Abstract
The requirements for the recycling of construction and demolition waste are tightening, and companies in the waste business have improved their performance to comply with new legislation. Construction and demolition waste includes various recyclable materials, such as metals, plastics and wood. However, effective material recovery requires functional and reliable technology for sorting in order to separate waste fractions into useful secondary materials or applications. This paper concerns the mechanical sorting efficiency of construction and demolition waste with a commercial mechanical sorting equipment consisting of a roller screening and an air separation unit. Sorting ability is studied with pre-sorted and crushed test material. Sieve analysis of pre-sorted test material is used to define particle size distribution before sorting. The quality criteria of construction and demolition waste vary greatly, depending on a number of factors which pose a challenge to the operation of the sorting system. The studied sorting equipment was found to be reliable for producing nine different fractions from pre-sorted and crushed material mixtures. The requirements for the purity level of the fractions and the profitability of utilization define the number of fractions to be sorted cost-efficiently. Typically, a compromise between cost and purity level has to be found.
Highlights
Increasing concern about the environment, as well as tightened environmental laws, have forced companies in the waste business to improve and encourage the recycling of wastes
Construction and demolition waste (CDW) represents one of the most voluminous waste streams generated in the European Union (EU), accounting for approximately 30% of all waste generated in the EU (Eurostat, 2016), and it differs both quantitatively and qualitatively by EU countries
Of the pre-sorted fractions, plastic, wool, board, wood and gypsum were selected for mechanical sorting
Summary
Increasing concern about the environment, as well as tightened environmental laws, have forced companies in the waste business to improve and encourage the recycling of wastes. The amount of biodegradable or organic materials in landfilling will be reduced to a maximum of 10% by weight (European Commission, 2010). To meet these tightened regulations, new methods for CDW recycling have to be developed (Väntsi and Kärki, 2014). This includes the development of material sorting and processing during recycling processes
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