Millions of plastic bags are used and thrown away in Moscow every year. It turns out that some of them are successfully recycled. Today we will go to such an enterprise and find out how polyethylene is prepared for reuse.
The Moscow Region company "Expert Vtor" does not process all types of plastic bags, but only film, bags, bags, production defects of stretch film (the so-called shrink film) and LDPE.
LDPE is polyethylene high pressure or, as it is also called, low-density polyethylene. LDPE waste can be formed during the direct production of polyethylene film. There is a lot of waste - in stores (packaging bottles, boxes, boxes), at glass factories (from packaging bottles, cans), at distilleries and beer factories (from packaging containers or finished products).
Stretch film is linear high-density polyethylene (LDPE). It can stretch a lot. Due to this property, as well as increased resistance to punctures and tearing, stretch film is used for packaging various goods, in particular on pallets. Stretch film waste is mainly generated and accumulated in warehouses of any size, at customs terminals, logistics centers, etc.
Popular T-shirt bags made of HDPE (polyethylene low pressure) and “biodegradable” bags, which can be found, for example, in “Azbuka Vkusa”, the company does not recycle. Polypropylene film, PVC film, bubble film, polyamide film, multilayer PVD+PP, PVD+PA films, as well as double-sided two-color films are also not suitable. Also, film contaminated with oils, fats, food waste and pesticides.
The collected polyethylene first goes to the warehouse. Up to 100 tons of film waste can be stored here, naturally in pressed form. At the first stage, the raw materials undergo careful sorting. Stretch is separated from LDPE, and types of films that cannot be processed by the enterprise’s facilities are rejected.
After sorting, bags of a certain color are put into a crusher. In it, using V-shaped knives (this type is also called “dovetail”), the film is crushed to particles of uniform size. The knives are driven by an electric motor.
From the crusher, through a pneumatic conveyor, the so-called “crushed material” enters the sink. In it, with the addition of special cleaning solutions, the “crushed” is cleaned of dust and other non-polyethylene inclusions.
The next stage of processing is agglomeration. The so-called “cooking” takes place in it. The operator loads clean “crushed material” into the working chamber through the loading window.
The raw materials fall along the guides onto the rotating rotor, are crushed by knives and, due to friction against the body and among themselves, are heated to the plasticization temperature. In this case, the entire volume of loaded raw materials becomes like a mushy mass.
When the material becomes homogeneous, “shock” water is added to it, as a result of which the material is sharply cooled and sintered into individual small balls irregular shape. The agglomerate is dried for some time at natural temperature. environment and is unloaded into prepared containers to go to the final stage. The cooking process itself lasts from 5 to 10 minutes.
The granulation process can be compared to minced meat through a meat grinder. The agglomerate that we obtained at the previous stage is loaded into the extruder hopper.
It is called so because the production of granules is based on the extrusion method - forcing the molten mass through a molding hole.
In general, the “minced meat” from the boiled bags is melted under the action of heaters and pressure created by a rotating screw. The polymer melt is forced through a filter into the rotating extruder head. Already from it come the so-called threads. To cool, they are passed through a water hose and then into knives, where they are cut into uniform granules.
The granules are packaged in clean polypropylene bags, approximately 50 kg each. No special storage conditions are required, but it is advisable that it be in a dry room. The resulting granules, depending on the composition and color, are sold. Stretch granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary stretch.
LDPE granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary shrink or technical film. Colored LDPE granules are mainly used for the production of garbage bags.
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Polyethylene collection
Our company does not process all types of plastic bags, but only film, bags, sacks, production defects of stretch film (the so-called shrink film) and LDPE.
LDPE is high-density polyethylene or, as it is also called, low-density polyethylene. LDPE waste can be generated during the direct production of polyethylene film. There is a lot of waste - in stores (packaging bottles, boxes, boxes), at glass factories (from packaging bottles, cans), at distilleries and beer factories (from packaging containers or finished products).
Stretch film is linear high-density polyethylene (LDPE). It can stretch a lot. Due to this property, as well as increased resistance to punctures and tearing, stretch film is used for packaging various goods, in particular on pallets. Stretch film waste is mainly generated and accumulated in warehouses of any size, at customs terminals, logistics centers, etc.
But we do not recycle the popular T-shirt bags made of HDPE (low-density polyethylene) and “biodegradable” bags that can be found, for example, in ABC of Taste. Polypropylene film, PVC film, bubble film, polyamide film, multilayer PVD+PP, PVD+PA films, as well as double-sided two-color films are also not suitable. Finally, we do not accept film contaminated with oils, grease, food waste or toxic chemicals.
Sorting
We take the collected polyethylene to the warehouse. Up to 100 tons of film waste can be stored here, naturally in pressed form. At the first stage, the raw materials undergo careful sorting. Stretch is separated from LDPE, and types of films that cannot be processed by our facilities are rejected.
Crusher
After sorting, bags of a certain color are put into a crusher. In it, using V-shaped knives (in our circles this type is also called “dovetail”), the film is crushed to particles of uniform size. The knives are driven by an electric motor.
Washing
From the crusher, through a pneumatic conveyor, the so-called “crushed material” enters the sink. In it, with the addition of special cleaning solutions, the “crushed” is cleaned of dust and other non-polyethylene inclusions.
Cooking
The next stage of processing is agglomeration. The so-called “cooking” takes place in it. The operator loads clean “crushed material” into the working chamber through the loading window. The raw materials fall along the guides onto the rotating rotor, are crushed by knives and, due to friction against the body and among themselves, are heated to the plasticization temperature. In this case, the entire volume of loaded raw materials becomes like a mushy mass.
When the material becomes homogeneous, “shock” water is added to it, as a result of which the material is sharply cooled and sintered into individual small balls of irregular shape. The agglomerate is dried for some more time at natural ambient temperature and unloaded into prepared containers to go to the final stage. The cooking process itself lasts from 5 to 10 minutes.
Granulation
The granulation process can be compared to minced meat through a meat grinder. The agglomerate that we obtained at the previous stage is loaded into the extruder hopper. It is called so because the production of granules is based on the extrusion method - forcing the molten mass through a molding hole.
In general, our “minced meat” from boiled bags is melted under the action of heaters and pressure created by a rotating screw. The polymer melt is forced through a filter into the rotating extruder head. Already from it come the so-called threads. To cool, we pass them through a water hose and then into knives, where we cut them into uniform granules.
Storage
The granules are packaged in clean polypropylene bags, approximately 50 kg each. No special storage conditions are required, but it is advisable that it be in a dry room.
Finished raw materials
We sell the resulting granules, depending on the composition and color. Stretch granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary stretch. LDPE granules of natural color are used for the production of secondary shrink or technical film. Colored LDPE granules are mainly used for the production of garbage bags.
Removal, processing and disposal of waste from hazard classes 1 to 5
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Why is it dangerous to neglect packaging and how important is polyethylene recycling for the environment? In our life, polyethylene is present as packaging containers, but despite its narrow specialization, it is widespread everywhere. Almost every home has a bag of bags that we collect out of principles of saving. But the trouble is, it turns out that the better the raw material, the more difficult it is to dispose of it and the longer the period of its decomposition itself.
Relevance of processing
Recycling polyethylene raw materials is an important expense item for the city, since the material is characterized by incredible stability. He is not afraid of water, alkali, or salt solutions. Polyethylene is not afraid even of organic and inorganic acids. It can be noted that these are not bad qualities, but they can result in a number of problems.
First of all, the environmental situation is of concern - according to rough estimates, it takes up to 300 years for polyethylene to decompose. If a simple plastic bag ends up in a landfill in the general mass household waste, then it greatly complicates the processing process. Over time, this bag undergoes thermal aging, gradually decomposing under the influence of sun rays, heat and oxygen. During destruction, a harmless package releases harmful chemical substances into soil and water.
Alas, it is not possible to limit the production of plastics and polyethylene, but the entire work process can be rationally organized. Polyethylene waste is essentially a universal material. Without exaggeration, polyethylene recycling can be called new life raw materials. A person is required to create and improve methods for collecting and processing raw materials in order to make the process cyclical. Polyethylene waste may well become everyday items.
Processing plants
IN last years The number of organizations processing this raw material is steadily growing. And it's not just a matter of environmental problems, but also in the prospects for the development of such a business. Polyethylene can be an excellent base for creating plastic panels, garbage containers, all kinds of household containers. This opens up some scope for the imagination of entrepreneurs, although, naturally, recycled polyethylene products involve some restrictions.
Recycling films and bags does not cause any difficulties, since the structure of the materials used for the most part does not change, but the quality of the processed raw materials decreases, and accordingly the scope of further application is narrowed.
Workflow Features
There are several cycles for processing plastic bags and films. The first cycle has almost no effect on reducing the consumer characteristics of new products. But each subsequent cycle makes its own “negative contribution”, making the raw materials suitable only for the production of special materials.
Based on existing technologies, six stages of processing polyethylene waste can be distinguished:
- First comes the collection of raw materials: film, bottles, etc. household waste. Waste sorting can be done manually or mechanically. If household waste is separated into waste paper, glass, paper, and PET during collection, then the amount of waste that requires disposal can be reduced by a third.
- The collected raw materials are sent to washing machines. This step is necessary in order to get rid of dirt, foreign objects and paper. If raw materials are delivered directly to collection points, then the receiver can check the condition of film, bottles, and waste paper in order to increase or decrease the price offered for them.
- Next, the collected raw materials are crushed, for which crushing plants are used.
- In case there is moisture or random solid impurities left in the raw materials, a processing process is carried out in a centrifuge.
- Now the material is sent to the drying chamber, where heat treatment also takes place.
- The work is completed and the material is ready for recycling. It can be used to make universal products: plastic film, bags, packaging containers, pipes.
Work in detail
Now let’s try to take a closer look at the process of processing polyethylene into granules, because before this the process was considered only schematically. Of course, the work requires the appropriate equipment.
Well-established work is possible if you have:
- washing machine
- crushing plant
- centrifuges
- drying plant
- agglomerator
- granulator
- extruder
In production, it would be important to have a conveyor or pneumatic conveyor, which will allow the process to be fully automated.
At home, it is almost impossible to establish an uninterrupted process for obtaining recycled polyethylene, but you can lay the foundation for promising business. First of all, you can declare the process of collecting raw materials, since without it such work is in principle impossible. Manual sorting of household waste will be cheaper than mechanical sorting, but you will have to start with a small volume of raw materials used.
Self-processing of the film allows you to obtain a dense waterproof fabric with waterproofing function. The process itself is simple - a piece of film needs to be placed between two parts of fabric and ironed with an electric iron. The output is a three-layer composite material, since the film melts and penetrates the layers of fabric. You can create a composite material based on film, fabric and aluminum foil with your own hands. The operating algorithm is the same, except for the fact that one layer of fabric is replaced with foil. Material made from film, fabric and foil is an excellent heat insulator. Using cross-linked polyethylene, many people install heated floors in their homes.
For more benefit
Agglomerator is a device capable of processing film and bottles. Due to the effect of temperature, an agglomerate is obtained - baked lumps from former bottles and film. The agglomerate can be sold already at this stage or go further and process it into granules.
A polyethylene granulator allows you to increase enterprise income from the collection and sale of secondary raw materials. The result is a product that is technically superior to its “powdery or scaly counterparts” due to its small volume (and therefore lower costs for packaging and transportation), high flowability, minimization of losses and dust formation, and lower risk of destruction and photoaging.
Why does an enterprise need an extruder? It is with its help that you can obtain a unique material – low-density polyethylene. The extruder starts working after the agglomerator has had its say and turns the result of collection and processing into pulp. Now the molten mass of plastic goes through the molding hole, where it melts and creates threads that are cooled under water and cut into small pieces. The output is a ready-made HDPE granule.
At low pressure
Low density polyethylene is widely used throughout the world. This organic compound, resembling white wax. Recycled low-density polyethylene is obtained by collecting and recycling bottles and pipes.
This material is not afraid of frost or chemicals. It does not feel shocks and is not a current conductor. It should be added that this material is waterproof and does not react with alkalis, acids and salt solutions. HDPE decomposes under the influence of nitric acid (50%), chlorine and fluorine.
How this product can be useful
- Accessories for swimming pools are made on the basis of HDPE.
- It is used in the operation of 3D printers.
- This material is relevant for working under conditions of chemical and electrical influence.
- HDPE is good for creating anti-corrosion coatings, food containers, bottles and collecting water connections.
- In sports institutions, HDPE is used to produce gymnastic hoops.
- In restaurants, HDPE is the future plastic bag, plastic set or container. The HDPE bag rustles and wrinkles, so it is used for so-called “T-shirts”.
- Manufacturers of pyrotechnics use HDPE to make their work more spectacular.
Bottom line
Processing polyethylene raw materials into granules makes it possible to significantly reduce the amount of waste in city landfills. Remember that polyethylene and plastic hardly decompose. Meanwhile, on the basis of PET it is possible to make successful business. Don't throw away anything that may be useful in the future. Even a simple bag, bottle, film can be useful for business.
One of promising directions entrepreneurial activity currently is polyethylene recycling. This type of business is attractive due to the fact that the products of its production are in great demand in many industries, construction, and growing crops. Before investing in a polyethylene processing business, you should carefully familiarize yourself with all the subtleties and nuances of the process, as well as the requirements for the production itself.
Our business assessment:
Starting investment - 1,500,000 rubles.
Market saturation is low.
The difficulty of starting a business is 7/10.
For whom to produce products?
Starting any business, as a rule, is carried out with a preliminary study of demand, and indeed the demand for the final product or service that will be the main activity.
So, polyethylene processing - who will be the main consumer of the product produced by your enterprise? If you are planning to set up the production of polyethylene granules, then the main clients will also be processing plants for the production following products:
- and containers for food and for economic purposes;
- as packaging – consumer and for packaging any type of product on an industrial scale;
- Decorative elements for equipping the interior and exterior of an apartment and house, garden, vegetable garden, swimming pool;
- Insulating materials for construction;
- For the production of finishing tiles;
- Pipes for organizing irrigation, water supply, heating;
- Cleaning drainage systems;
- Materials for equipping stormwater systems.
So, as can be seen from this list, having established the production of polyethylene granules (and it is produced in the form of such small units), you will be a desirable supplier of raw materials for many small workshops and large enterprises.
Of course, in this case, we should not forget that for buyers important indicators will be the quality of your products, your ability to deliver in the required volume and within a clearly defined time frame, as well as the fact that the cost is at the level of existing competitors, and at first even lower.
What types of products will leave the workshop?
The technology for processing polyethylene, first of all, involves the use of already used material as a raw material - practically your main focus is the so-called recycling of polyethylene waste. It is more often called waste recycling, as a result of which, through transformation, cleaning and changing the physical state, a product is produced that can become the basis for the production of a large number of useful things.
The technology for processing polyethylene, which will need to be used when opening production, allows us to produce the following types of products:
Features of production technology
Let's consider how the processing process is carried out. First of all, I would like to immediately note that the processing of polyethylene waste into granules produces a product that is identical in properties to those materials produced from chemical components. In addition, when organizing such a business, it is also important that when processing secondary raw materials, you can count on various subsidies from the state, allocation of funds for opening, and also special profitable terms when paying taxes.
So, polyethylene recycling consists of the following basic operations:
- Collection of waste for polyethylene and acceptance of raw materials for production. In the best way in this case, you will independently organize a collection point for polyethylene waste, of course, if you have sufficient funds for this.
- Sorting of received raw materials. It is aimed at separating it from debris and impurities, and also dividing it according to the degree of suitability for recycling.
During the sorting process, waste is divided into types according to the following criteria:
- By size. Most large species raw materials are sent for cutting using circulation saws or special band saws;
- By composition - bags, waste plastic film, bottles, trays, etc. are distributed separately;
- Where possible, implementation recycling– in practice, from 2 to 10% of collected raw materials must be recycled due to the impossibility of using them for industrial purposes;
- By pollution. Basically, all collected raw materials are pre-washed, but excessively dirty ones undergo this operation twice.
Basically, the process of sorting raw materials is done manually - the existing this moment Equipment for polyethylene processing does not allow this process to be completely mechanized. Due to this circumstance, it will be necessary to hire workers to carry out such a process. It is very important to carefully sort raw materials, since the inclusion of other substances in the total mass can significantly change the original qualities of the polyethylene produced by your plant. As a result, when purchasing it and the further production cycle, the finished product may turn out to be Bad quality and contacting you again is unlikely to happen.
- Grinding to the required particle size. The equipment used for this processing is crushers or shredders;
- Washing of crushed raw materials using washing machines. With a large volume of finished products, installed washing lines are used, in which loading into the devices, washing itself, partial drying and transportation for the next stage are automatically carried out. Washing of raw materials is also important stage the entire processing process, since remaining impurities can deteriorate the resulting primary polyethylene granules - they will be of low quality, cloudy and foamy.
- Processing in a centrifuge. Under the influence of centrifugal force in such equipment, the particles directly for production are separated from the remaining elements of dirt and impurities, as well as excess moisture, which is unnecessary during the passage next operations technological processing.
- Placing washed and dried raw materials into agglomerators for polyethylene processing. In these devices, due to exposure to high temperatures, the raw materials are melted and sintered. The resulting semi-finished product significantly increases the productivity of subsequent machines along the technological chain and facilitates the main operation of raw material granulation. If a polyethylene processing line is installed in your workshop, then the best option will choose one in which a plastic compactor is installed, which performs a similar operation to an agglomerator, but provides more high quality processed product.
- The granulation process itself. The output from this operation is a secondary polyethylene granule. The process of its formation itself is as follows: the material is transported using a screw to the granulator, where a cycle of heating and cleaning from foreign impurities is carried out mechanically. The resulting mass, which, as a result of exposure to temperatures, heats up to 200 degrees, falls on the molding hole. The hole has thin slits - dies, through which thin streams of hot polymer are formed. At the exit, these streams are quickly cooled, hardened and cut by a mechanical device using sharp knives. Next, cooling occurs with water or a stream of air.
- Recycled polyethylene granules are packaged in bags according to a predetermined weight. This process can be carried out manually, but it will be much more productive to purchase a special device, which, moreover, ensures the accuracy of measurements and simultaneously carries out the sealing operation.
Special requirements for the premises
Polyethylene recycling plant due to the fact that it is associated with some particularly harmful conditions and increased danger production should be located exclusively in industrial zones. In addition to this requirement, the following requirements apply to the production premises:
- Availability of access to the area for unloading raw materials and loading finished products;
- The area of production premises should start at 100 square meters;
- It is necessary to have a sewerage system and a hot and cold water system;
- The room must be equipped good system ventilation;
- It is desirable that the entire building be divided into the following four main zones: reception and storage of raw materials, primary processing (sorting), main processing - a workshop in which the semi-finished product is exposed to pressure and high temperature, an area for storing raw materials and shipping finished products.
Necessary personnel for organizing production
The main workers who will be needed to start the full operation of the workshop and sell finished products are the following:
- Head of the enterprise;
- Accountant. If the production volumes are not too large, then it is possible to combine the functions of an accountant and a manager in one person;
- Production Technologist;
- Maintenance workers technological lines– from 3 people;
- Ancillary workers who perform operations such as unloading raw materials, sorting them, storing finished products and loading them into vehicles for further shipment to suppliers.
Approximate costs and expected profits
How much money will you need to invest in organizing a polyethylene processing plant in order to open a competitive production that will provide you with income for a long period of time?
The main costs, in this case, will be the purchase of equipment, which will cost from 800 thousand rubles and the initial supply of raw materials, in an amount not less than 100 thousand rubles. In general, the total amount of funds that will be needed for opening will be from 1.2 million rubles.
The profitability level of such enterprises averages 15% and allows them to recoup their investments in a period of one to two years. With enough effort and high professionalism of employees, you will be able to further expand production by organizing a workshop for the production of any type of product from the resulting recycled granulate, thus increasing the amount of potential profit.
Polyethylene has excellent performance characteristics, thanks to which the material is widely used in production and in everyday life; naturally, this has led to an increase in the amount of waste in landfills. According to statistics, up to 10% of all household waste in trash cans comes from polyethylene materials.
Waste film do not rot, do not dissolve, do not decompose for decades, emit substances hazardous to the environment, and pollute water and soil. When burned, polyethylene does not burn completely and forms toxic dioxins - dangerous poisons, capable of accumulating in living organisms and tissues, leading to the most dangerous consequences including ulcers, dermatitis and even mutations.
There are various recycling and disposal options furniture film waste. Among them, pyrolysis should be highlighted, which, despite all its positive qualities has not become widespread, since from an economic point of view this method is justified only if large sources of raw materials are available. Practice shows that the most effective method recycling of polyethylene products consists in organizing lines for its reuse.
Recycling allows you to reduce the cost of manufactured products, reduce the cost of raw materials, save resources and make a profit directly from waste.
Types of polyethylene waste
Polyethylene today exists in the most different types and forms, film can be varying degrees contamination and readiness for further use in production. There are several groups of experts polyethylene waste:
1) Technological defect.
This category includes from 1 to 10% of all polyethylene waste. Defective products, including film, bottles and other goods directly at production, may not be recycled as returnable raw materials.
2) Homogeneous consumer waste.
3) Waste in landfills.
Industrial and household waste that ended up in a landfill: bags, film, bottles, etc.
Also, film and polyethylene waste is usually divided into groups according to the degree of preservation and contamination. The most common categories: products with partially lost useful parameters and materials with minor damage.
Waste plastic film in landfills they are mixed with other garbage, because modern techniques processing usually includes two separate stages of work:
- separation of homogeneous materials from waste;
- processing of the resulting polyethylene products.
Types of waste and methods of processing them
The type of raw material, its condition, contamination, uniformity and other individual characteristics determine which stages of the processing process it will go through. In most cases, film and other polyethylene products are sorted, cleaned, shredded, crushed, fractionated, and granulated. Only after this is polyethylene used to create new products.
Before processing, large polyethylene products are cut on special machines and then sent to crushing and grinding machines. Film and other waste is cleaned from contaminants on special washing lines that use powerful chemical solvents that can remove all impurities from polymer waste.
Recycled plastic is characterized by high viscosity, therefore granulation of materials is carried out under the influence of very high temperature in special devices equipped with grinders, filters and pumps. Powerful granulators make it possible to process a wide variety of polyethylene waste.
How can you use recycled polyethylene?
Film waste and other plastic products can be recycled into a variety of useful products. For example, mixed waste containing a large number of foreign inorganic and organic elements can be processed by intrusion or casting. These available methods processing makes it possible to create parts for enclosing plastic structures.
Film, disposable bottles and other containers are most often used to re-create the same products. Problems can only arise when working with materials with a highly modified structure; they can only be used to create massive plastic products low strength.
Any plastic waste can be processed into crumbs used in construction, production of equipment parts and vehicles. Modern car manufacturers are paying more and more attention to recyclable materials and making elements of doors, bumpers and other necessary things from recycled plastic.
With proper organization of recycling processes, it is possible to ensure the yield of secondary raw materials at the level of 70-80% of the initial volume of polyethylene film, PET bottles and other products. Despite the complexity of processing, the direction is actively developing, as it allows organizing efficient waste-free production.
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