EPS Recycling, Equipments and Practices

KBM EPS Compactors, the Styropactor

editor 0 — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 15:05:20 +0000

KBM Styropactor include compactor models of MICRO, MINI or MAXI, These machines are to reduce the volume of used EPS (Styrofoam) boxes and other packagings for easy and cheap handling and transportation.

Styropactor

StyroCrusher crushes EPS and fills it into bags of almost any size.

Also for PE foam and EPP

The KBM Styropactor is now available in 4 sizes to fit most purposes in e.g. a store or in the fish processing industry where EPS (Styrofoam) packagings are used.

The two new small types “Styropactor MICRO 1-phase” and “Styropactor MINI 1-phase” makes the Styropactors even more flexible.

The two new types are equipped with a single-phase motor which makes them ideal for use in almost any location, as you connect them to the normal electrical wall outlet.

They can be used by anyone – in any location – also where only a smaller volume of EPS packagings are available.

The STYROPACTORS reduce the volume of EPS parts approx. 15-30 times WITH WET AND DRY MATERIAL (ALSO FISH BOXES).

The STYROPACTORS are made non-corrosive and can be used in a rough environment.

The STYROPACTORS can also be used as crusher, where the EPS material is filled into bags. To change takes 5 minutes.

The STYROPACTORS can without any changes be used for collection in bags of any size or without bags.

The STYROPACTORS are filled vertically. Consequently pieces of any length can be introduced.

The STYROPACTORS are “mobile” and can be used in any supermarket, department store etc. where styrofoam (EPS) packagings appear.

The STYROPACTORS reduce the transportation costs drastically.

Styropactor MINI

Styropactor MAXI

EPS can be recycled into plastic raw material and reused for plastic products

editor 0 — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 07:25:30 +0000

Most people call polystyrene foam “Styrofoam.” But this is a trade name for a product invented by Dow Chemical about 60 years ago. Dow’s website is quick to point out that there isn’t a coffee cup, cooler, or packaging material in the world made from STYROFOAM. STYROFOAM is blue and is used in a variety of building materials, including insulation.

The recyclable Styrofoam is EPS #6 – packing support (not peanuts). People can use it to make various products.

If you want to recycle any EPS, please make sure it is clean, with no stickers, grease, dirt, tape, labels, etc. If it’s too difficult to remove a label or contaminant, simply break off the offending piece and recycle the rest. The recycler will chop up the EPS anyway and turn it into new packing material.

EPS is recycled into plastic raw material and reused for plastic products

EPS Recycling is Big Business

Editor 1 — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 02:57:44 +0000

Most people never give waste EPS a thought beyond the time it takes them carry large quantitiesof waste EPS to landfill. But for many businesses and plastic machinery factories, EPS recycling is serious business.

In a nutshell, EPS recycling is the industry which revolves around the collection, compaction, crushing and pelletizing, ranging from food container to insulation sheet. Developing effective EPS recycling strategies is critical for many recycling centers and factories of all sizes because waste EPS can develop into a major problem when not handled properly.

EPS recycling is a necessary part of green environment. EPS recycling is also a part of property maintenance. Sorting of waste EPS at the source is becoming more common due to financial reasons as well as government regulations. It is more expensive to process landfill waste, and authorities are demanding more precise sorting.

EPS compactor

Proper EPS recycling often requires the use of specialized equipment. The main EPS recycling equipment is EPS compactor, also called Styrofoam compactor or EPS densifier. It can handle EPS, EPP and XPS foam safely, no matter dry or wet. It can reduce EPS volume by 30 to 50 times, thus help sea food processing plant, retail/wholesale centers, and electronic factories to save available space and save nearly USD25000/year for garbage hauling and landfill. Furthermore, the user could even earn extra cash by selling the compacted EPS blocks to profile, picture frame, coat hanger, etc. manufacturers.

So you see, there really is a basis for the old adage, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

EPS compactor for EPS recycling

Methods to recycle EPS

Editor 1 — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 02:24:35 +0000

compression_VS_densification

There are two main options to recycle EPS scrap. One way is to use heat (thermal densification) and the other way is without heating (compression). Compression involves crushing and compacting EPS by machine. The compacted materials are extruded into a solid ‘log’. The log is cut to length to fit onto a pellet. It is usual for the densified EPS to be stored on-site until 5 to 20 metric tones are available, as this makes transport and distribution more cost-effective. The more densely compacted the EPS is, the better, since a higher weight of EPS can be loaded for transport and a higher price per tone may be paid by the recycler. Compression can reduce EPS volume by up to forty times.

Thermal densification involves breaking up and melting EPS inside a controlled-temperature chamber. The temperature is controlled to allow the EPS to melt without burning. Higher compression ratios (up to 95% volume reduction) can be achieved using the melting method that involves heating the expanded polystyrene to a very high temperature to compress the product. The disadvantage of this method is that it involved a hot element that needed to remain powered throughout the day, and this proved to be very energy inefficient and posed safety hazards due to the off-gassing of chemicals. On-and-off operation of the machine can be a big waste of energy and time because of cooling and re-heating of the machine.

Expanded Polystyrene is recyclable

admin — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 13:41:28 +0000

Expanded Polystyrene is completely recyclable.

While limited end-use markets and economies of scale make recycling a difficult operation, there are a variety of uses recycled EPS can be put to:

EPS can be granulated and mixed in with virgin material to make new products – some grades of EPS insulation board and block moulded EPS can incorporate recycled content.

EPS granulate can also be used on its own and mixed in with plaster or concrete to make a lightweight building material. Used EPS can be ground and mixed with soil and compost to promote aeration. Studies confirm that plant growth is enhanced with this aeration. EPS can also be melted and converted to General Purpose Polystyrene (GPPS) pellets and used to manufacture simple polystyrene products such as coat hangers, video cassette and cd casings, stationery items and plant pots.