Analysis of Triboelectrostatic Separation Process of Mixed Poly(ethylene terephthalate) and High-Density Polyethylene

The aim of this study was to investigate and analyze the separation process of poly (ethylene terephthalate) and high-density polyethylene mixture. The research studied the influence of parameters of tribocharging and separation processes on the quality of separation. The research was carried out using a developed test stand consisting of a test tribocharger and a dedicated drum-type electrostatic separator. Both the separator and the tribocharger have been designed as automated test benches to assess the quality of plastic separation. In order to assess the quality of electrostatic separation of plastics, an original method based on the use of a dedicated vision system was used. The research was conducted in two stages. Firstly, the influence of the tribocharging process parameters on the efficiency of the process, i.e., the charge collected, was investigated. The next stage of the research was focused on the analysis of the influence of the separation process parameters on its effectiveness. The obtained results were presented and discussed. On the basis of the conducted research, the parameters of the tribocharging and separation processes affecting their effectiveness were determined.

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Tribo-Electrostatic Separation Analysis of a Beneficial Solution in the Recycling of Mixed Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate) and High-Density Polyethylene

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14061755 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (6) ◽

pp. 1755

Author(s):

Wieslaw Lyskawinski ◽

Mariusz Baranski ◽

Cezary Jedryczka ◽

Jacek Mikolajewicz ◽

Roman Regulski ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Electric Charge ◽

High Density Polyethylene ◽

Ethylene Terephthalate ◽

Vision System ◽

High Density ◽

Electrostatic Separation ◽

Poly Ethylene Terephthalate ◽

Electrostatic Separator ◽

Poly Ethylene ◽

The Impact

The aim of this study was to investigate and analyze the impact of selected parameters during the tribocharging process of shredded poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and high-density polyethylene (PE-HD) plastics on accumulated electric charge and electrostatic separation effectiveness. The accumulation of electric charge on surfaces of polymer particles as a result of their circular motion forced by the airflow cyclone container was investigated. The impact of the container material, time of tribocharging and the airflow intensity were experimentally examined. A container in which the particles of the considered polymers are electrified with opposite charges was selected. A high ability to accumulate surface charge on small particles of both polymers was demonstrated. The electrified mixed PET/PE-HD was subjected to a separation process. An electrostatic separator designed and constructed by the authors was used for to the separation. In turn, to assess the effectiveness of this separation, a dedicated vision system was used. Based on the result of the carried out tests, it has been assumed that the proposed approach’s effectiveness has been demonstrated by means of empirical validation.

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