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Air-Assisted Tribo-Electrostatic Separator for Recycling of Shredded Waste Plastics

Author

Listed:
  • Fethi Miloua

    (APELEC Laboratory, Djillali Liabes University of Sidi Bel-Abbes, Sidi Bel Abbes 22000, Algeria)

  • Said Nemmich

    (APELEC Laboratory, Djillali Liabes University of Sidi Bel-Abbes, Sidi Bel Abbes 22000, Algeria)

  • Thami Zeghloul

    (PPRIME Institute, CNRS—Université de Poitiers—ENSMA, IUT, 16021 Angoulême, France)

  • Mohamed Miloudi

    (APELEC Laboratory, Djillali Liabes University of Sidi Bel-Abbes, Sidi Bel Abbes 22000, Algeria
    This author has passed away.)

  • Karim Medles

    (PPRIME Institute, CNRS—Université de Poitiers—ENSMA, IUT, 16021 Angoulême, France)

  • Lucian Dascalescu

    (PPRIME Institute, CNRS—Université de Poitiers—ENSMA, IUT, 16021 Angoulême, France)

Abstract

Waste minimization is a major way to achieve sustainable development. Electrostatic separation is already used in the recycling industry for processing certain mixtures of shredded plastics originating from waste electric and electronic equipment. Standard tribo-electrostatic separators use electric forces to deflect the trajectories of triboelectrically charged particles in the electric field generated between two vertical plate electrodes connected to high voltage supplies of opposite polarities. However, the efficiency of this device is often limited by the impacts between the particles and the electrodes, which diminish the recovery and the purity of the end product. An innovative electrostatic separator was specifically designed to mitigate this risk. The innovation lies in using two rotating co-axial vertical cylindrical electrodes and assisting the movement of the particles with downward-oriented air flow to reduce their impact on the electrodes and improve the quality of the recovered products. The aim of this study was to optimize the operation of the patented electrostatic separator by using experimental design methodology to obtain quadratic polynomial models of the recovery and the purity of the products as functions of the high voltage applied to the electrode system and of the air flow through the device. The experiments were conducted with a granular mixture composed of 88% polypropylene (PP) and 12% high-impact polystyrene (HIPS) particles, extracted from the recycling process of waste electrical and electronic equipment, and triboelectrically charged in a fluidized bed device. A voltage of 50 kV combined with an air flow rate of 1700 m 3 /min maximized the recovery and the purity of PP and HIPS products collected at the outlet of the separator. These results open promising prospects for expanding the use of tribo-electrostatic separation for efficient recycling of granular waste plastics.

Suggested Citation

  • Fethi Miloua & Said Nemmich & Thami Zeghloul & Mohamed Miloudi & Karim Medles & Lucian Dascalescu, 2024. "Air-Assisted Tribo-Electrostatic Separator for Recycling of Shredded Waste Plastics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-12, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:24:p:11142-:d:1547441
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Horațiu Vermeșan & Ancuța-Elena Tiuc & Marius Purcar, 2019. "Advanced Recovery Techniques for Waste Materials from IT and Telecommunication Equipment Printed Circuit Boards," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-23, December.
    2. Kahhat, Ramzy & Kim, Junbeum & Xu, Ming & Allenby, Braden & Williams, Eric & Zhang, Peng, 2008. "Exploring e-waste management systems in the United States," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 52(7), pages 955-964.
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