https://doi.org/10.65770/TQKQ8832
ABSTRACT
This study reviews the applications of pyrolysis in Sub-Saharan Africa, emphasizing the environmental sustainability, resource and energy recovery potential, and technical flexibility of pyrolysis. A systematic literature review approach was employed, utilizing secondary data from 24 articles sourced from major academic databases published between 2015 and 2025. Articles were identified using Boolean keyword combinations related to pyrolysis, plastic waste, urban settings, and Sub-Saharan Africa, and screened based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The findings reveal that pyrolysis offers significant greenhouse gas mitigation benefits, with several studies reporting net negative emissions and notable reductions in global warming potential compared with landfilling and incineration, as well as conserving virgin resources. This technology also demonstrates strong waste-to-wealth potential through the production of high-calorific-value liquid fuels, syngas, and value-added byproducts such as biochar and carbon nanotubes. Furthermore, the findings indicate that pyrolysis is highly tolerant of contaminated, mixed, and low-quality plastics unsuitable for mechanical recycling, with successful implementation at laboratory, pilot, and simulated commercial scales in Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Africa, and Sudan. Overall, this review demonstrates that pyrolysis holds significant potential as a scalable and flexible waste-to-energy solution for managing heterogeneous plastic waste in sub-Saharan Africa.
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