An extensive survey of the state-of-the-art in cellulose liquefaction and its chemistry, and the process concept is detailed and related to pyrolysis. Material with a heating value close to that of wood was used to make an oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur free oil having a heating value in the vicinity of 10,000 cal/gm. Cellulose liquefaction process is a continuous hydro cracking process, based on technology which is readily available from the petroleum industry, although not previously applied to solid waste (containing sewage sludge, polystyrene and powered newspaper). The process envisioned uses a carrier oil in which the solid waste feed is slurried. The advantage of using an oil carrier is that a liquid reaction medium is present which does not present a critical temperature problem and the attenuant requirement of high operating pressures. Water plays an intrinsic part in the reaction for the in-site production of hydrogen. Equilibrium calculations indicate that hydrogen is the preferable reactant gas. The effects of catalyst, temperature, pressure and reaction time were correlated and catalyst optimized by simple batch and continuous experimentation.