Conversion of waste plastics to liquid hydrocarbon products

A process for converting waste plastics material to hydrocarbon products, which process is comprised of:

• a) receiving a feedstream comprised of from about 10 to about 50 wt. % dirt and at least one type of plastic having a bulk density less than about 10 lb/ft3, wherein if only one type of plastic is received it will be of a type other than a polyethylene terephthalate or a polyvinyl chloride;
• b) comminuting the plastics of said feedstream to an effective size;
• c) drying said comminuted waste plastics material to less than 2 wt. % water content in the event that the waste plastics material has in excess of 2 wt. % water content;
• d) removing substantially all dirt from said plastics material;
• e) densifying said comminuted plastics in an agglomeration zone wherein its' bulk density in increased to a value of at least about 10 lb/ft3;
• f) conducting said densified plastics material of step e) above to a pyrolysis zone where it is heated, in the substantial absence of oxygen, to a temperature from about 150° C. to 600° C. thereby converting a least a fraction of said densified plastics material to a gaseous hydrocarbon phase;
• g) conducting said gaseous hydrocarbon phase to a condensing zone wherein at least one liquid hydrocarbon product is condensed from said gaseous hydrocarbon phase;
• and
• h) recovering the at least one condensed liquid hydrocarbon product.