one uniform supply.
Rotation Planning Across Six Reactors
The core of a multi-unit batch site is the rotation schedule. A batch cycle runs roughly 22-24 hours: loading, preheating, the pyrolysis phase, cooling, and discharge. With six reactors, the configuration was designed so these phases are staggered - while one reactor loads and another cools, two or three sit in the pyrolysis phase and one discharges. The effects compound: labor demand spreads across the day (typically one to two operators per line), shared-utility demand such as cooling water and gas handling evens out, and recovered streams are produced on a rolling basis instead of in irregular bursts. In effect, six units scheduled as one coordinated plant, not six independent machines.
Pyrolysis and Condensation
Each reactor is a horizontal rotary vessel heated indirectly - the charge does not contact the flame - under low pressure in an inert, anaerobic atmosphere, held at micro-negative pressure to limit fugitive release. Volatiles driven off during the pyrolysis phase pass to the condensation system, where the condensable fraction is recovered as pyrolysis oil. It is not diesel: reaching diesel-grade fuel requires further distillation, refining, and certification testing. The uncondensed fraction - the non-condensable gas - may be returned to the heating system where the installed design and operating conditions permit, reducing external fuel demand.
Recovered Streams and Solids Handling
Three material streams accompany the oil. The solid residue is recovered carbonaceous material - a carbon-rich solid that is not commercial carbon black without further deep processing and testing. The steel wire separates from the charge and is removed as a clean metal stream. Each batch ends with a discharge window, and the rotation plan distributes those windows so that solids handling, screening, and product storage are steady jobs rather than occasional peaks. Oil storage and the carbonaceous-material stockpile were sized to hold output between dispatches - the natural arrangement for a hub that ships products outward in volume.
Emission Treatment
Flue gas from the heating system passes through the installed treatment train - a spray tower for alkaline neutralization followed by an adsorption tower for desulfurization and dedusting - and the plant is designed to meet the applicable local emission requirements. In a multi-unit configuration, the treatment system is not peripheral: the reactor count defines capacity, but the treatment system and site layout define where such a hub can be sited. Actual emission performance depends on operation, maintenance, and the requirements in force at the site.
Photo 1 - Overall Site View
Overall view of the six-unit batch pyrolysis site in Changde, Hunan (2018), showing the reactor line arrangement and the site footprint of the regional processing hub. Photo taken during installation and commissioning in 2018.
Photo 2 - Process Detail
Process detail at the Changde, Hunan (2018) site: the loading side of the batch reactor line, showing the arrangement of the rotary units during installation and commissioning. Photo taken during installation and commissioning in 2018.
Project Specifications
| Item | Project specification |
|---|---|
| Location | Changde, Hunan Province, China |
| Project year | 2018 |
| Status | Delivered and commissioned in 2018 (archive record) |
| Feedstock | Waste tires (whole or cut) |
| System | XY-8-P batch-type horizontal rotary pyrolysis plant |
| Number of units | 6 |
| Capacity per unit | 12 TPD design capacity |
| Combined design capacity | 72 TPD |
| Production model | Batch operation with staggered multi-line rotation |
| Main recovered streams | Pyrolysis oil (fuel oil), recovered carbonaceous material, steel wire; non-condensable gas returned to the heating system where the installed design and operating conditions permit |
| Supplier | Shangqiu Jinpeng Industrial Co., Ltd. |
What the Project Demonstrates
This project demonstrates the regional-hub form of batch pyrolysis: six units run as one coordinated processing point rather than six independent machines. For clients evaluating multi-unit scale, the reference value is threefold. Intake: a 72 TPD design capacity is only meaningful with a real catchment and an organized inbound flow - storage, sorting, and cutting capacity must be planned from the start. Scheduling: rotation planning across six reactors converts installed capacity into actual throughput and deserves as much attention as the equipment itself. Output: oil, recovered carbonaceous material, and steel wire are produced in volume, so dispatch and storage logistics must be planned alongside the process. Evaluators should check whether projected feedstock supply matches the scale, and whether the site has space and staffing for a six-unit batch schedule's rotation and handling rhythm.
About Jinpeng
Shangqiu Jinpeng Industrial Co., Ltd. designs and manufactures batch, semi-continuous, and continuous pyrolysis plants, oil distillation systems, and supporting equipment for waste tires, waste plastics, oil sludge, rubber-derived materials, and other suitable carbon-rich feedstocks. Project configuration is developed around material characteristics, production objectives, site conditions, and applicable local requirements. For project discussions, visit www.pyrolysis-machine.com.
Disclaimer
This article describes the documented project configuration as of delivery and commissioning. Capacity figures are design values: actual throughput depends on feedstock characteristics and operating conditions. Product yields and properties vary with feedstock and require site-specific testing. Energy and emission performance depend on the installed auxiliary systems, operating practice, and maintenance, and the final design must comply with the regulations and requirements applicable at the site.
Archive Note: This retrospective is based on Jinpeng's project records and photographs from the original delivery and commissioning period. It describes the documented project configuration and does not constitute verification of the plant's current operating status.