What distinguishes recycling technologies

Not all recycling technologies are the same. Although, they do have the same objective: using plastic as a valuable raw material and keeping it in circulation (= circular economy).

The EREMA Group has set itself the goal of driving forward the circular economy to give products made of plastic a second chance. The group of companies offers holistic solutions in plastics recycling. Together, EREMA, PURE LOOP, POWERFIL, KEYCYCLE, PLASMAC, UMAC, 3S and PLASTICPRENEUR are a strong fusion for a more sustainable future.

Several factors need to be taken into consideration when choosing a recycling technology. Different processes are used depending on the origin (inhouse = within the company, post-industrial = material that is discarded and collected during a production process or post-consumer = plastic after use by consumers) as well as inhouse logistics, geometry and contamination of the material.

In this blog article, we explore the factors that influence the choice of recycling technology. We will be taking a closer look at the shredder-extruder combination from PURE LOOP, preconditioning unit-extruder combination from EREMA and direct extrusion from PLASMAC.

The PURE LOOP recycling technology - the shredder-extruder combination

The ISEC evo plastics recycling machine from PURE LOOP is a combination of shredder and extruder. The high-performance plant gently converts production waste into recycled pellets.

The ISEC evo’s special technology means it can process a wide range of materials. It processes

• clean
• heavy
• light
• high volume and
• highly tear-resistant, industrial and post-industrial plastics with a moisture content of up to 4% and post-consumer textiles.

What is so special is the combination of a single-shaft shredder, the patented double feed ram system and the conical transition to the extruder.

How the plastic recycling machine from PURE LOOP works:

1. The single-shaft shredder reduces the size of the material.
2. The patented double feed ram system ensures controlled and uniform filling of the extruder.
3. The conical transition from the single-shaft shredder directly to the extruder compacts the shredded plastic particles
4. The gases produced are separated from the melt in the degassing zone.
5. Filtration removes any contamination such as sand, dust, printing particles, etc.
6. granulation takes place at the end.

The efficient and controlled path of the plastics into the extruder ensures gentle processing. That is how the high quality of the recycled pellets is achieved.

The EREMA recycling technology - the PreConditioning Unit (PCU)

The INTAREMA plastics recycling machines from EREMA ensure the maximum quantity of recycled pellets per hour in continuously quality. This is made possible by the technological heart of this recycling technology - the PreConditioning Unit.

INTAREMA equipment processes different materials and shapes:

• clean materials,
• contaminated industrial and post-consumer materials with high levels of contamination (containing other plastics, paper, wood, small pieces of metal),
• materials with a moisture content of up to 12%

The special feature is the patented CounterCurrent technology. The plastic material in the PCU moves against the direction of the extruder screw. As a result the extruder handles more material in a shorter time. Likewise, the material feed ensures that it can be processed at high throughput even at low temperatures.

How EREMA technology works:
The patented PreConditioning Unit shreds, mixes, heats, dries, precompacts and buffers the materials. This enables continuous filling of the extruder which is connected at a tangent. This innovative process guarantees optimized feed performance and high process stability of the recycling technology

A PLASMAC recycling technology: direct extrusion

The ALPHA recycling machine from PLASMAC is an air-cooled extruder with direct material feed - also known as direct extrusion. PLASMAC has this in its product range under the name Short-Screw Technology (SST). This recycling technology is based on a screw with two different diameters and an L/D ratio of 8:1.
The PLASMAC recycling machine processes clean plastic production waste. This includes film edge trim, for example.

How the ALPHA from PLASMAC works:
In PLASMAC's recycling technology, the material is fed directly into the screw. That is why the process is particularly suitable for materials that can be fed in directly - such as edge trim. No additional shredding happens in the process either, causing little to no dust. This supports the production of high quality pellets with a low proportion of flaws during subsequent film production.

Short-screw technology requires only a low melt temperature. This ensures material degradation is kept to an absolute minimum.

Summary

Suitable recycling technology needs to be chosen to promote a circular economy. But the choice depends on various factors. Here is an overview: