FAQ's
1. What type of plastic wastes can the Polymer Energy system process?
The Polymer Energy system is designed to primarily process polyolefins i.e. polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). The plastic waste is typically of the following types:
- Disposable sacks and shopping bags
- Packaging used for cleansers, cleaning products and cosmetics
- Plastic parts of household appliances, computers and office equipment
- Plastic containers, tanks, parts of piping and insulation of cables
Resin Code |
Description |
Guideline |
PET |
Acceptable within certain limits |
|
HDPE |
Acceptable |
|
PVC |
Not recommended |
|
LDPE, LLDPE |
Acceptable |
|
PP |
Acceptable |
|
PS |
Not Acceptable |
|
Other |
Varies depending upon type of plastic |
In general, we recommend that you discuss the composition of your plastic waste stream with Polymer Energy®, LLC. to ensure the optimal operation of the process.
2. Does the plastic waste need to be pre-sorted or cleaned prior to processing?
No! The plastic waste does not need to pre-sorted or cleaned prior to processing with the Polymer Energy system. In fact, one of the key advantages of our system is that the process can tolerate high amounts (up to 30% of the mix) of other contaminants in the input plastics waste stream. As a result, the operator can save on the cost of pre-sorting and cleaning, thus reducing the total cost of operation.
Typically the Polymer Energy system can process plastics waste with up to 30% of the following contaminants:
- mineral impurities such as sand, dirt, etc.
- impurities such as glass, small metal parts, etc.
- impurities such as cellulose, clothing, etc.
- water, oil residue
The Polymer Energy system is very robust by design and can easily process typical plastic waste such as used agricultural/mulch film, silage wrap and other soiled agricultural plastics, metallized plastics, plastic laminates, printed plastics, wet plastic byproducts and even heavily recycled plastics. The non-plastic contaminants are converted into ash which is automatically removed from the system during the normal cleaning cycle of the system.
3. What is the operational efficiency of the Polymer Energy system?
The Polymer Energy system is modular in design. Each module typically produces 775 litres of crude oil for every ton of plastic waste processed. This assumes highly contaminated plastics waste. A single module can process between 250 to 400 tons of plastics waste per month. The throughput capacity is directly dependant upon the quality of the input plastics waste. The system is designed to be a self-cleaning process and any contaminants in the input plastic waste stream are automatically removed from the system as an ash by-product. This ash by-product can be safetly disposed off in a landfill.
For further information on this system, please contact Polymer Energy®, LLC. or your local Polymer Energy representative.