DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTIONALITY OF THE POLYMARK INDUSTRIAL SCALE
SORTING SYSTEM
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Polymark Training & Webinar 15 March 2017
Petcore Europe Premises, Brussels
Hans Eder – Sesotec GmbH
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Key Topics
• Basics of the marker detection system
• Lab scale validation unit
• Industrial scale sorting system
• Performance of the sorting machine
• Summary
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Marker Detection Basics
The marker detection setup is built from two basic units • A high energy UV light unit
for excitation of the marker
• A highly sensitive camera to detect
the weak fluorescence signals emitted from the marker
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
The UV Light Unit
• Equipped with high power UV LEDs at 365nm for excitation and detection of marked objects
• Additional visible spectra used (LEDs at Red, Green, Blue) to detect the non marked objects
• Optical mirrors focusing the UV energy to a line with 50mW/cm²
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
The Camera Unit
• Sensitivity > 100 times compared to standard cameras
• Scan rate up to 2000 scans per second
• Resolution of 5mm per pixel
• Optical long pass filter to block UV and blue fluorescence light
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Lab Scale Validation Setup
To validate the Polymark detection system, a small scale prototype has been developed as a first step to a sorting machine • Limited in throughput (small size, low speed)
• Aiming to validate the UV light unit
as well as the camera unit
• Verifying the modules fulfil all requirements for the industrial scale sorting machine
• Fully functional for detecting and even ejecting marked bottles
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Images from Lab Scale Setup
Images from trials with PET bottles passing the lab scale setup at a low speed of 10 cm/s • UV light unit switched off
In normal daylight there is no visible difference in marked and non marked bottles.
• UV light unit switched on and with dimmed ambient light. Marked bottles showing a greenish fluorescent signal. Non marked PET bottles are less bright and appear bluish.
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
The lab validation setup has been successfully scaled to fit on industrial scale sorting machines, with these design goals in mind:
• Working width of at least 1 m at a speed of 3 m/s
• Spatial resolution approximately 5 mm/Pixel
• Modular platform concept, the detection system can be integrated in existing sorting machines
• Easily scalable to other sorting machine sizes, the working width can be extended in steps of 50 cm
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
Design of the industrial scale sorting machine with a platform concept for the Polymark Detection Unit.
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
Polymark Detection Unit mounted on the platform of the sorting machine
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
Inside the Polymark Detection Unit:
• Highly sensitive cameras • High energy UV light system
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
Inside the Polymark Detection Unit:
• Every camera is covering 50cm working width • UV light system can be scaled easily in steps of 50 cm
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
Industrial scale sorting machine with 1 meter working width and a speed of 3 m/s to accommodate the Polymark Detection Unit
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
The Polymark Detection Unit mounted on the sorting machine
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Industrial Scale Sorting System
View into the Polymark Detection Unit on top of the sorting machine
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
Setup for the Polymark sorting machine trials:
• Trials have been carried out on the demo recycling line of Sesotec
• Test setup emulated the conditions of industrial recycling lines
• Speed of 3 m/s on a working width of 1m at a throughput of 2 t/h
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
Sesotec demo recyling line with the Polymark Sorting Machine
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
Input material for the Polymark sorting machine trials:
• PET bottles provided by HERI.. fully coated with the marker partly coated with the marker label coated with the marker non coated bottles
• PET bottles provided by Recycling plants..
random mix of European plastic bottle collections The PET bottles from HERI have been crushed, scratched and treated with dust to emulate the condition on arrival at a recycling plant.
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
Examples of input material for the Polymark sorting machine trials:
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
General test procedure: • Different mixtures of PET recycling material and coated bottles from HERI
were used for the performance tests
• The (major) or dominating fraction in the input has always been passed through the sorting machine, the other (minor) fraction has been ejected
• The machine settings were optimized in order to achieve >97% purity on the major fraction with a minimal sorting loss
• Output purity, sorting loss, ‘eject rate’ and ‘false rejects’ were monitored for the different trails and are based on evaluating at least 1000 bottles
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(B) Trials run with partly coated HERI Samples 80% Non Coated , 20% Partly Coated (ejected)
20
80
Input
97
3
Pass
10
90
Eject
Eject Rate 74% False Reject 1%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(B) Trials run with partly coated HERI Samples 20% Non Coated (ejected), 80% Partly Coated
80
20
Input
3
97
Pass
67
33
Eject
Eject Rate 89% False Reject 11%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(C) Trials run with recycling material and fully coated HERI Samples 80% Recycling Material, 20% Fully Coated (ejected)
20
80
Input
98
2 Pass
11
89
Eject
Eject Rate 93% False Reject 3%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(C) Trials run with recycling material and fully coated HERI Samples 20% Recycling Material (ejected), 80% Fully Coated
80
20
Input 0.4
99.6
Pass
97
3
Eject
Eject Rate 98% False Reject 1%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(D) Trials run with recycling material and partly coated HERI Samples 80% Recycling Material, 20% Partly Coated (ejected)
20
80
Input
94
6
Pass
10
90
Eject
Eject Rate 77% False Reject 2%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Performance of the Sorting Machine
(D) Trials run with recycling material and partly coated HERI Samples 20% Recycling Material (ejected), 80% Partly Coated
80
20
Input 0.5
99.5
Pass
79
21
Eject
Eject Rate 98% False Reject 7%
POLYMARK (311777) is funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme
Summary
• The Polymark sorting machine is able to achieve an output purity
of 98% on the major input fraction (average over all trials performed)
• The purity can go down as low as 94% when the bottles are only partly coated and when the input material is very diverse (as recycling material typically is).
• The ‘False Rejects’ were at 5% on average over all trials.
• The ‘Ejection Rate’ was at 90% on average over all trials.
