Sorting mixed polymers from end of life products by a selective grinding process

European policy on waste and market demand for material are driving the development of sorting techniques adapted to automobiles and electric products at the end of their lifetimes. In this article, we present work on polymer sorting using selective grinding. Selective grinding is an operation that consists in sorting polymers after shredding. Specific particle size distributions characterize each polymer in the output stream and these differences are used to recover certain polymers by sifting. This process is based on the brittle or ductile properties of polymers. The first results presented in this work concern the sorting of a mixture of polymers and polyolefins, which are chemically incompatible. The working method adopted includes three parts. In the first part, a stream of mixed polymers from the shredder residue (SR) of a treatment chain was characterized. The mixed stream was composed of different grades of Polypropylene and different grades of Polyethylene. Afterwards, based on the characterization data, selective grinding tests were carried out on a model mixture with virgin materials. Once the selective grinding conditions were validated, other tests were carried out with shredder residues. The conclusion of this study is that selective grinding can be an efficient technology to sort incompatible polymers, which are not sorted by other processes, such as density separation or automated near infrared sorting.ANR TRICOTO

State of the art of plastic sorting and recycling : Feedback to vehicle design

Today car manufacturers are beginning to integrate recycling constraints in the first stages of the design of a new car due to their concern regarding the effects of car design on the recovery of material after End-of-Life Vehicle treatment. Improved understanding of the recycling process can help designers to avoid contaminants in the recycled product and improve the efficiency of current and new sorting methods. The main goal of this paper is to describe the state of the art of the technical efficiency of recovery channels for plastics in Europe in order to define requirements for automotive plastic part design. This paper will first present the results of a survey on industrial and innovative recycling technologies mainly originating from the mining sector, and secondly a simplified methodology for car design integrating plastic recycling constraints. This methodology concerns material association and compatibility, the type of assemblies favourable to better recycling, and better reuse of recycled products in cars.Renault Research Direction FR TCR LAB 1 13, Service 641000-Recycling Engineering, 1 avenue du Golf, 78288 Guyancourt Cedex, Franc

Addition of X-ray fluorescent tracers into polymers, new technology for automatic sorting of plastics : proposal for selecting some relevant tracers

A description of a new technology for automatic sorting of plastics, based on X-ray fluorescence detection of tracers, added in such materials is presented. This study describes the criteria for the selection of tracers, and concluded that the most adapted for XRF are some rare earth oxides. The plastics chosen for tracing and identification are the ones contained in ELV and WEEE from which discrimination is difficult for the existing sorting techniques due to their black colour.A description of a new technology for automatic sorting of plastics, based on X-ray fluorescence detection of tracers, added in such materials is presented. This study describes the criteria for the selection of tracers, and concluded that the most adapted for XRF are some rare earth oxides. The plastics chosen for tracing and identification are the ones contained in ELV and WEEE from which discrimination is difficult for the existing sorting techniques due to their black colour

Characterizing plastics originating from WEEE: A case study in France

Two studies, TRIPLE (For Analyse des gisements DEEE et optimisation des technologies de TRI des PLastiques EEE (analysis of WEEE and optimization of sorting technologies for WEEE plastics). and VALEEE For VALorisation des composants, matières et substances issus du gisement DEEE (Recovery of components, materials and substances from WEEE).), supported by the French State, the Greater Lyon area (Grand-Lyon), the Rhône-Alpes Region and the French eco-organization ‘‘Eco-systèmes’’, and involving laboratories, recycled material users and recycler partners, were conducted concerning the characterization, sorting and recovery of French WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment). To determine the heterogeneity of a 10-ton batch, the WEEE was sorted into families before grinding. Specimens were dismantled and plastic particles were analyzed to estimate their composition. The batch was then crushed and the metals extracted. The residue containing plastics was sampled at the outlet of the plant and analyzed. The detailed characterization of the plastics sample was used to calculate the estimated sampling error and the overall measurement error. The sample size was determined so as to achieve satisfactory accuracy for the most represented polymers likely to be recovered after recycling. A simple characterization methodology for use by recycling plants was proposed in order to determine the plastic composition of this waste. The procedure was validated on a second 10-ton batch of sWEEE collected from another location and treated by a different recycling facility. This article presents the sampling protocol design methodology, then the characterization protocol and its usage limitations.FUI TRIPLE et VALEE

Explaining it your way - findings from a co-creative design workshop on designing XAI applications with AI end-users from the public sector

Human-Centered AI prioritizes end-users’ needs like transparency and usability. This is vital for applications that affect people’s everyday lives, such as social assessment tasks in the public sector. This paper discusses our pioneering effort to involve public sector AI users in XAI application design through a co-creative workshop with unemployment consultants from Estonia. The workshop’s objectives were identifying user needs and creating novel XAI interfaces for the used AI system. As a result of our user-centered design approach, consultants were able to develop AI interface prototypes that would support them in creating success stories for their clients by getting detailed feedback and suggestions. We present a discussion on the value of co-creative design methods with end-users working in the public sector to improve AI application design and provide a summary of recommendations for practitioners and researchers working on AI systems in the public sector

Sorting mixed polymers from end of life products by a selective grinding process

European policy on waste and market demand for material are driving the development of sorting techniques adapted to automobiles and electric products at the end of their lifetimes. In this article, we present work on polymer sorting using selective grinding. Selective grinding is an operation that consists in sorting polymers after shredding. Specific particle size distributions characterize each polymer in the output stream and these differences are used to recover certain polymers by sifting. This process is based on the brittle or ductile properties of polymers. The first results presented in this work concern the sorting of a mixture of polymers and polyolefins, which are chemically incompatible. The working method adopted includes three parts. In the first part, a stream of mixed polymers from the shredder residue (SR) of a treatment chain was characterized. The mixed stream was composed of different grades of Polypropylene and different grades of Polyethylene. Afterwards, based on the characterization data, selective grinding tests were carried out on a model mixture with virgin materials. Once the selective grinding conditions were validated, other tests were carried out with shredder residues. The conclusion of this study is that selective grinding can be an efficient technology to sort incompatible polymers, which are not sorted by other processes, such as density separation or automated near infrared sorting.ANR TRICOTO

State of the art of plastic sorting and recycling : Feedback to vehicle design

Today car manufacturers are beginning to integrate recycling constraints in the first stages of the design of a new car due to their concern regarding the effects of car design on the recovery of material after End-of-Life Vehicle treatment. Improved understanding of the recycling process can help designers to avoid contaminants in the recycled product and improve the efficiency of current and new sorting methods. The main goal of this paper is to describe the state of the art of the technical efficiency of recovery channels for plastics in Europe in order to define requirements for automotive plastic part design. This paper will first present the results of a survey on industrial and innovative recycling technologies mainly originating from the mining sector, and secondly a simplified methodology for car design integrating plastic recycling constraints. This methodology concerns material association and compatibility, the type of assemblies favourable to better recycling, and better reuse of recycled products in cars.Renault Research Direction FR TCR LAB 1 13, Service 641000-Recycling Engineering, 1 avenue du Golf, 78288 Guyancourt Cedex, Franc

Addition of tracers into the polypropylene in view of automatic sorting of plastic wastes using X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

This study focused on the detection of rare earth oxides, used as tracers for the identification of polymer materials, using XRF (X-ray fluorescence) spectrometry. The tests were carried out in a test system device which allows the collection of static measurements of the samples’ spectrum through the use of energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence technology. A sorting process based on tracers added into the polymer matrix is proposed in order to increase sorting selectivity of polypropylene during end-of-life recycling. Tracers consist of systems formed by one or by several substances dispersed into a material, to add a selective property to it, with the aim of improving the efficiency of sorting and high speed identification. Several samples containing rare earth oxides (Y2O3, CeO2, Nd2O3, Gd2O3, Dy2O3, Er2O3 and Yb2O3) in different concentrations were prepared in order to analyse some of the parameters which can influence the detection, such as the concentration of tracers, the acquisition time and the possible overlapping among the tracers. This work shows that by using the XRF test system device, it was possible to detect 5 of the 7 tracers tested for 1 min exposure time and at a concentration level of 1000 ppm. These two parameters will play an important role in the development of an industrial device, which indicates the necessity of further works that needs to be conducted in order to reduce them.RECORD, ADEM

Polymer tracer detection systems with UV fluorescence spectrometry to improve product reyclability

The recycling of materials originating from end-of life products is essential to preserve our raw material resources, which are increasingly expensive and whose extraction is increasingly impactful for the environment. However, certain materials are still not recycled today. In the case of plastics, their recycling includes grinding, which generates complex mixtures. It is not possible to sort these mixtures and reach a high degree of purity with the existing physico-chemical processes. Automated sorting processes using near infrared spectroscopy are limited to dark-colored materials. One option is to add tracers to virgin materials to allow identification and rapid sorting of end-of-life products, using UV fluorescence spectrometry as the identification technique. The optimization of the polymer/tracer/detection system is based on several criteria: the reliability and speed of detection of UV fluorescence tracers added to a polymer matrix with carbon black, the relevance of the environmental impact of the tracers, and the preservation of the mechanical properties of the polymer with the tracers added.ANR TRIPTIC + RECOR

Addition of X-ray fluorescent tracers into polymers, new technology for automatic sorting of plastics : proposal for selecting some relevant tracers

A description of a new technology for automatic sorting of plastics, based on X-ray fluorescence detection of tracers, added in such materials is presented. This study describes the criteria for the selection of tracers, and concluded that the most adapted for XRF are some rare earth oxides. The plastics chosen for tracing and identification are the ones contained in ELV and WEEE from which discrimination is difficult for the existing sorting techniques due to their black colour.ANR TRIPTIC RECOR