Research underpinning the design of an optical sorting plant

Abstract

In the sorting plant examined during the research, the sorting of the selectively collected mixed packaging waste is done by hand. Studies were performed on the quantitative changes of the waste stream entering and leaving the sorting plant, the composition properties according to the particle size, and lastly the number of pickings. The amount of incoming waste has increased linearly over the years. The sizes preferred by the optical separators were the guideline during the measurements. Sixty percentage of all incoming waste falls in the ideal range of 70–350 mm, 20% in the range of <70 mm and 20% in the range of >350 mm. Because there are significant differences in composition and quantities as the seasons and months alternate, these results provide important information for engineers designing a mechanized technology.