Abstract
The purpose of this feasibility research was to study a novel sensor based separation method for recycling of plastic materials from end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) by using eigen-frequency response of impact acoustic emission. In this research three kinds of commonly used plastics, polypropylene (PP), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), and styrene-maleic-anhydride (SMA) sampled from end-of-life vehicles, were researched. Almost all the crushed plastic scraps had a flake structure, theoretically their impact response behaviors were determined by their diameters and thicknesses. The equivalent diameters of the scraps were characterized by fine sieving and their thicknesses were measured online by a 3D laser triangulation sensor above the conveying path. Following this the scraps were free dropped one-by-one to impact with an impact passive body on which impact acoustic emission (AE) signals were generated and acquired by an acoustic pickup sensor. Thirdly, the AE signals which carried eigen-frequency response features were processed and characterized. Results demonstrated that the scraps with diameters < 8 mm were too weak for the actual devices to process; the scraps with diameter from 8–13 mm still generated quite a lot of AE signals of inadequate intensity. Finally the general characterization and recognition yields were 64.6%, 61.7%, and 63.9% of PP, ABS, and SMA in mass, respectively of tested materials.
Highlights
With the rapid increase of retaining of worldwide vehicles, and considering the conservation of raw material resources as well as environmental impacts, the disposal and cyclic utilization of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) have achieved much attention over the last decade
Vehicle retaining in China is estimated as up to 150 million vehicles until 2020
It is generally understood that the impact acoustic emission (AE) can be broadly divided into two parts: (a) sounds generated by the initially high surface acceleration and deceleration of impacting bodies found during the time of contact and (b) ringing sounds arising from the free-vibration of the bodies following the impact [29]
Summary
With the rapid increase of retaining of worldwide vehicles, and considering the conservation of raw material resources as well as environmental impacts, the disposal and cyclic utilization of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) have achieved much attention over the last decade. The Economic Cooperation and Development organization (OECD) has projected that the growth of vehicles could achieve 32% from 1997 to 2020 [1,2,3,4]. Vehicle retaining in China is estimated as up to 150 million vehicles until 2020. At this time, the domestic yield by of ELVs could achieve 9 million annually in China, with an abandon rate of 6%. Disposal and recovery of ELVs has become an important scientific, economic and social issue in China [5,6]. In China the relevant industry is only just beginning
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