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Senbis Polymer Innovations B.V. releases whitepaper Evaluating recycled PET grades and making them Fit for Purpose.

Senbis’s whitepaper provides in-depth insights how recycled PET (rPET) can be evaluated and modified to convert the polymer into rPET based products that are ‘Fit for Purpose’.

 

During PET production, product use and PET recycling, the PET product quality can deteriorate significantly by:

  • Thermal degradation
  • Chemical and mechanical attack
  • The presence of contaminants

The whitepaper describes both the mechanical and chemical recycling technologies including its specific challenges. For most mechanical recycling processes, rPET still contains both solid and substance impurities which can affect the rPET quality. The whitepaper explains Senbis solutions to quantify the size distribution of solid particles in rPET by means of the unique Partisol test. The Senbis filtration test enable PET converters to assess the effectiveness to remove solid impurities in PET critical converting processes: the pressure increase of a bad quality rPET could be twice of a good quality rPET! In addition, Senbis can help to optimize the rPET purification and polymer quality by Solid State Polymerization (SSP).

 

Finally, yarn spinning is considered one of the most sensitive and critical processes to convert PET. Senbis can perform spinnability trials on rPET granulates to compare the virgin and rPET quality and spinning property performance on both pilot and semi-industrial scale.

https://www.senbis.com/

Arburg at Interplastica 2022: High-tech for medical technology

Arburg at Interplastica 2022: High-tech for medical technology

 

  • Interplastica: Important industry gathering for the Russian-speaking region
  • Powerful: Hybrid Allrounder 520 H with medical technology application
  • Russia: Market with high potential for medical technology and packaging

 

After Interplastica 2021 had to be cancelled due to the pandemic, this important trade fair for the Russian-speaking region is to be held as an attendance fair from 25 to 28 January 2022. In keeping with the medical technology and packaging industries, which have the highest growth rates in Russia, Arburg will be showing the hybrid high-performance Hidrive series on its stand no. 21B25 in Hall 2, with an Allrounder 520 H producing 32 pipette tips in around six seconds cycle time. Steffen Eppler, Director Sales Europe, states the importance of the market and the trade fair: “Russia is a market with great potential, especially in the high-tech sector. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, we were able to massively expand our business activities in 2021, with sales being particularly strong in valuable machines and systems. For Arburg, the entire region is strongly characterised by packaging and medical technology; in technological terms, high-speed machines are very popular with our customers. Our exhibit is therefore also geared towards these focal points.” Artur Metzler, Country Manager in Sales responsible for Russia, adds: “We are successfully holding our own in Russia, because we not only have the right products, but are also on the ground with a high level of commitment and a strengthened team in order to provide comprehensive support to our customers and partners. As personal support is an important factor for success, we are very much looking forward to nterplastica 2022.”

 

High output: 19,200 moulded parts per hour At Interplastica 2022, a hybrid Allrounder 520 H with a clamping force of 1,500 kN will demonstrate the production-efficient, high-quality manufacture of pipette tips made of PP.The hybrid high-performance machines of the Hidrive series are optimised for rapid series production and so are also ideally suited for bulk articles used in the personal care, medical and pharmaceutical industries. They combine electric speed and precision on the clamping side with hydraulic power and dynamics during injection. The exhibit is equipped with a 32-cavity mould from Zahoransky and prepared for use in clean rooms. The cycle time is around six seconds, which corresponds to a throughput of around 19,200 moulded parts per hour.

Research cooperation between Kautex Textron and LANXESS

Research cooperation between Kautex Textron and LANXESS

 

  •  Substitution of steel and aluminium
  • Advantages in weight, functional integration and mass production
  • Technology demonstrator as the basis for series developments

 

Mumbai, December 17, 2021 – Speciality chemicals company LANXESS and Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG, a Textron Inc. company, have been collaborating for several years to research whether battery housings for electric vehicles can be designed and manufactured from technical thermoplastics. Together, they have developed a near-series technology demonstrator in a feasibility study. With a length and width of around 1,400 millimeters each, the system is a technically sophisticated, large-format all-plastic housing part with a weight in the mid-double-digit kilogram range.

 

The goal of the project was to demonstrate the advantages of thermoplastics over metals in terms of weight and cost reduction, functional integration and electrical insulation behavior.

 

“As a first step, we have completely dispensed with the use of metallic reinforcement structures while proving we can commercially produce these complex large components,” Felix Haas, Director Product Development at Kautex Textron, explains.

 

“Going forward, Kautex and LANXESS want to use the results of the cooperation to enter into development projects for series production with automotive manufacturers,” adds Dr. Christopher Hoefs, Project Manager e-Powertrain at LANXESS.

Single-stage manufacturing process with short cycle times

 

The demonstrator was developed based on the battery housing of a C-segment electric vehicle. It consists of a housing tray with crash structure, a housing cover and an underrun (underbody) protection. The housing components can be produced in a single-stage Direct Long Fiber Thermoplastic (D-LFT) molding process. LANXESS has optimized Durethan B24CMH2.0 as the material for the D-LFT molding compound. Kautex Textron compounds the PA6 for the process with glass fiber rovings. The local reinforcement of the housing structure is carried out using continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites of the Tepex dynalite brand from LANXESS. “The process enables shorter and thus more economical cycle times than the processes in which steel or aluminium are processed,” Haas explains.

 

No complex metal forming, fewer production steps

 

Today, housings for high-voltage batteries are primarily made of extruded steel or aluminium profiles. Depending on the vehicle class, the housing length and widths can be well over 2,000 or 1,500 millimeters, respectively. The size, the number of components and the numerous manufacturing and assembly steps make metal housings very cost-intensive. For example, complex structures made from strand press profiles require many secondary work steps such as welding, punching and riveting. In addition, the metallic components must be protected against corrosion in an additional process step by cathodic dip coating.

 

“Plastics, on the other hand, can fully exploit their design freedom. By integrating functions such as fasteners and thermal management components, the number of individual components of a battery housing can be greatly reduced. This simplifies assembly and logistical effort, which reduces production costs,” says Hoefs. Plastics are also corrosion-resistant and electrically insulating. The latter ensures, for example, that there is a reduced risk of the system short-circuiting. The low density of plastics and their potential for lightweight construction lead to significantly lighter housings, which benefits, among other things, the range of electric vehicles.

 

Complex mix of high requirements

 

High-voltage battery housings must meet a variety of highly demanding technical requirements. For example, they must be stiff and strong and yet be able to absorb a significant amount of energy in the event of a crash. This is tested via mechanical shock- and crush tests. The housings must also be flame-retardant in the event of a vehicle fire or thermal run-away of the electrical cells. Finally, the housings must be integrated into the vehicle structure.

 

“We continue to work together on optimizing the production and structural design of the components. The aim is to carry out the majority of the development work virtually, in order to save costs in prototype design and to shorten the time to market of future series components,” Hoefs says.

 

Further information on LANXESS products and technologies for new mobility and on Kautex Textron’s battery developments can be found under https://new-mobility.lanxess.com and www.kautex.com/en/mobility/battery-systems.

BUNTING ACQUIRES MAGDEV

 BUNTING ACQUIRES MAGDEV

 

Bunting officially acquired MagDev Ltd, a UK-based magnet and magnetic assembly manufacturer. This acquisition will expand the range of magnetic solutions and technical expertise Bunting is able to offer as a global magnetics group. Bunting’s ability to offer an extended product portfolio and additional magnet engineering knowledge confirms Bunting’s premier position in the global magnetics sector.

 

“The acquisition of MagDev further enhances our portfolio of acquisitions which keeps Bunting a global leader in magnetic technology,” stated Bob Bunting, President of Bunting. “As our capabilities in the design, development and manufacturing of magnets, magnetic assemblies, and magnetic products expands, so do our capabilities to help customers in a vast number of industries across the globe.”

 

MagDev’s Swindon, UK based facility boasts extensive testing and in-house machining facilities in addition to 1,100+ square meters (12,000+ square feet) of warehouse space. MagDev is a leading manufacturer of custom and industrial magnets, specializing in supplying permanent magnets, magnetic assemblies, and soft magnetic solutions in various shapes, sizes, and grades, with magnetic properties tailored to suit specific applications.

 

Now that Bunting has acquired MagDev, magnetic applications engineers from MagDev will be joining those at Bunting-Berkhamsted to form a formidable team. This will further expand Bunting’s engineering and design capabilities. As one engineering entity, the scope of magnet design and specification extends across an expansive range of applications and sectors. These sectors include the rapidly changing aerospace, automotive, and electronics sectors.

 

“The acquisition of MagDev expands our range of magnetic solutions, especially in relation to soft magnet materials,” explained Simon Ayling, Bunting’s European Managing Director. “The present demand for magnet application engineering has never been higher. We are working with companies across the manufacturing sector, especially in automotive, aerospace and electronics. The addition of the MagDev products and, more importantly, the technical team, significantly expands our magnet knowledge and capability. This is an exciting development enforcing Bunting’s position as the leading designer and supplier of magnets, magnetic components and magnetizing equipment.”

https://buntingmagnetics.com/

75 Percent Plastic Reduction

75 Percent Plastic Reduction

 

Muller Technology has collaborated with a leading European packaging manufacturer to develop the industry’s first hybrid pail with strong barrier properties and a more sustainable packaging option.

 

The new package takes a unique approach to improved sustainability. The injection moulded container consists of a polypropylene skeletal structure and a pre-cut paperboard label. The pail uses 75 per cent less plastic than typical PP pails of this volume. The container has 47 square centimetres of projected area with an L/T (flow length/wall thickness) ratio of 350. The container also incorporates a tamper-evident break-off tab made of PP. The Skel-Pac makes use of Muller’s unique mold and IML technology, fully automated cobot case packing system, and vision inspection system.

 

Taras Konowal, Director of Sales and Marketing, North America, for Muller Technology, said: “We take our responsibility as stewards of the environment very seriously and we’re committed to helping our customers meet the growing demands for more sustainable packaging. In response to volatile resin pricing, brand owners and packaging manufacturers are exploring alternative packaging that delivers sustainability benefits and cuts cost.”

 

The manufacturing system features a two-cavity mould and a four-cavity IML base robot which results in a 4.5-5 sec cycle time. The hybrid pail offers an attractive shape while excellent printing and design capabilities showcase the brand. The new package is commercially available in Germany. Leading brand owners are considering this technology for a range of other food and non-food products.

https://www.muller-technology.com/

Solvay wins SPE Automotive Award for Slot Insulation Liner EV Innovation

Solvay wins SPE Automotive Award for Slot Insulation Liner EV Innovation

 

PEEK magnet wire insulation and PPS coolant line honored for significant performance, production and sustainability benefits

 

Brussels, October 13, 2021 – Three e-mobility applications using Solvay specialty polymers are among the winners of The Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) prestigious Automotive Awards in 2021. First place in the ‘New Mobility’ category of the Awards went to an injection molded rotor slot liner molded with Xydar® LCP, followed by a second place in the ‘Enabler’ category for a magnet wire insulation in KetaSpire® PEEK and a third place in the ‘Powertrain’ category for a coolant line using Ryton® PPS.

“We would like to congratulate our customers who developed and brought these applications to market, demonstrating the overall cost, performance and sustainability benefits that can be derived from our specialty polymers in demanding e-mobility systems and components”, says Georges Houtappel, Executive Vice President Transportation at Solvay. “After more than 20 years of enabling the design and manufacturing of high-performance and cost-efficient applications for internal combustion engines, the superior innovation potential of our materials for lightweighting, metal replacement and enhanced sustainability is now also extending to e-mobility applications such as e-motors, batteries and power electronics.”

The recognized applications in greater detail:

  • New Mobility Category Award, 1st Place – Slot liners injected, application developed and molded with Xydar® G930 30% glass fiber reinforced and flame retardant liquid crystal polymer (LCP) by Cobraplast, Italy, for one of Germany’s foremost automotive manufacturers. The part is used in the rotor design of an advanced-generation electric drive traction motor where it provides a barrier between the copper windings and the steel lamination of the rotor. In this small but critical application, Xydar® LCP replaces incumbent multi-layer films and provides significant cost and performance advantages. The material combines exceptional flowability to fill 0.65 mm thin sections over a length of 220 mm with zero warpage to meet tight tolerance specifications. In addition, it also ensures high stiffness to prevent breakage during assembly.

 

  • Enabler Category Award, 2nd Place – Magnet wire insulation developed by Essex Furukawa company, Germany, using solvent-free KetaSpire® polyetheretherketone (PEEK). Magnet wires coated with KetaSpire® PEEK are highly efficient in increasing power density and torque while reducing the weight and size of electric motors. The specialty polymer offers a thermal performance of 240°C and a dielectric strength of 197 kV/mm in combination with high ductility, stress crack resistance, long-term mechanical strength and outstanding chemical resistance.

 

  • Powertrain Category Award, 3rd Place – Cooling lines with coolant tubes extruded in Ryton® polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) XE 3500 (unfilled) and XE 5430 (30% glass-filled), complete with connectors injection molded in Ryton® R4-270 (40% glass-filled). Widely proven for cooling and venting lines in the high-heat environment of downsized internal combustion engines, Ryton® PPS also provides the chemical resistance, mechanical strength and flame retardancy needed for battery cooling lines in electric vehicles. In these applications, the polymer replaces lower performing polyamides as well as metals, which helps OEMs benefit from the lightweighting possibilities with plastics also in chemically and mechanically more demanding fluid handling systems.

 

E-mobility brings new technical challenges for carmakers in terms of component properties such as thermal conductivity, EMI shielding, CTI and dielectric strength. Solvay is constantly working with leading OEMs and Tiers to develop new specialty polymer grades offering enhanced performance for innovative e-motor, power electronics and battery applications, while helping manufacturers improve their cost balance and lower their carbon footprint.

 

The winners in the 20th SPE Central Europe Automotive Awards have underscored the vast potential of Solvay’s specialty polymers for optimizing the reliability, lifetime, cost efficiency and sustainability of e-mobility applications. Moreover, the company’s PEEK and PPS base polymers production in the United States is using 100% renewable energy.

 

LANXESS at the VDI “Plastics in Automotive Engineering” congress

LANXESS at the VDI “Plastics in Automotive Engineering” congress

 

  • Climate neutrality targeted by 2040
  • Material and technology solutions for charging infrastructure and driver assistance systems
  • Resource-conserving recycled materials
  • Lightweight solutions for vehicle batteries

 

Cologne, October 08, 2021 – LANXESS will be focusing its appearance at the 2021 VDI “Plastics in Automotive Engineering” (PIAE) congress in Mannheim on material and technology solutions for climate protection, the circular economy and lightweight design. The specialty chemicals company is aiming to become climate-neutral by 2040 and to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, which currently amount to 2.5 million metric tons of CO2, by 95 percent compared with the level at the company’s launch in 2004. The High Performance Materials (HPM) business unit is making a key contribution to that with its nitrous oxide reduction unit, which was recently brought on stream at the production site for polyamide 6 in Antwerp. “We will reduce annual emissions of CO2 equivalents by a further 300,000 metric tons from 2023 onwards by investing in an additional plant to reduce nitrous oxide and optimizing our processes,” says Dr. Guenter Margraf, Head of Global Product Management at HPM.

 

New design for charging inlets

LANXESS sees a wealth of opportunities to use its Durethan-branded polyamides and polyesters from the Pocan product range not only in powertrains of electric vehicles, but also in charging infrastructure. Potential applications include components for charging plugs, sockets and stations as well as structural and cover elements in home charging stations, known as wallboxes. A wide range of dimensionally stable, flame-retardant, tracking-resistant and mechanically strong materials has been developed for components such as these. A modular charging inlet design concept developed by HPM shows what possibilities these compounds open up. “With a tailor-made material mix, we get the right material in the right place. At the same time, a high level of functional integration makes it easy to assemble the entire unit without any screws and using a minimal number of components, which keeps costs low,” says Margraf.

 

New design for radar sensors

Polyamides and polyesters are also good construction materials for assemblies that form part of driver assistance systems, such as radar sensors. For the latter, HPM has developed a design that allows heat to be dissipated by means of thermally conductive plastics in combination with metallic cooling elements. The sensor components are assembled using integrated snap fits and hot rivets, a process that is much less costly and time-consuming than using screws. Compared with previous methods of building radar sensors, the concept affords a greater degree of freedom in the selection of materials and facilitates the use of tailor-made compounds.

 

Polyamide with fibers from waste glass

The Durethan ECO polyamide 6 compounds with recycled fiber content of 30%, 35% and 60% by weight are another topic that will be receiving a lot of attention on the LANXESS stand at the PIAE congress. The recycled fibers are made from post-industrial waste glass. Ecocycle, an inspection company, has examined the recycled material content and the long-term use of the waste stream using the mass balance method and awarded an ecoloop certificate in accordance with ISO 14021:2016. The mass-balanced waste glass recycling is also certified according to ISCC-Plus (“International Sustainability and Carbon Certification”), a globally recognized system for sustainability certification. “We want to place more and more of our compounds on a sustainable footing in order to reduce our dependence on the consumption of finite resources and improve our carbon footprint,” explains Margraf. In Mannheim, HPM will present other new Durethan ECO variants as well as the first Pocan Eco product, which also contains recycled glass fibers.

 

Composite materials for lightweight electric vehicles

The expertise of LANXESS in lightweight design is illustrated by an E/E component carrier for the battery system of an electric vehicle, for example. The carrier boasts a high degree of dynamic strength and rigidity combined with a low weight thanks to the Tepex continuous-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. “Production using the hybrid molding process in a cost-effective process results in a highly integrated structural component that reliably meets the exacting mechanical safety requirements applicable to the battery,” explains Thomas Malek, expert in lightweight design at HPM. The good flame retardant properties of Tepex are also advantageous in battery systems. Functionally integrated flat components in particular can be made from Tepex efficiently, yielding lightweight products that also exhibit high mechanical performance.

 

Hollow-profile hybrid technology to be launched on the market

The PIAE congress will also see HPM present innovations regarding hollow-profile hybrid technology that allows the functionalization of metallic hollow profiles with injection molding compounds. Advantageous properties of the resulting lightweight components include far greater torsional stiffness and strength than components produced using the “traditional” plastic-metal hybrid technology with sheet metal. “In optimizing our technology, we have made a great step forward. For example, the profiles no longer have to be supported against the high pressures of the molten plastic on the inside,” says Dr. Matthias Theunissen, expert in lightweight design at HPM. “The second phase of the market launch for our new lightweight technology has now begun. We are already working on several customer projects, which are at the prototype stage.”

 

The VDI Plastics in Automotive Engineering congress will take place on September 8 and 9, 2021, at the Congress Center Rosengarten in Mannheim, Germany.

 

You can find more detailed information about the products and technologies from LANXESS for the field of New Mobility at https://lanxess.com/en/Products-and-Solutions/Focus-Topics/E-Mobility.

 

LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 6.1 billion in 2020. The company currently has about 14,800 employees in 33 countries. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of chemical intermediates, additives, specialty chemicals and plastics. LANXESS is listed in the leading sustainability indices Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World and Europe) and FTSE4Good.

 

Forward-Looking Statements
This company release contains certain forward-looking statements, including assumptions, opinions, expectations and views of the company or cited from third party sources. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could cause the actual results, financial position, development or performance of LANXESS AG to differ materially from the estimations expressed or implied herein. LANXESS AG does not guarantee that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors, nor does it accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed in this presentation or the actual occurrence of the forecast

TPE makes a neat solution for cleaning devices

TPE makes a neat solution for cleaning devices

To avoid looking at domestic chores as a chore and doing manual cleaning, using cleaning appliances and tools can help clean more efficiently, thereby halving cleaning time and reducing fatigue from physical over-exertion.
Furthermore, lifestyles have gradually altered, necessitating the usage of cleaning devices that are simple to use, compact and lightweight, as well as energy-efficient.

In order to match the theme and color palette of homes, device manufacturers guarantee that their items are visually appealing. The development of advanced engineering materials like thermoplastic elastomers has enabled this transformation. KRAIBURG TPE, a global TPE manufacturer of a diverse range of thermoplastic elastomer products and custom solutions for a variety of industries, provides the THERMOLAST K series that is known for its outstanding surface quality, flowability, and durability for use in cleaning equipment applications.

LW/CS/UV series: Lightweight TPE
In KRAIBURG TPE’s LW/CS/UV series, the compounds feature a low density of up to 0.7g/cm³. With lower weight and increased mobility of cleaning devices, innovation and development of the devices is made
flexible.
Besides the significant weight saving, the compounds provide optimized compression set performance, with high-temperature stability up to 100°C, making them ideal for seals for housings. The additional characteristics, like nonsticky surface, UV, and weathering resistance, make the LW/CS/UV series of compounds a suitable fit for outdoor cleaning devices.

Furthermore, the LW/CS/UV series has good adhesion with PP. Processing of products using the TPE materials is made easy via injection molding and extrusion. Other possible applications include grommets, window cleaners, pool robot brushes, blower and lawnmower handle or casings, etc.

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500 th AD STAR block bottom sack conversion line worldwide from Starlinger goes to Côte d’Ivoire

500 th AD STAR block bottom sack conversion line worldwide from Starlinger goes to Côte d’Ivoire

The new conversion line is currently being installed at Plastica Sarl. in Abidjan and will
take up production in January 2022.

The ad*starKON SX + is the 500 th AD STAR sack conversion line Starlinger has sold worldwide. It converts woven polypropylene tape fabric into AD STAR block bottom valve sacks by means of heat sealing and has a production capacity of up to 120 block bottom sacks per minute. With this investment, packaging producer Plastica increases its AD*STAR sack production capacity by 45 million sacks per year to a total of 80 million sacks.

The company already operates a Starlinger block bottom sack conversion line since 2018 and supplies AD*STAR sacks to local and international cement producers such as CIMIVOIRE, Ivory Diamond Cement, Cimfaso and Cimasso. Plastica is planning to purchase a third Starlinger AD STAR conversion line in the near future.

 “As we experience increasing demand for AD STAR cement sacks we have decided to expand production with another Starlinger block bottom sack conversion line”, says Abbas Badreddine, General Manager of Plastica. “Cement producers appreciate the excellent protection the bags provide for their product.”

AD STAR block bottom valve sacks have been developed and patented by Austrian woven packaging machinery manufacturer Starlinger & Co GmbH. The sacks are especially strong and tear-proof and provide excellent protection against humidity. Their brick shape makes AD STAR sacks perfect for stacking and allows for attractive sack design.

Due to the highly precise and fully automated bag conversion process the sacks are ideally suited for automated filling and palletising, and cement loss due to spilling and leaking are reduced to a minimum. The use of AD STAR sacks contributes to more sustainability in the cement industry as less cement enters the environment due to sack rupture, humidity, or leaking sacks and needs to be reproduced to compensate for
losses.

Currently, more than 17 billion AD STAR sacks per year are produced on Starlinger machines worldwide. Due to their special characteristics, they are a favored packaging for cement, but are also used for other dry bulk goods such as plastic resins, fertilizer or rice and flour.

Plastica Sarl. was founded in 1999 and produces woven PP bags for various applications as well as PE films and sacks and injection molded household and garden products. The company also operates a recycling facility for industrial and post-consumer plastic waste. Plastica caters to the cotton, agro-alimentary, and agro-industrial industry, wholesalers, and cement producers.

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STADLER develops and builds new sorting systems for GAIA and IREN in Asti and Parma

STADLER develops and builds new sorting systems for GAIA and IREN in Asti and Parma

In view of the approaching goals of the 2030 Agenda, environmental service providers are increasingly investing in recycling facilities. These systems are intended to bring us closer to the goal of zero waste by converting waste into secondary raw materials that can be fed back into the economic cycle with minimal loss. With this goal in mind, GAIA Spa and Iren Ambiente (Iren Ambiente has a 45% stake in GAIA and provides environmental services  for more than three million people) turned to STADLER. T

 

The new sorting facility in the Asti waste management center

The new system for sorting plastic and metal packaging from separate waste collection, which went into operation last October, is of great importance for waste management in northern Italy. It is the result of an investment of 10 million euros and will be able to process 50,000 tons of material from separate waste collection per year.

Flaviano Fracaro, CEO of GAIA and Technical Manager of Iren Ambiente Spa, explains: “The sorting plant is like an opencast mine, the only difference being that it does not take raw materials from the planet, but recovers them. It prevents plastic from getting into the environment or that landfills are prematurely overloaded, because now they no longer have to take up any recyclable materials. “

GAIA’s plant will process material from the catchment area of the city of Asti, while the Irish Group’s plant will serve Turin, Genoa, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia, the Aosta Valley and other cities and regions that wish. After processing and cleaning, the materials are delivered to the national consortia for the recycling of packaging, which converts them into secondary raw materials and returns them to the production cycle. The plant has modern technologies that meet the goals of Industry 4.0. At the same time, the machines support the work of the employees in manual sorting, which leads to a high-quality end result.

“After a careful assessment, which took both technical and economic aspects into account, we decided on STADLER,” says Flaviano Fracaro. STADLER’s experience in this branch also played a major role: “STADLER was able to design systems that can process different types of material extremely efficiently. And as far as support is concerned, engineers and technicians were at our side in all project phases. “

The system comprises a loading area and a pre-sorting, a mechanical and an optical sorting line, a sorting cabin for the manual sorting out of bulky parts as well as a storage and bale line. A sieve drum carries out an initial sorting according to size. It separates the material into three streams. The main flow of material in the order of 50 to 350 mm is transported to the main sorting line. This consists of:

  • 10 NIRs that sort out plastic products
  • 1 air classifier to improve the 3D and 2D separation
  • All fractions then pass through the system with the following machines.                                                       

 3 NIRs for sorting according to different types of plastic

  • 1 air classifier to improve the 3D and 2D separation
  • 1 magnetic separator for removing ferrous metals
  •   1 eddy current separator for removing non-ferrous metals

     A moving conveyor belt below the first NIR unit of the paper line ensures great flexibility in the sorting process, while the second NIR can work with either the positive or negative selection of the first NIR and in this way optimizes paper recovery. The paper sorting line starts with a PPK2000_6_3H ballistic separator, which is specially designed to separate bulky cardboard from lighter paper. 

 The cardboard is forwarded directly to the sorting cabin, while the main flow (<300 mm) is transported to two parallel sorting lines. Each line includes a ballistic separator PPK2000_6_1, which removes the fine fractions (<50 mm) as well as two 2800 mm NIRs, which remove mixed paper and deinking goods from the main flow. The sorted material is then forwarded to the sorting booth, where it is sorted by hand.

     Pietro Navarotto explains: “In addition to the change requested by the customer during the implementation phase, the second difficulty was that the paper line had to be installed after the plastic line was in place. It is precisely in such moments that the enormous experience of our engineers and fitters makes the big difference and ensures the professionalism for which we are known. “

“So far, the two plants in Parma and Asti have met our expectations,” says Flaviano Fracaro. “We hope that they will even surpass them in the future!”2 magnetic separators for removing ferrous metals

      • 1 eddy current separator for removing non-ferrous metals
      • 1 fine sieve with a mesh size of 20 mm for the separation of fine residues
      • 1 ballistic separator STT5000 and a ballistic separator STT2000 to improve the quality of the plastic cycle within the system
      • 1 bottle perforator to process bottles that still contain liquid
    • STADLER’s approach of responding to individual customer requests and taking subsequent changes into account even during the construction phase led to the successful collaboration between the two companies. All sorted plastics are stored in rotating bunkers. From there, two separate lines are fed with special baling presses for plastics.

      The following output material results from this process: transparent PET, colored PET, light blue PET, HDPE, PP, PE / PP mixture, LDPE / PP film, bulky plastics (four different products), residues, fine residues, Non-ferrous metals and ferrous metals.

      The project brought with it numerous challenges, which STADLER was able to solve, not least thanks to its extensive experience with this type of system that it had gathered around the world. Pietro Navarotto, Director of STADLER Italy, explains: “In Asti we had to build a system with many machines and conveyors in a limited space, while also leaving room for maintenance work. A future expansion of the plant was also taken into account. And since the system sorts a large number of different materials, we had to carry out a lot of tests to check the purity of the recycled material and the recovery rates. “

      The new facility from Iren Ambiente in Parma

      The plant in Parma, which is due to be commissioned soon, was designed in such a way that it can process two different material flows from the separate paper and plastic collection. It is one of the most modern plants in Italy for sorting paper and cardboard. For this system, STADLER developed and built two highly integrated sorting lines which, through shared use of the press system, make optimal use of the space available.

    • As Flaviano Fracaro emphasizes: “We really appreciated the professional approach of the STADLER engineers, as well as the quick reaction to a special request for the paper sorting line at the very last minute. We asked to integrate four NIRs and STADLER managed this despite the tight schedule. “

      The plastic sorting line has a capacity of 9 t / h and processes bottles made of PET, HDPE and PP, PE and PP films, bulky plastics, packaging made of plastic mixtures, non-ferrous metals and ferrous metals. The paper sorting line has a capacity of 20 t / h and processes cardboard, mixed paper and deinking goods.

      The two lines have separate loading areas, but a common output area and a common baling line. Each line includes a loading area, an area for mechanical and optical sorting, a sorting cabin for manual sorting of bulky material as well as a storage and bale line.

      In the plastic sorting line, after removing the bulky waste in the pre-sorting, the industrial waste is fed to a shredder. A large drum sieve is used to sort the material according to size (bulky, medium and fine).  

      The bulky fraction is then forwarded directly to the sorting cabin. There it is sorted by hand into three different fractions. The main flow of medium-sized material (50 – 380 mm) is fed to the STT5000 ballistic separator, which divides the material into the fractions fine, 3D (heavy and / or rolling material) and 2D (flat and light material) based on its ballistic properties and weight. divided.

      https://w-stadler.de/