HK1141486B - An apparatus to process used materials - Google Patents

Description

Apparatus for treating waste material

Technical Field

The present invention relates to recycling, and more particularly to processing waste materials (used materials) into separate recycled materials for input into a manufacturing process.

Background

Currently, there is a wide range of domestic, commercial and industrial waste recycling worldwide. In modern cities, local authorities and/or private contractors regularly collect recyclable containers, paper and green waste from residents. The waste is then transported to a transfer station where it is separated into different material types and packed into bales or stored in bins. For example, clear glass, green glass, amber glass are boxed for storage, Polyester (PET) plastic bottles and containers are packaged into bundles, aluminum cans are boxed for storage, High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastic bottles and containers are packaged into bundles, steel cans are boxed for storage, and paper and green waste are boxed for storage.

Waste material to be used in the manufacturing process is collected from the transfer station and sent either to a material recovery center (MRF) or to a manufacturing plant, which is referred to as recycling of waste material such as glass and plastic bottles, metal cans and other metal containers. For example, glass containers are typically ground into cullet prior to being shipped to a glass bottle manufacturer. Plastic containers are ground into flakes at MRF or plastic container or plastic bottle manufacturers. Aluminum and steel cans are compressed at the MRF and then shipped to a smelter for processing into ingots. The ingot is then transported to a canning manufacturer. Currently, collecting bulky and dirty waste material from residents and shipping to the MRF takes a significant amount of time and cost, requires unloading, separating, storing, sorting, sterilizing the material at the MRF, and creates a large amount of waste material that must be discarded to be landfilled with waste so that recyclable material can be disposed of and shipped to the manufacturing facility.

There is a need for a device for handling recyclable waste material at the site where the material is used, before the material is blended and subsequently collected by local authorities or private contractors. Since the above apparatus can separate, clean, crush, slice, compress, and crush the waste materials, the apparatus will greatly reduce the cost of recovering the waste materials and increase the value of the recovered waste materials. The waste materials thus obtained are each in the form of separate, nearly pure materials and are greatly reduced in volume so as to be directly transported individually to the respective manufacturing plant to be directly input to the manufacturing process without additional processing or to be transported to the MRF.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present invention to substantially overcome or partially ameliorate one or more of the disadvantages of the prior art, or at least to provide a useful alternative.

First, there is disclosed herein an apparatus for processing waste material for input into a manufacturing process, the apparatus comprising:

a housing having a top surface and providing a plurality of chambers arranged in descending order;

a series of locations below the top surface and through which waste material will pass, each location for receiving a predetermined waste material;

a descending path extending from each of said locations and providing for the transfer of waste material from the respective location sequentially through said chamber;

the cavity includes:

a sensing chamber located downstream of the location and having sensing means operable to sense the composition of waste material in the sensing chamber; the sensing means is operable to activate an alarm if a user has placed waste material at the opening for receiving a different material;

a washing/drying chamber downstream of said location and having means operable to wash and dry the waste material in said washing/drying chamber;

a processing chamber downstream of the washing/drying chamber and having processing equipment operable to reduce the size of waste material in the processing chamber; and

a storage chamber downstream of the treatment chamber and having a series of storage units for receiving different waste materials treated by the apparatus.

Preferably, the sensing chamber and the washing/drying chamber are in the same chamber.

Preferably, the sensing chamber and the washing/drying chamber are in different chambers.

Preferably, the apparatus includes gripping means operable to grip waste material in the sensing chamber or to release the waste material along the descent path.

Preferably said gripping means comprises a pair of opposed arms located on adjacent sides of the sensing chamber, the arms in the extended position being operable to grip waste material in said chamber and the arms in the retracted position being operable to release waste material along said descending path.

Preferably said apparatus includes a hydraulic ram operable to move said arm between said extended and retracted positions.

Preferably, the device comprises a cover mounted on the housing and movable between open and closed positions to expose or cover the positions.

Preferably, the apparatus comprises a device operable to remove a lid of the container.

Preferably, the apparatus comprises means operable to remove a tamper evident feature of the container.

Preferably, the washing/drying means comprises a plurality of nozzles operable to spray liquid to wash the waste material in the washing/drying chamber.

Preferably, the washing/drying means comprises a plurality of nozzles operable to spray air to dry the waste material in the washing/drying chamber.

Preferably, the washing/drying means comprises a heating element.

Preferably, the processing equipment includes at least one of shredding, shearing, granulating, grinding, slicing, crushing, or compacting equipment.

Preferably, the apparatus comprises means for offsetting one or more cavities from the path.

Preferably, said biasing means is operable to bias said wash/dry chamber from said path.

Preferably, the biasing means comprises a sliding mechanism.

Preferably, the biasing means comprises a guide disc.

Preferably, the device is computer controlled.

Preferably, the apparatus comprises a series of chutes operable to direct waste material to predetermined processing apparatus adapted to process the material.

Preferably, the treatment chamber comprises a series of chutes operable to direct material treated by the treatment apparatus to a predetermined storage unit adapted to receive the predetermined material.

There is also provided a method of processing waste material by using the apparatus; the device includes a housing having a top surface and a plurality of chambers arranged in descending order; the method comprises the following steps:

placing waste material at a location below a top surface of the housing, the location for receiving predetermined waste material;

transporting the waste material to a sensing chamber;

sensing the composition of the waste material in the sensing chamber to determine whether a user has placed the waste material in a location suitable for receiving the same material;

transporting the waste material to a washing/drying chamber once the waste material is properly sensed;

washing and/or drying the waste material in the washing/drying chamber;

transporting the waste material to a treatment chamber;

treating the container by operation of a predetermined treatment apparatus adapted to receive waste material of the same material;

transporting the treated waste material to a storage chamber; the storage chamber includes a series of storage cells for receiving processed materials of different predetermined materials.

Drawings

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an apparatus for processing waste material;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 1 taken along line C-C;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 1 taken along line B-B;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are cross-sectional views of the device shown in FIG. 3 taken along lines E and F;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 3 taken along line G-G;

fig. 6A and 6B are a cross-sectional view and a side view of the device shown in fig. 1 taken along line D-D.

Detailed Description

In the drawings, an apparatus 1 for processing waste material, such as containers 5, for input into a manufacturing process is schematically depicted. The device 1 comprises a housing 10, which housing 10 has a top surface 15, in which a plurality of chambers are arranged in descending order. A series of locations 20 are located below the top surface 15 through which waste material, such as containers 5, may pass. Each of the locations 20 is configured to receive a predetermined material. A descending channel path 25 extends from each location 20 and is used to convey waste material 5 from the respective location 20 sequentially through the chamber. The sensing chamber 30 is located at a position downstream of the position 20 and has sensing means 35 operable to sense the composition of the waste material in the sensing chamber 30. The sensing means 35 is operable to activate an alarm or visual indicator (not shown) if the user has placed the waste material 5 at the location 20 for receiving a different material. The washing/drying chamber 40 may also be located at a position downstream of the position 20 and have means 45 operable to wash and/or dry the waste material 5 located in the washing/drying chamber 40. In one form, the rinse/dry chamber 40 is located in the same chamber as the sensing chamber 30. In another form, the rinse/dry chamber 40 is located in a different chamber than the sensing chamber 30. The processing chamber 50 is located downstream of the washing/drying chamber 40 and has a processing apparatus 55 operable to reduce the size of the waste material 5 located within the processing chamber 50. The storage chamber 60 is located downstream of the treatment chamber 50 and has a series of storage units 65 for receiving different purer materials that have been treated by the apparatus 1. The storage chamber 60 may include wheels 67 or the like.

As best seen in fig. 1, the device 1 includes a cover 70 mounted to the housing 10 and movable between open and closed positions. The cover 70 in the open position allows access to the location 20 and the cover 70 in the closed position covers the location 20.

As best seen in fig. 2, the apparatus 1 includes gripping means 75 operable to grip the waste material 5 in the sensing chamber 30 or to release the waste material 5 along the path 25. The gripping device 75 includes an opposing pair of arms 80 disposed on adjacent sides of the sensing chamber 30. The arm 80 in the extended position is operable to grip the waste material 5 in the cavity 30, and the arm 80 in the retracted position is operable to release the waste material 5 on the path 25. Hydraulic rams, actuators, etc. 85 move the arms 80 between the extended and retracted positions. The arm 80 may be of a different shape suitable for the particular waste material and may be spring loaded or the like. The device 1 may also include apparatus 90 operable for removing a cap or cap retainer (retainer) of the container 5 and apparatus 95 operable for removing a cap or top retainer or tamper evident feature of the container 5.

Most preferably, as can be seen in fig. 3, 4A, 4B, 5, the treatment chamber 50 includes a treatment apparatus 52, the treatment apparatus 52 having at least one of a shredding, shearing, granulating, grinding, slicing, crushing, or compressing mechanism. The processing equipment 52 employed by the apparatus 1 depends on the particular material to be processed.

As best seen in fig. 4A and 4B, the apparatus 1 includes a series of chutes (slute) 100 operable to direct the used material 5 to predetermined processing apparatus 52 which may be adapted to process the material. A further series of chutes 105 are used to direct the processed material to each storage unit 65 separately.

Referring to fig. 6A and 6B, the washing/drying chamber 40 includes a plurality of nozzles 110 operable to spray liquid or air into the washing/drying chamber 40 to wash and/or dry the waste material 5 disposed within the chamber 40. The cavity 40 may also include a heating element (not shown). The apparatus 1 may further comprise means for displacing one or more chambers from the path. For example, in fig. 6A and 6B, the biasing means is operable to bias or slide the wash/dry chamber 40 out of the housing 10. The sliding mechanism is a tongue or groove face flange 115. However, any typical sliding assembly may also be used.

In use, a user may lift the lid 10 to an open position and maintain such an open condition when the device 1 is loaded. The washing and drying chamber 40 must be inserted in the device 1. The user places the waste material 5 in the correct position 20. For example, place green glass into a green glass opening, place HDPE into HDPE site 20, etc. Waste material such as the container 5 will be placed over the high pressure nozzle 10 to ensure that the inside of the container 5 can be properly cleaned. Each location 20 has a material sensing device 35 for checking the type of material. For glass, the near infrared system will detect the glass and the glass color. For plastics, this can be achieved by laser induced plasma spectroscopy equipment. Other detection techniques may be suitable depending on the composition of the material to be detected. If waste material 5 is placed in the wrong position 20, an indicator (not shown) will light up and an alarm (not shown) will sound. The device 1 will not be able to be turned on. In addition, the neck of the plastic bottle is also checked for the presence of metal type material. It is also checked whether the plastic container has a lid or cap that is not made of the same material. A laser induced plasma spectroscopy device or the like may be used to determine whether an unknown material is present in the sensing cavity 30. Indicators and alarms may also notify the user of such problems.

As can be seen in fig. 2, two devices 90, 95 are provided on the exterior of the apparatus 1 for easily enabling removal of metal or other tamper evident devices around the neck of a glass or plastic bottle and a plastic cap or lid which is not made of the same material as the glass or plastic bottle. In both cases the neck of the glass bottle or the cap of the plastic bottle will be inserted into the appropriate device 90, 95. The plastic bottle device 95 is a claw and scraping device. The lid or top of the plastic profile device 90 is the device that performs the shearing action. Each of the two devices 90, 95 may also retain scraped metal or cut plastic. The plastic bottle apparatus 95 has a location for inserting the neck of a plastic bottle. The device 95 recognizes that the neck of the bottle has been inserted into the device 95 and the jaws, which have a plurality of tines, are closed at the neck position and moved along the neck of the bottle until the opening of the bottle is reached. Any metal, including the screw top metal cap, will be scraped from the neck and fall into the receptacle. Similarly, the plastic container apparatus 90 has a location to insert into the neck of the container 5. The device 90 recognizes that the neck of the container 5 has been inserted. Four opening shears would protrude into the opening of the plastic container. If a cover is present, the scissors will penetrate into the cover or enclosure. Once in this position, the scissors will stop making four equidistant cuts to the opening of the bottle. The tamper evident sealing device, handle, cap and closure will fall from the container into a receptacle (not shown).

Once all the waste material 5 has been inspected, the user will close the lid 70. The wash and dry cycle is then started. The wash and dry cycle is very similar to a daily used washer. Any container labels, label glues, and food and beverage residues will be washed away and solid material is obtained in the removable filter. Below each location 20 are a plurality of lines of nozzles 110 arranged to ensure that hot wash and rinse water is sprayed through the opening of each vessel 5. The water pressure ensures the spray to ensure that the rate of spraying and splashing onto the interior surface area of the container reaches the top of the highest container (-320 mm). The device 1 heats the water to about 60 c, similar to a typical household dishwasher. However, any other temperature or even cold water may be used. Steam may be used to sterilize and dry the waste material 5. The washing and drying chamber 40 includes a motor (not shown), a pump (not shown), and a drain or filter unit 120. The filter obtains solids that have not been broken and dissolved into the wash water. The pump motor and the drainage unit are about 40cm high. The unit may be included in a sliding tray that is slid by the sliding mechanism 115.

After the washing and drying cycle is completed, the washing/drying chamber 40 is slid out of the housing 10 and the tray including the slide 100 is slid in. The chute 100 ensures that the cleaned and dried waste material 5 is lowered into the correct processing apparatus 52. At this point, the apparatus 1 is ready to process the cleaned and dried waste material 5.

In the preferred form, as best seen in FIG. 3, seven processes will be performed. Three of the treatments were for different colored glass, two treatments were for PET and HDPE plastic, and two other treatments were for aluminum and steel cans. The treatment for the three glass colours is a grinding treatment. To ensure color purity and reduce cross-color contamination, three separate cullet generators 52a, b, c are provided. If there are bottles or cups in the three colored glass bins or locations 20, the individual bottles will fall in sequence and be directed into the crusher and grinder. The crusher and crusher unit comprises two side-by-side arranged cylinders with eccentrically arranged meshing teeth in a steel shell rotating in opposite directions. The bottles drop onto a rotating toothed cylinder and are crushed and ground. The crushers and mills produce glass pieces or cullets having an average size of 6-7mm or the size specified for the manufacturing process. Each of the three mills provided for each glass color has the capability of crushing and grinding glass containers of any one color glass per minute (180 glass bottles per hour). Depending on the size of the apparatus, the rotating crushing and grinding cylinders are driven by an electric motor with about 0.1KW of extra power. Specially made hard steel rotors have maximized wear resistance characteristics. The glass crusher and crusher had dimensions of about 155mm wide, 310mm long, and 155mm high, depending on the size of the apparatus. The cullet falls from below the crushing and grinding unit and is dispersed by the chute 115 into one of the seven storage units 65. The crushed glass occupies about 20% of the original volume of the glass container 5.

The process to produce clean PET and HDPE flakes is very similar. There are two separate grinding or particle milling apparatuses 52d for PET and HDPE flake production, respectively. The grinding or particle milling apparatus 52d may produce 1 to 3cm of clean flakes or the size specified by the manufacturing process. PET and HDPE flakes were produced separately and stored to ensure zero contamination. The PET and HDPE plastic containers 5 fall by gravity from the opening 20 guided by the chute 100 into a separate metal feed storage bin (not shown). The storage tank has an axial screw conveyor 102 or the like for feeding the plastic containers 5 to the middle of the treatment chamber 50, where the plastic containers 5 are shredded into pieces by a motor and stator blades (not shown). A vacuum system or the like (such as blower 72 shown in fig. 5) ensures that the debris leaves the chamber 50 and is dispersed to the correct storage unit 65. The approximate dimensions of the two plastic pellet grinders are similar in size to the glass crusher, i.e., 155mm wide, 310mm long, 155mm high, depending on the size of the device. The size of the motor is about 0.4KW, depending on the size of the device.

There are two separate crushers or compressors 52e, one for the aluminum can and the other for the steel can. The metal (aluminum or steel) cans fall one at a time into the process chamber 50 guided by the slides by gravity. The cylinder head slides down the treatment chamber and crushes the can body. After the compression process, the cans fall downward and a chute 105 is selected to dispense the cans to the storage unit 65. The cans may be crushed to one-fourth of their original size. Depending on the size of the device, the unit can compress up to 10 canisters per hour. Depending on the size of the device, an electric motor of 0.3KW may be used to drive the compressor.

After the containers 5 are processed, they are sent to the storage chamber 60. In the preferred embodiment, there are seven individual memory cells 65. The size of each cell 65 may be on the order of 350mm long, 150mm high, 175mm wide, depending on the size of the device. Each storage unit 65 is sealed to ensure zero contamination, while the storage chamber 60 is on the outside street and may include locking devices or the like (not shown). The seven raw materials in the storage unit 65 are then transported to the vehicle. The emptying method from the unit 65 to the vehicle is very similar to the method used by existing plastic mobile waste bins.

Multiple tasks may be performed when the unit 65 is picked up by the vehicle. For example, retrieving a bar code, weighing the unit 65, positioning the unit 65 over individual bays, unloading various individual materials, weighing the unit 65 after each unloading, and the like.

Advantageously, the device 1 receives the waste material 5 that the person has used and prepares them in a suitable form for direct input into the recyclable manufacturing process. For example, the apparatus 1 may be found in places such as a home kitchen, a laundry or garage at home, an apartment or residence, a commercial room such as an office, a factory, a shop, a conference center, a restaurant, a farm, other places where people work, places where people consume food and beverages such as restaurants, coffee shops, bars, cultural places such as museums, art galleries, theaters, sports places, public places such as parks, park parks, streets, highways, and the like. Advantageously, it can be received, inspected, processed, stored, transferred, and shipped in the most efficient manner for reuse in a manufacturing process. The disposal of the waste material 5 should be compatible with the requirements of the manufacturing process. For example, amber glass needs to be crushed into cullet, and HDPE (high density polyethylene) plastic should be processed into flakes. Once the storage unit 65 is nearly full, the storage chamber 60 may be removed from the apparatus 1 and placed in the corner of the street or the like (as would an existing recovery bin) for direct transport to the manufacturing process. The device 1 can process many different types of materials at the same time, for example being able to clean green and amber glass, Polyester (PET) and High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastics, aluminium and steel tanks. The above-described device can also handle paper, cardboard, PVC (polyvinyl chloride), Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), Polystyrene (PS), and most other materials that are desired to be recycled. It is conceivable that the device 1 should be of the size of a standard dishwasher.

The key to the success of the operation of the device 1 and the realization of its value is the production of a material of high purity. The higher the purity of the material, the higher the consistency of the product from multiple sources, and thus the higher the value of the product to the manufacturer. The higher the value to the manufacturer, the higher the value to the owner of the device 1. It is estimated that the device 1 can accommodate 99% of the various containers present in the supermarket, made of glass, PET and HDPE plastics, aluminium and steel cans.

PET bottles that hold citronella oil, turpentine, kerosene, methylated spirits, and other mineral/chemical solutions are not allowed to be recycled for use as direct food contact containers. The apparatus 1 may also include the use of FTIR spectroscopic detection techniques which detect chemical species using a single pulse, thereby enabling real-time analysis.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to specific examples, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many forms of embodiments may be made.

Claims (20)

1. An apparatus for processing waste material for input into a manufacturing process, the apparatus comprising:

a housing having a top surface and providing a plurality of chambers arranged in descending order;

a series of locations below the top surface and through which waste material will pass, each location for receiving a predetermined waste material;

a descending path extending from each of said locations and providing for the transfer of waste material from the respective location sequentially through said chamber;

the cavity includes:

a sensing chamber located downstream of the location and having sensing means operable to sense the composition of waste material in the sensing chamber;

the sensing means is operable to activate an alarm if a user has placed waste material at the opening for receiving a different material;

gripping means operable to grip waste material in the sensing chamber or to release the waste material along the descending path;

a washing/drying chamber downstream of said location and having means operable to wash and dry the waste material in said washing/drying chamber;

a processing chamber downstream of the washing/drying chamber and having processing equipment operable to reduce the size of waste material in the processing chamber; and

a storage chamber downstream of the treatment chamber and having a series of storage units for receiving different waste materials treated by the apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensing chamber and the washing/drying chamber are in the same chamber.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensing chamber and the washing/drying chamber are in different chambers.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gripping means comprises a pair of opposed arms located on adjacent sides of the sensing chamber, the arms in the extended position being operable to grip waste material in the chamber and the arms in the retracted position being operable to release waste material along the descending path.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the apparatus comprises a hydraulic ram operable to move the arm between the extended and retracted positions.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the device comprises a cover mounted on the housing and movable between open and closed positions to expose or cover the positions.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a device operable to remove a cover of waste material.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a tamper evident device operable to remove waste material.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the washing/drying device comprises a plurality of nozzles operable to spray liquid to wash the waste material in the washing/drying chamber.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the washing/drying device comprises a plurality of nozzles operable to spray air to dry the waste material in the washing/drying chamber.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the washing/drying device comprises a heating element.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing device comprises at least one of a shredding, shearing, grinding into particles, grinding, slicing, crushing, or compacting device.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises means for offsetting one or more cavities from the path.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the displacement device is operable to displace the wash/dry chamber from the path.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the biasing device comprises a sliding mechanism.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the biasing device comprises a guide plate.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is computer controlled.

18. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a series of chutes operable to direct waste material to predetermined processing equipment adapted to process the material.

19. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the treatment chamber comprises a series of chutes operable to direct material treated by the treatment device to a predetermined storage unit adapted to receive the predetermined material.

20. A method of processing waste material by using the apparatus; the device includes a housing having a top surface and a plurality of chambers arranged in descending order; the method comprises the following steps:

placing waste material at a location below a top surface of the housing, the location for receiving predetermined waste material;

transporting the waste material to a sensing chamber;

clamping the waste material in the sensing chamber by using a clamping device;

sensing the composition of the waste material in the sensing chamber to determine whether a user has placed the waste material in a location suitable for receiving the same material;

releasing the gripping device and transporting the waste material to a washing/drying chamber once the waste material is properly sensed;

washing and/or drying the waste material in the washing/drying chamber;

transporting the waste material to a treatment chamber;

processing waste material of the same material by operation of a predetermined processing apparatus adapted to receive said waste material;

transporting the treated waste material to a storage chamber; the storage chamber includes a series of storage cells for receiving processed materials of different predetermined materials.