Even though economical use of material is a perennial theme, the needs of plastics processors change with the requirements of the times. Recycling of post-consumer packaging is a great challenge at present. An Italian manufacturer has developed a two-stage system that can produce films suitable for food contact without intermediate pelletizing. We took a look around the company headquarters. 

Direct Recycling of PET Flakes into Food-Grade Film 

Polyethylenterephthalat

Extruder

Blasfolienextrusion

Blaswerkzeuge

Flachfolien- und Plattenextrusion

Kunststoff-Recycling

Verpackungsmaterial

Systems like a Symphony 

In view of the increasing demand and marketing advantages, plastics from the sea are also becoming increasingly interesting for the European market.  

Asian Suppliers Help to Meet the Quotas 

Kunststoff-Regenerate

Kunststoffhandel

Technik Trend

kunststoffe-international.com

Ocean Plastics May Buoy Europe R-PET Market 

The availability of PET bottle flake outside the beverage sector is expected to decline continuously in the coming years. Tray-to-tray recycling can close this gap and succeeds particularly easily with a new extruder.

Polyester

Kunststoff Werkstoffe

Thermoplaste

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Maschinen und Komponenten

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Verfahren

Extrusion

Standardkunststoffe

Folien

Halbzeuge und Zwischenprodukte

Kunststoff-Halbzeuge

Kunststoff-Aufbereitung

Kunststoff-Rezyklat

Unique PET Tray-to-Tray Recycling in a Single Extrusion Step

Plastic waste in the sea has been shaping the negative image of the industry for several years. Various initiatives and mergers of companies have therefore launched projects to tackle this Ocean-bound Plastics (OBP). Components made of OBP could become a symbol for a sustainable use of plastics.

Flame Retardant for Compounds Based on Recycled Ocean-Bound Plastics

Polybutylenterephthalat

Elektronik

Kunststoffe

Photonik

Optik

Recycling

Umweltmanagement

Flammschutzmittel

Additive

From the Sea to Electronics

Plastics are among the materials most widely used for food contact applications. While there is pressure to use recycled plastics in packaging in order to combat plastic waste, certain conditions must be met before food packaging can be considered safe.

Plastics Recycling for Direct Food Contact and Alternative Applications

Verpackungsmittel aus Kunststoffen

Kunststoffverarbeitung

Food Safe Post Consumer Recyclate

Machinery and equipment manufacturer Erema reports that demand for recycling technologies for plastics, especially PET, remains very high even during the Corona pandemic.

Demand for Recycling Technologies Continues to Grow

PET bottles can be recycled into new food packaging. Large-scale recovery systems and recycling procedures have become established since many years. PET bottles made of 100 % post-consumer recyclate are already available in the market, and a version made of renewable raw materials also exists. No other packaging plastic can show such a positive balance. Nonetheless, PET is under criticism.

Prime Material for a Circular Economy

Logistik

Technische Kunststoffe

Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

The Alpla Group is investing in an extrusion line for food-grade recycled PET (rPET) from used PET bottles at its Anagni site.15,000 tons of rPET are to be produced annually as a result.

Verpackungstechnik

Unternehmen

kunststoffe.de

Alpla Expediting a Bottle Cycle in Italy

Henkel significantly expands partnership with social enterprise Plastic Bank. The partners opened their first three plastic waste collection centers in Cairo

Polyethylen

Dienstleistungen

Handel

Henkel and Plastic Bank Open First Collection Centers in Egypt

A consortium of well-known beverage brand owners has produced sample bottles from food-grade rPET for the first time using a breakthrough enzymatic recycling process.

Kreislaufwirtschaft

Global Brands Unveil World’s First Sample PET Bottles

In the manufacture of semi-finished products such as fibers or films, waste that can be recycled and reused as a raw material is repeatedly produced along the entire production chain. The recycling of PET is a particular challenge to the plant construction because of the hydrolytic polymer degradation. 

Modular Concept for Industrial Waste Offers Flexible Solutions 

Schmelzefilter

Mühlen

PET Recycling 

Like plastics manufacturing and processing, the recycling of plastic products requires specialization to be efficient. Accordingly, a Dutch company has dedicated itself entirely to the recycling of agricultural and packaging films ¿ and invested in a machine technology, which was found along tortuous ways. 

Technical Answers to World Political Changes in Film Recycling 

Sortierer

From Waste Collector to the  Plastic Recycler 

Enhancing mixed bottle flakes by turning them into extrudable recycled crystalline polyethylene terephthalate (rCPET) was the goal of a joint development project looking to close the gap in the PET recycling system. By successfully producing a sheet made from recycled material suitable for high-quality applications such as thermoformed food trays, Gneuss, Sukano and Illig have demonstrated that this approach is indeed possible.

Upcycling of Mixed APET Bottle Flakes into Thermally Stable rCPET Food Trays

Farbstoffe und Pigmente

Anlagen Lebensmittel

Anlagen für die Additive Fertigung

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, andere

Filteranlagen

Farbstoffe

Flakes

Extrusionsanlagen

PET: From A to C

As expected, the K 2019 displayed a wide range of machine technology and complete system solutions for plastics recycling. At least since the trade fair in Düsseldorf, Germany, it has become obvious that industry today can offer solutions for closing the plastic cycle.

The Technology to Close the Plastic Cycle Exists

Sensorik für Kunststoff-Verarbeitungsmaschinen

Industrie 4.0

Industrie 4.0 für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

IR-Sensor

Messtechnik

Sensoren / Messwertaufnehmer

Mahlgut

Wiederaufbereitung

Waschen und Entfetten

Mahlanlagen, fein

Sensoren,  optische

Schneidmühlen

Aufbereitungsmaschinen

Compoundieren

A Closed Recycling Cycle – Now!

When processing post-consumer PET bottle flakes for reuse in bottles, the purity requirement for the material combined with the high degree of contamination of the bottle flakes make high demands on melt filtration.

Filtration Systems for Recycling Applications

Plant Retrofit for Bottle to Bottle Recycling

High Performance Melt Filters for Higher Throughputs

Two new models of the Eco product family from Ettlinger take into account the need for systems with a higher product throughput.

Two new models of the Eco product family from Ettlinger take into account the need for systems with a higher product throughput and are initially available in sizes suitable for medium-sized recycling lines.

The new performance enhanced ECO 350 replaces the former ECO 250, while the new ECO 500, capable of achieving capacities of up to 4000 kg/h, replaces the former ECO 250 Twin. The ECO 200 completes this range.

Ettlinger’s melt filter technology is based on the principle of self-cleaning with a continuous flow of melt from the outside to the inside of a rotating, perforated drum. A scraper removes the contaminants that are held back on the surface and feeds them to the discharge system. Just like the ERF filters, which are designed for higher contamination, the new ECO filters also have a modular structure, thereby providing a wide range of options for adjusting the filter properties to the respective task.

A new innovative system facilitates an even higher concentration of contaminated discharge, which, in turn, further decreases the already typically low loss of PET melt associated with the melt filters. Better access to the scraper system reduces the amount of time needed by the operator for maintenance and replacement tasks. The discharge now exits via the front side of the ECO filters, which is generally easier for the user to access.

Uwe Kellner, Managing Director Ettlinger: “PET recyclers are reporting ever-increasing volume flows, resulting in a sharp increase in the capacity utilization of many machines. At the same time, buyers have more stringent requirements regarding the purity of the recycled material. Consequently, many of the filter systems in operation today are reaching maximum capacity. Our further developments have been tailored to these changes in the market. With these in mind, we have achieved enhanced performance without compromising on filtration efficiency. The new designs combine screen sizes up to 60 µm with a minimum loss of PET through the discharge.”

The ECO melt filters are designed to process very low viscosity polymer feedstock (mainly PET and PA) and to facilitate the efficient filtration of contaminants such as paper, wood, aluminum, silicone, etc. Moreover, the closed discharge system prevents the occurrence of black specks.

For this reason, the classic application for ECO melt filters is extrusion systems where PET bottle flake is converted into food packaging films, packaging tape and fibers, as well as PET repelletizing and compounding processes. ECO melt filters are suitable for single-screw or twin-screw extrusion lines, irrespective of the pelletizing system or other downstream units, and can achieve throughputs from 150 kg/h up to 4000 kg/h.

Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH 

https://www.ettlinger.com

The new ECO 500 high performance melt filter achieves throughputs of up to 4000 kg/h

16:9

2021-07-06 PN Ettlinger

issue 05/2021

issue 04/2021

issue 03/2021

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