Shredding plastic waste converts it to valuable resources for use in various manufacturing processes, helping businesses save money while decreasing their carbon footprint.
Traditionally, original equipment manufacturers would ship scrap and defective plastic products to regional recyclers after shredding them to more manageable sizes for transportation. Unfortunately, this process was expensive and ineffective; shredding, screening, and grinding to size required separate equipment and multiple steps for complete processing.
1. Plastic recycling
Plastics are an indispensable material, used in numerous products across a wide variety of industries and highly versatile. Unfortunately, however, they’re nonbiodegradable and pollute the environment without proper recycling techniques – traditional or advanced alike. The plastic shredder can be an invaluable asset when it comes to turning waste plastics into useful material products that will further decrease pollution levels.
Once collected, most plastics are taken to waste-sorting facilities – also referred to as materials recovery facilities – where they are separated based on polymer type (PET bottles; HDPE used in milk jugs; and LDPE for plastic bags) and color. They are then baled up and shipped off for further processing.
Plastic industries and petrochemical firms that supply plastic’s fossil fuel ingredients have long emphasized recycling, financing projects such as sorting machines, recycling centers and nonprofits. Unfortunately, however, these good deeds haven’t resulted in much plastic being recycled – since picking and melting down old plastic is expensive; moreover, its quality degrades with every reuse.
2. Paper recycling
Paper recycling helps preserve forest resources by decreasing wood consumption and saving energy costs; energy saving also lowers littering, air pollution and wastewater production – as well as helping create ecological awareness in people. Paper can be converted back into new pulp and paper products or reused to lower environmental burdens.
Shredding and grinding plastic waste to an manageable size is an efficient way to convert it into an invaluable resource. This process reduces transporting time and equipment requirements while simultaneously saving energy consumption and providing easier material handling.
Quality industrial shredders are ideal for turning a wide variety of plastic into useful products. Customizable for specific uses and featuring dual hex shafts or easily reconfigured blade designs, quality industrial shredders can easily convert waste plastics into useable products. Microstructure of worn shredder blade was investigated using optical microscopic (5x magnification), scanning electron microscopic (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis with energy dispersive X-ray (QUANTEX Esprit 1.9), SEM techniques with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis before and after shredding 1.25 kg of PET plastic. Results revealed progressive wear mechanisms including adhesive wear mechanisms along with progressive wear mechanisms from wear oxidation over time.
3. Metal recycling
Metal recycling is an integral component of many industrial processes, serving to both reduce landfill waste and save energy by using recycled materials. A metal shredder can help make unwanted metals such as old car parts and scraps easier to transport and handle, saving both time and energy resources.
Metal shredders can be divided into two distinct types, hammer mills and shear shredders, each offering distinct advantages and uses; for instance, hammer mills tend to produce finer ground products while shear shredders tend to perform better at handling larger volumes of processing needs.
Both types of metal shredders feature screens designed to filter out larger particles before sending them back through the cutting blades for further processing. These screens can be customized according to the type of metal being processed and adjusted accordingly; further reduce particle sizes with an optional discharging screen if necessary.
4. Wood recycling
Wood recycling can help reduce waste production. Reclaimed lumber can be used for fuel, landscaping purposes and building materials – helping reduce landfill volumes that take decades or centuries to decompose.
Plastic shredders can be used for many things, from PET bottles and PVC scraps/long strips/car components to electronic waste recycling.
At 5x magnification, the blade wear of a plastic shredder was examined using optical microscopic (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM, Hitachi S3400N from Tokyo Japan), elemental analysis by energy dispersive X-ray analysis QUANTEX Esprit 1.9), and elemental analysis energy dispersive X-ray. Results revealed that workpiece concentration at the front end caused severe wear at DV, TS and TV, with middle and rear having marginal wear; gapping was observed at side DS that reduced contact area between blades DS and blades DS significantly.