The first old shoes dissembling and useful materials comprehensive recovery system testing success
In the past one century, as the world's population continues to grow, made by the human garbage increased 10 times, and by 2025, this number may be double. Waste faster than greenhouse gases, and other environmental pollutants. One of the main expenditure of waste disposal has become a city budget. Now, a new study has provided people with a little bit of hope - British scientists recently developed old shoes recovery system may let the landfill old flying case history.
Recently, the world's first old shoes dissembling and useful materials comprehensive recovery system testing success. The system can make leather, plastic and rubber foam separation and particles, used for the stadium, rubber surface can even used in the production of new shoes again.
The system is made by loughborough university innovation and building research center (imcrc) development and testing, this is the center for a period of ten years a research project. Is responsible for the study of shahinrahimifard professor said: "because the shoes may be made of up to 40 different materials, and many kinds of materials required by sewing and adhesive ability together, so recycling is very difficult."
Rahimifard said: "we recycle flow first USES the manual way the shoe is divided into categories, such as sports shoes, and then the button on the shoes, such as metal recycling. Then use the machine to cut the shoes into finely particles, the particles will be automatically divided into leather, foam, rubber and other materials and other four kinds of waste streams."
The system use pelletizer will first shoes made into 3 ~ 4 mm pieces, then use the project development of air separation technology, low cost to separate different materials according to the size and weight. Cascade, for example, the first to use air separator will be lighter fabric particles, fine leather, foam and the heavier particles separation, and then use the vibration of the pneumatic workbench make granular material form different levels (lighter particles float above the heavier particles, eventually achieve the purpose of separate the rubber and foam and leather).
The researchers point out that each after recycling of waste has a number of different purposes. Such as recycle leather fibre can be used in the production of bonded leather cushion; Reclaimed rubber can be used for laying the runway or used as a sports ground surface materials; For certain types of footwear rubber, it can be crushed to make new soles, reuse of the so-called "closed loop"; Recycled foam cushion material can be used in aggrandizement floor and carpet; Blended fabric and other lighter materials mainly used for building insulation materials.
It is reported, loughborough university research team is working with an intention to a recycling system into its recycling company to discuss business. At the same time, the team also used the British engineering and natural science council funding and main footwear manufacturing enterprise cooperation, discusses how to design in the future more easily recycled shoes. On this basis, the team has developed a computer aided tool, for the shoe designer in selecting materials or explore what the particular mix of materials to help more conducive to recycling. The researchers found that the closer the two kinds of material density, the greater the difficulty to separate them into particles, which will push up the cost of recycling.
Rahimifard said: "our ultimate goal is, through further follow-up study, stimulate interest in the recycling industry. But we believe that the study has for the realization of the footwear can like glass, plastic and paper recycling solid step to create economic benefits."
The researchers point out that this breakthrough is expected to bring huge environmental benefits - the world's current annual production of about 20 billion pairs of shoes, 95% of which eventually will be sent to a landfill. So far, the only way to avoid discarded shoes landfills are to be deposited in the bank "shoe" wait for second use.