Sapana Kaushik

Coal Tar Pitch with Reduced Pahs and Thermosets Based on It: Modification of Coal Tar Pitch for Reducing Benzo-a-pyrene & Development of Speciality Composites Using Modified Pitch Sapana Kaushik

Coal Tar Pitch (CTP), an industrial waste from manufacturing of coke has been a valuable resource for various applications. Presence of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in CTP has been a cause of concern for regulators. CTP is subjected to high temperature treatment during its various applications. This is the cause of high Benzo-(a)-Pyrene{B(a) P} content in emissions. Thus, use of high B(a) P CTP is a serious health hazard and thus, B(a) P in CTP content must be kept within acceptable limits. The present study pertains to: a) Process development and optimization for reducing the B(a) P in CTP to render it non-toxic b) Development and validation of HPLC Method for estimation of B(a) P content in CTP and c) Development of thermoset composites using CTP of reduced B(a) P and PF-resin for speciality applications. This study not only helps to bring down content of B(a) P in CTP but it also presents the opportunity for the value addition to CTP. This would serve as a reference document for: a) manufacturer and suppliers (of insulating materials) b) users c) the regulatory agencies d) policy makers e) analytical chemists and f) the material scientists working on Polymer Composites