JP5800538B2 - Specific gravity sorter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a specific gravity sorting device for sorting a mixture based on a difference in specific gravity.

Plastics used for appliances such as home appliances include polypropylene (PP: specific gravity about 0.9), polystyrene (PS: specific gravity about 1.1), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS: specific gravity about 1.1), etc. There is. Moreover, urethane (specific gravity about 0.3) etc. may be used as a heat insulating material.
In recycling processing of equipment such as home appliances, the residue remaining after crushing equipment with a crusher and collecting metals contains a mixture of different types of plastic pieces as described above.
As a device for sorting these plastic pieces, there is a specific gravity sorting device that uses a liquid medium such as water to sort a plastic piece having a specific gravity smaller than that of the liquid medium and a plastic piece having a specific gravity larger than that of the liquid medium.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 50-142681 International Publication No. WO 98/41374

When water (specific gravity 1) is used as a liquid medium in a conventional specific gravity sorting apparatus, PP and PS and ABS can be sorted, but PP and urethane cannot be sorted.
If a liquid having a specific gravity (for example, 0.5) between PP and urethane is used as the liquid medium, PP and urethane can be selected, but it is necessary to use a special liquid. The purchase cost of the medium is high, and the management cost and the disposal cost are high from the viewpoint of safety. Moreover, if the specific gravity of the liquid medium is not stable, the accuracy of sorting may be reduced.
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, for example, and has an object of selecting a mixture in which a plurality of types of granular materials having a specific gravity smaller than that of a liquid medium are mixed based on a difference in specific gravity. .

The specific gravity sorting device according to the present invention is:
A sorting tank for liquid,
A vortex generator for generating a vortex in the liquid placed in the sorting tank;
A partition plate that surrounds the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator and can be submerged below the liquid level;
A charging device for charging a mixture of a plurality of types of granular materials having different specific gravities inside the partition plate;
And a recovery device for recovering the granular material floating on the liquid surface near the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator.

  According to the specific gravity sorting apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to sort a mixture in which granular materials having a specific gravity smaller than that of a liquid are mixed based on a difference in specific gravity.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to a second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 3. FIG. 6 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 4. FIG. 10 shows an example of the flow of a liquid medium 300 in Embodiment 4.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Embodiment 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to this embodiment.
The specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 sorts a mixture in which granular materials such as urethane 8 and PP (polypropylene) 9 are mixed according to the difference in specific gravity. The liquid medium 5 does not need to have a specific gravity between the granular bodies to be sorted, but has a higher specific gravity than the granular bodies to be sorted. For example, when selecting urethane 8 (specific gravity about 0.3) and PP9 (specific gravity about 0.9), water having a specific gravity of 1 is used as the liquid medium 5.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 includes a water tank 1, a cylinder 2, a stirrer 3, and a suction nozzle 13.
The water tank 1 (sorting tank) has a cylindrical shape, for example, and is used with a liquid medium 5 such as water inside.
The cylinder 2 (partition plate) has, for example, a cylindrical shape. The cylinder 2 divides the liquid medium 5 over a predetermined range above and below the liquid surface of the liquid medium 5 and restricts the movement of the liquid medium 5. Is possible.
The stirrer 3 (vortex generator) is inside the cylinder 2 and agitates the liquid medium 5 to generate vortex.
The suction nozzle 13 (collection device) collects the granular material floating on the surface of the liquid medium 5 in the vicinity of the center of the vortex generated by the stirrer 3.

  For example, various household electrical appliances and automobile wastes are crushed by a crusher in recycling processing of general waste, industrial waste, household appliances, and the like. Next, when metals are recovered from shredded shredder dust by using a magnetic sorting device and an eddy current sorting device in multiple stages, a mixed plastic in which a plurality of types of plastic pieces (granular materials) are mixed remains. The specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 uses this mixed plastic as a material to be sorted. Home appliances contain a large amount of PP. The refrigerator contains urethane. For this reason, this mixed plastic contains a large amount of PP9 and a small amount of urethane 8 as a foreign matter.

First, the stirrer 3 is rotated in the rotation direction 4 in the cylinder 2 to generate a vortex 6 in the cylinder 2.
Next, a mixture of urethane 8 and PP 9 is fed into the cylinder 2 from the charging direction 10.
Since the large buoyancy 11 acts on the urethane 8 having a low specific gravity, the urethane 8 collects at the center of the vortex of the liquid level in the cylinder 2 without being affected by the flow of the liquid medium 5. The suction nozzle 13 collects this urethane 8.
On the other hand, since the buoyancy 12 acting on the PP 9 having a specific gravity close to that of the liquid medium 5 is small, the PP 9 flows into the downward water flow 7 and sinks into the liquid medium 5. Since PP9 passes under the cylinder 2 and comes out of the cylinder 2, it floats on the liquid surface by the buoyancy 12, and is collected.

As described above, the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 is capable of separating two types of granular materials (for example, PP: specific gravity of about 0.9, urethane: specific gravity of about 0.3) having a specific gravity lower than that of the liquid medium 5 (for example, water: specific gravity of 1). It is possible to sort by the difference in specific gravity.
That is, a granular material (PP 9) having a relatively large specific gravity is pushed into the liquid medium 5 using the vortex 6 inside the cylinder 2. The granular material (urethane 8) having a relatively small specific gravity remains on the liquid surface in the cylinder 2 and is collected. The granular material (PP9) pushed into the liquid medium 5 dives under the cylinder 2 and comes out of the cylinder 2 and then floats by buoyancy, floats on the liquid surface outside the cylinder 2 and is collected. For this reason, the specific gravity of the liquid medium 5 does not need to be intermediate between the specific gravity of the two types of granular materials.
For this reason, even when two types of granular materials having a specific gravity lighter than water, such as urethane 8 and PP9, are selected, it is not necessary to use a special liquid medium 5, and water can be used as the liquid medium 5. . For this reason, the purchase cost and disposal cost of the liquid medium 5 are low, and the safety is high. Further, since it is not necessary to adjust the specific gravity of the liquid medium 5, the operation is stable. Furthermore, since a large power for generating a water flow such as a hydrocyclone is unnecessary, the entire apparatus can be reduced in size and energy consumption can be reduced. That is, the overall cost can be reduced from the initial investment cost when introducing the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 to the running cost.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 is composed of a water tank 1 and a cylinder 2, and a stirrer 3 for generating a vortex flow is installed in the cylinder 2, and the surface of the liquid medium (liquid medium 5) in the cylinder 2 contains an object to be sorted. A collector (suction nozzle 13) is installed.
Thereby, even if the specific gravity of a liquid medium is larger than the specific gravity of two types of to-be-sorted objects (urethane 8 and PP9), specific gravity selection can be performed with high accuracy and high efficiency.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
Embodiment 2 will be described with reference to FIG.
In addition, about the part which is common in Embodiment 1, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 according to this embodiment.
In addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment, the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 further includes a current plate 14.
The rectifying plate 14 is provided in the cylinder 2 and has a curved plate shape having a curvature along the vortex 6 generated by the stirrer 3. The rectifying plate 14 reduces the turbulence of the vortex 6 and stabilizes the center position of the vortex 6.

  When the mixing ratio (balance) of the urethane 8 and PP9 changes, the resistance to the flow of the liquid medium 5 changes, so that the water flow is disturbed and the center position of the vortex 6 may change. The current plate 14 stabilizes the center position of the vortex 6, thereby preventing remixing of the urethane 8 and PP 9 due to fluctuations in the center position of the vortex 6 and stabilizing the sorting accuracy.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
A third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
In addition, about the part which is common in Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 in this embodiment.
The specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 further includes a baffle plate 15 in addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment.
The baffle plate 15 (submarine device) is made of a material having a specific gravity lighter than that of the liquid medium 5 such as plastic, and floats on the liquid surface of the liquid medium 5 in the cylinder 2. The baffle plate 15 has a thin plate shape so that the resistance to the vortex 6 is sufficiently small. Since the baffle plate 15 floats on the liquid surface, the mixture of urethane 8 and PP 9 introduced into the cylinder 2 passes under the baffle plate 15.

  If bubbles such as urethane 8 or PP9 are bubbled, they may float on the liquid surface regardless of their specific gravity, and sorting may not be possible. When the input material passes under the baffle plate 15, the input material is once submerged below the liquid surface. Thereby, PP9 becomes easy to sink and sorting accuracy becomes high.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
The fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
In addition, about the part which is common in Embodiment 1- Embodiment 3, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.

FIG. 4 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an example of the entire configuration of the specific gravity sorting apparatus 100 in this embodiment.
The specific gravity sorting device 100 includes a sorting tank 110, a partition plate 120, a vortex generator 130, two rectifying plates 140, a submergence device 150, a feeding device 160, and three recovery devices 170, 180, and 190. Have.
The sorting tank 110 is a tank for storing a liquid medium (liquid), and has, for example, a hollow cylindrical shape with a central axis facing a substantially vertical direction and an upper surface opened. In the sorting tank 110, the liquid medium is put up to the position of the liquid level 301.

The eddy current generating device 130 is a device that generates a vortex in the liquid medium placed in the sorting tank 110. The eddy current generator 130 includes, for example, a rotating shaft 131, a rotating blade 132, a flow guide plate 133, and a motor (not shown). The rotating shaft 131 is provided at a position substantially coinciding with the central axis of the sorting tank 110. The rotary blade 132 is provided near the lower end of the rotary shaft 131. The flow guide plate 133 is a cylindrical plate surrounding the periphery of the rotary blade 132, and prevents the liquid medium flow from being disturbed around the rotary blade 132. The upper end of the flow guide plate 133 is located below the liquid level 301. The lower end of the flow guide plate 133 is separated from the bottom surface of the sorting tank 110. Therefore, the liquid medium can freely move back and forth between the inner side and the outer side of the flow guide plate 133 both on the upper side and the lower side of the flow guide plate 133. In addition, in order to fix the position of the flow guide plate 133, a configuration in which a part of the flow guide plate 133 is connected to the side surface or the bottom surface of the sorting tank 110 may be employed.
The motor generates a rotational movement. The rotary motion generated by the motor is transmitted to the rotary blade 132 by the rotary shaft 131, and the rotary blade 132 rotates.

  The partition plate 120 is provided in the sorting tank 110. The partition plate 120 has a substantially cylindrical plate shape that is substantially coaxial with the sorting tank 110 and surrounds the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator 130. The upper end of the partition plate 120 is located above the liquid level 301. The lower end of the partition plate 120 is located below the upper end of the flow guide plate 133 and above the lower end of the flow guide plate 133, and is separated from the bottom surface of the sorting tank 110. Therefore, the liquid medium can freely go back and forth between the inner side and the outer side of the partition plate 120 on the lower side of the partition plate 120, but cannot go on the upper side of the partition plate 120. In addition, in order to fix the position of the partition plate 120, the structure which a part of partition plate 120 was connected with the side surface and bottom face of the sorting tank 110 may be sufficient.

  The rectifying plate 140 is provided inside the partition plate 120. The rectifying plate 140 forms a part of a substantially cylindrical side surface that is substantially coaxial with the central axis of the sorting tank 110, and stabilizes the flow of the vortex along the flow of the vortex generated by the vortex generator 130. The upper end of the current plate 140 is located above the liquid level 301. The lower end of the current plate 140 is located at a relatively shallow position below the liquid level 301. The number of rectifying plates 140 is not limited to two, but may be one or three or more. Further, the plurality of rectifying plates 140 may have the same distance from the central axis of the sorting tank 110 or may be different.

The charging device 160 is a device for charging a mixture of a plurality of types of granular materials having different specific gravities inside the partition plate 120. The input device 160 includes, for example, an input port 161, a cylindrical portion 162, and a transport device (not shown). The input port 161 has, for example, a substantially truncated cone side surface shape having a wide upper side. The cylindrical portion 162 has a substantially cylindrical plate shape connected from the lower end of the insertion port 161. The lower end of the cylindrical portion 162 is located below the liquid level 301. The transport device is, for example, a belt conveyor, and transports the mixture that has been processed in the previous stage and inputs the mixture into the input port 161.
The input position where the input device 160 inputs the mixture is a position relatively close to the partition plate 120. The distance from the loading position to the partition plate 120 is shorter than half the radius of the partition plate 120.

  The submergence device 150 is a device that causes the mixture introduced by the input device 160 to enter a liquid medium. The submersible device 150 is connected to the cylindrical portion 162 of the throwing device 160 and is located downstream of the cylindrical portion 162 in the vortex. The underwater device 150 includes, for example, a top surface portion 151, an inner wall portion 152, and an outer wall portion 153. The top surface portion 151 has a substantially fan-like plate shape. The top surface portion 151 is inclined obliquely, and is connected to the cylindrical portion 162 above the liquid surface 301 on the upstream side of the vortex flow, and is positioned below the liquid surface 301 on the downstream side of the vortex flow. The inner wall portion 152 has a shape that forms part of a substantially cylindrical side surface that is substantially coaxial with the central axis of the sorting tank 110, and is connected to the top surface portion 151 and the cylindrical portion 162 on the side close to the central axis of the sorting tank 110. . The outer wall portion 153 has a shape that forms part of a substantially cylindrical side surface that is substantially coaxial with the central axis of the sorting tank 110, and is connected to the top surface portion 151 and the cylindrical portion 162 on the side far from the central axis of the sorting tank 110. . The lower ends of the inner wall portion 152 and the outer wall portion 153 are located below the liquid level 301.

The recovery device 170 recovers the granular material floating on the liquid surface 301 in the vicinity of the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator 130. The collection device 170 includes, for example, a pipe 172 and a suction device (not shown). The pipe 172 has one end opened as a suction port 171 and the other end connected to a suction device. The suction port 171 is disposed in the vicinity of the central axis of the sorting tank 110, slightly above the liquid level 301, and downward. The suction device generates a negative pressure. Thereby, the collection device 170 sucks and collects the granular material in the vicinity of the suction port 171. The collection device 170 collects particles having a specific gravity smaller than that of the liquid medium and having a large difference among the mixture of particles.
The collection device 180 collects the granular material floating on the liquid level 301 outside the partition plate 120. The collection device 180 includes, for example, a pipe 182 and a suction device (not shown). The pipe 182 has one end opened as a suction port 181 and the other end connected to a suction device. The suction port 181 is disposed between the sorting tank 110 and the partition plate 120 slightly above the liquid level 301 and facing downward. The suction device generates a negative pressure. Thereby, the collection device 180 sucks and collects the particle state in the vicinity of the suction port 181. The recovery device 180 recovers a granular material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the liquid medium and a small difference between the granular materials.
The collection device 190 collects the granular material that has sunk in the bottom of the sorting tank 110. The collection device 190 includes, for example, a pipe 192 and a suction device (not shown). The pipe 192 has one end connected to the suction port 191 and the other end connected to the suction device. The suction port 191 is provided near the outer periphery of the bottom surface of the sorting tank 110. The suction device generates a negative pressure. As a result, the collection device 190 sucks and collects the granular material that sinks in the vicinity of the suction port 191. The recovery device 190 recovers a granular material having a specific gravity greater than that of the liquid medium in the granular material mixture.
Since the collecting devices 170 to 190 may also suck the liquid medium together with the granular material, the specific gravity sorting device 100 uses the liquid medium sucked by the collecting devices 170 to 190 in the sorting tank 110. It is also possible to have a configuration having a return device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the flow of the liquid medium 300 in this embodiment.
When the vortex generator 130 rotates the rotary blade 132 in the rotation direction 351, the liquid medium 300 is sucked from the lower side of the flow guide plate 133 as a flow 311, and a vortex-shaped flow 312 is generated. As a result, spiral flows 313 to 315 are generated inside the partition plate 120 throughout. Further, flows 316 and 317 descending against the partition plate 120 are generated immediately inside the partition plate 120. In addition, a flow does not generate | occur | produce in the area | region 302 pinched | interposed between the sorting tank 110 and the partition plate 120, and it is comparatively gentle.

The mixture charged from the charging port 161 first moves on the flow 313 and moves in the submersible device 150. Since the mixture hits the top surface portion 151, even if the specific gravity is smaller than that of the liquid medium 300, the mixture does not remain floating on the liquid surface 301 but is submerged in the liquid medium 300.
The mixture exiting the submersible device 150 travels along the stream 315. At this time, the granular material whose specific gravity is much smaller than that of the liquid medium 300 has a centrifugal force smaller than that of the liquid medium 300, and therefore approaches the center of the vortex and gathers inside the current plate 140. The collection device 170 collects this.
On the other hand, the granular material having a specific gravity slightly smaller than that of the liquid medium 300 has a small difference in centrifugal force from the liquid medium 300, and thus flows on the flow 315 to the inside of the partition plate 120 and rides on the flow 316. The granular material tends to rise due to buoyancy, but since the buoyancy is small, if the flow 316 is fast, it will descend on the flow 316. When reaching the lower end of the partition plate 120, the flow 317 spreads and slows down. When the granular material dives under the partition plate 120 and goes outside, it enters the region 302 where there is no flow, so it rises by buoyancy and floats on the liquid level 301. The collection device 180 collects this.

  Further, if a granular material having a specific gravity greater than that of the liquid medium 300 is mixed in the mixture, the mixture moves in the same manner as a granular material having a specific gravity slightly smaller than that of the liquid medium 300 until it reaches the flow 316. Then, it sinks to the bottom of the sorting tank 110. The collection device 190 collects this.

Whether the granular material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the liquid medium 300 is recovered by the recovery device 170 or recovered by the recovery device 180 depends on the relationship between the speed of the flow 316 and the buoyancy. That is, the granular material whose buoyancy is large and rises against the flow 316 is recovered by the recovery device 170, and the granular material whose buoyancy is small and descends on the flow 316 is recovered by the recovery device 180.
Since the speed of the flow 316 varies depending on the speed of rotating the rotating blades 132, adjusting the speed of rotating the rotating blades 132 can increase the accuracy of sorting.

  As described above, the configuration described in each embodiment is an example, and another configuration may be used. For example, the configuration described in different embodiments may be combined, or the configuration of an unimportant portion may be replaced with another configuration.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus (100) described above is
A sorting tank for storing a liquid (liquid medium 5; 300);
A vortex generator (130; stirrer 3) for generating a vortex in the liquid placed in the sorting tank;
A partition plate (120; cylinder 2) that surrounds the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator and can be submerged below the liquid level;
A charging device (160) for charging a mixture of a plurality of types of granular materials having different specific gravities inside the partition plate;
And a recovery device (170; suction nozzle 13) for recovering the granular material floating on the liquid surface near the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator.
Thereby, the mixture in which the granular material whose specific gravity is smaller than the liquid can be selected based on the difference in specific gravity.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus (100) further includes:
A second recovery device (180) for recovering the granular material floating on the liquid surface of the liquid (liquid medium 5; 300) outside the partition plate (120; cylinder 2).
Thereby, the granular material whose specific gravity is comparatively close to a liquid is recoverable from the mixture in which the granular material whose specific gravity is smaller than a liquid was mixed.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus (100) further includes:
Inside the partition plate (120; cylinder 2), there is a rectifying plate (14; 140) that stabilizes the vortex generated by the vortex generator (130; stirrer 3).
Since the eddy current is stabilized, the accuracy of sorting can be increased.

The specific gravity sorting apparatus (100) further includes:
Inside the partition plate (120; cylinder 2), there is a submergence device (150; baffle plate 15) for letting the mixture charged by the charging device (160) submerge in the liquid (liquid medium 5; 300).
Since the bubbles adhering to the granular material can be removed, the accuracy of sorting can be increased.

  1 Water tank, 2 tubes, 3 stirrers, 4,351 Rotating direction, 5,300 Liquid medium, 6 Vortex, 7 Flow, 8 Urethane, 9 PP, 10 Loading direction, 11,12 Buoyancy, 13 Suction nozzle, 14,140 Rectification Plate, 15 Baffle plate, 100 Specific gravity sorting device, 110 Sorting tank, 120 Partition plate, 130 Eddy current generator, 131 Rotating shaft, 132 Rotating blade, 133 Current guide plate, 150 Submarine device, 151 Top surface portion, 152 Inner wall portion, 153 Outer wall portion, 160 charging device, 161 charging port, 162 cylinder portion, 170, 180, 190 recovery device, 171, 181, 191 suction port, 172, 182, 192 pipe, 301 liquid level, 302 region, 311, 312, 313 , 314, 315, 316, 317 flow.

Claims (3)

A sorting tank for liquid,
A vortex generator for generating a vortex in the liquid placed in the sorting tank;
A partition plate that surrounds the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator and can be submerged below the liquid level;
A charging device for charging a mixture of a plurality of types of granular materials having different specific gravities inside the partition plate;
A recovery device for recovering the granular material floating on the liquid surface near the center of the vortex generated by the vortex generator;
It forms a curved surface having a curvature along the vortex generated by the vortex generator, is arranged inside the partition plate, the upper end is located above the liquid level of the liquid, and the lower end is the liquid level of the liquid And a flow regulating plate for stabilizing a vortex generated by the vortex generator, and having a lower density than the specific gravity separator. The specific gravity sorting device further comprises:
The specific gravity sorting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a second recovery device that recovers the granular material floating on the liquid surface outside the partition plate. In a specific gravity sorting method for sorting a mixture in which a plurality of types of granular materials having different specific gravities are mixed, using a specific gravity sorting device having a sorting tank containing liquid and a partition plate provided in the sorting tank,
The liquid placed in the sorting tank generates a vortex centered on the position surrounded by the partition plate,
A curved surface having a curvature along the eddy current to be generated is arranged inside the partition plate , the upper end is located above the liquid level of the liquid, and the lower end is located below the liquid level of the liquid. by to that the current plate to stabilize the generated vortex,
Put the mixture inside the partition plate,
A specific gravity sorting method characterized by recovering the granular material floating on the liquid surface near the center of the vortex.

Images