TeraPlast Recycling acquires ray PVC waste. These are grouped in two categories:
- Post-processing waste – from producers of PVC products. These are clean unpurified materials, which can be introduced in the pulverization process.
- Post-consumer waste – these have already been used and have reached the end of their life.
- This process starts with the manual sorting of the PVC waste in an installation with 8 sorting stations, where unwanted contaminants are taken away. (wood, iron, PE, etc.)
- Following the manual sorting process, the waste is transported with a frontal loader to a transport line, which feeds a mill. Inside the mill, the waste is reduced to chunks of 10-20 cm.
- The next step calls for the removal of ferrous and non-ferrous metals. This process is done with a powerful magnet and an Eddy Current separator.
- A new mill, with razors, reduces the material to almost 8 mm. This process takes place in a wet environment, with the material being pre-washed.
- A friction washer washes the material for the next step. All the dirty water will remain at the base of the equipment, while the washed material will go upwards, with the help of a spiral, to reach the flotation separation tanks. All floating contaminants are eliminated here.
- Next, the material goes through a mechanic dryer. Afterwards it is transported through a thermic dryer, which leaves a humidity of only 1-2%.
- After drying, the PVC will go through another ferrous and non-ferrous metal sorting process, and afterwards it will be placed in bags.
- This step is used to separate PVC from rubber or plastic PVC. It is done with the help of equipment which utilizes the dielectric permittivity between two plastics.
- The material is inserted into a small silo equipped with a level sensor. A vibration transporter then places it in an electrostatically charged unit, where plastic A is positively charged, and plastic B is negatively charged, forming the main element of the equipment. The material is then separated in an electrostatic field according to the polarity of its particles.
- Optical separation is required in order to sort the material according to color.
- This process begins with the material being inserted in a silo with a level sensor. Three vibrating transporters take it from here, to the individual separation channels, where TWO CCD cameras check it, while a control unit processes the signals. The material with the wrong color is eliminated with the help of an air flow ejector. The equipment also includes three other channels and two separation steps. Two channels are used for the first step of separation, while the third is used for an extra step, with the purpose of getting better results.
This process transforms PVC waste with dimensions of 8-12 mm in particles of 500-1000 microns. This is done between the sharp edges of disks, on a rotor, with the micronized material being evacuated by a vent and taken to the cyclone.
The resulting material is then taken through a vibrating sieve, where different granulations are obtained.
In this final step, the PVC waste is pulverized and transported to the PVC granulator’s line mixer. Here, it is mixed with additives and other material, to obtain a new material, with characteristics similar to virgin material.
The resulting mix is forced through the granulator’s extruder. It is plasticized (melted) and gradually homogenized. Finally, it is pushed through the granulator’s matrix, where it is cut to optimal size and transported towards the cooler. After cooling down, the resulting granules are transported in big-bags.
