Conveying of Regrind Plastic Material without Dust – Food Packaging – Poland

The Challenge

This factory in Poland is part of a worldwide group that produces plastic packaging for the food industry.

• The factory experiences dust from the regrind plastic material conveyed from grinder to big bags.
• The dust creates slippery floors, costs for cleaning up, and an increased risk of accidents.
• The dust also generates a layer on final products which is unacceptable to audit and health regulations.
• It was essential that the conveying solution was able to deliver an effective vacuum suction, in the transportation of the regrind material from the grinder to big bags to ensure that the plastic material was removed in the shortest possible period of time without getting stuck in the cyclone or pipes and thereby create even more dust and lesser pieces of usable regrind material.
• The solution must provide clean air and operate without generating under- or overpressure in the facility.

The Solution

• The pneumatic conveying reduces dust in the factory by vacuum transport of the regrind material in pipes. By installing filters at the end of the line, the system also delivers needed clean air back into the production area
• The Kongskilde solution consists of MultiEvacuators 175, RF 20 Rotary Valve combined with OK 160 and OK 200 pipes and DS 28-S filter that ensured higher productivity
• The system with the quiet vacuum blower generates a “gentle” conveying of the regrind material from the grinder to the big bags and cleans the transported material in the process

The Advantages and Benefits

• With less dust in the factory, the company minimizes the liability of slippery floors, reduces the need for cleaning, and experiences less sickness leave
• The ability to generate a high vacuum effect combined with sufficient capacity of blowing and transport of the regrind material without generating dust and damaging the material contributes to increased productivity
• The Kongskilde solution creates no overpressure when discharged and no underpressure in the production area as the air used to convey is filtered and returned to the production room

The Facts

• Material: Regrind PET, PP, PS and flakes Ø 8mm irregular shaped flakes and crumbs
• Requested solution: the customer wanted to convey regrind from 3 existing granulators and 4 future extruders to Big Bags
• Suction points: 7
• Air amount 9448 m3/hrs. (from 6 pick-ups)
• Pressure: 170-410 Pa (in 160 mm pipes)
• Bulk density: PP: 750 kg/m3, PET: 900 kg/m2, PS: 700 kg/m3 and OPS: 650 kg/m3
• Conveying distance: V: max 6 m. H: max 36 m