MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 10/21 www.petpla.net 30 In the second test, Alberto Piovesan and Ida Semb then described the purifi cation process of a natural HDPE fraction . As HDPE normally is more contaminated than PET, the throughput was lower; initially, 800kg/h/m and 900kg/h/m on the second run. In two stages, contamination was brought down from 7.7% to below 1%. The team demonstrated the same equipment in sorting red PE with different colour and material contaminants, using either only the colour cameras or only the NIR sensoron the Innosort Flake; sorting shredded white PVC window frames in two steps over both machines; and fi nally HIPS (high impact polystyrene), the material used in yoghurt pots, for example, especially showcasing the capabilities of the metal sensor as such material often is contaminated with metal from the lids. Same machines, different settings All the sorting and purifi cation processes were carried out on the same two machines. Their sorting classifi ers and fl ow rates were adjusted on the control panel; there was no exchange of tooling at all. Ida Semb explained that the Flying Beam optical technology can identify and separate between different polymer and material types in the NIR spectrum. The colour cameras use the RGB colour space and back- and foreground illumination from long-life time LED-bars for transmission and refl ection sorting; enabling sorting of transparent and coloured, opaque fl akes independent of material type. The machine were set up so that the demonstration sample buckets were handled manually by the test engineer but in a big sorting plant the material fl ow is normally automated so that material is transported in pipes to the next stage, whether within the same unit or transferred from one to the other. Autosort Flake is particularly suited for high-end applications with lower levels of initial contamination and high end-purity requirments; Innosort Flake is appropriate for more contaminated streams and the dual-sided colour camera is specifi cally benefi cial in sorting polyolefi ns, material that is typically more contaminated. Innosort Flake’s sorting capacity is up to 6 t/h, depending on input material. “The Parma Test Centre can also show potential customers what Tomra’s machines can do. The customers can bring their own recyclate to run through it and see their performance in practice,” Fabrizio Radice concluded. www.tomra.com BEYOND THE HORIZON PROCESS SOLUTIONS FOR POLYMER RECYCLING AND SOLID STATE POLYMER UPGRADING Polymetrix, a Sanlian Buhler Company, provides process technology including EPCM services for the polymer recycling and manufacturing industry. Leading supplier of rPET systems and intergated rPET plants for single line capacities up to 70’000 tons per year. www.polymetrix.com www.slhpcn.com
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