In the guide below, we’ve provided information on plastic recycling machines.
We discuss what they are, the different types of machines and what they are each designed for, machines specifically for the home, current prices & cost ranges, where to buy them, DIY machines, and other general information & buyer information.
What Are Plastic Recycling Machines?
Plastic recycling machines are machines that process or treat plastic waste so that it can be re-used or recycled
For example, they might cut, grind, shred, clean, dry, or process/treat plastic in some other type of way
Some plastic can be used immediately as raw material for general use after processing through an individual machine or system, whilst other machines process the plastic before it’s sent elsewhere to be further processed/formatted into useable recycled plastic material (usually for a specific use)
Types Of Plastic Recycling Machines
There’s various ways to categorise the different types of plastic recycling machines, including but not limited to:
Where They Are Mainly Used
– At home
– In industry or at a place of business
By Size
– Small
– Medium
– Large
By What Different Machines Are Designed To Do
Different plastic recycling machinery is designed to process or treat plastic waste in different ways, and each have different features.
Different plastic recycling machinery can include, but aren’t limited to:
– Plastic Granulators
Can also be called granule machines.
Granulators can accept different types of plastic waste.
The plastic undergoes granulation, which is where the plastic is sheared and grinded into much smaller pieces of raw plastic material (sometimes called flakes or regrinds).
‘Beside the press’, and ‘Central and heavy duty’ granulators might be two examples of different types of plastic granulator machines.
– Plastic Shredders
Plastic shredders also cut plastic waste, and they produce smaller plastic slivers and pieces
Compared to granulators, they might operate at lower speeds and higher torque, and shredders might use bed knives and shafts to cut plastic.
– Plastic Washing System Machines
These machines wash different types of soiled or dirty plastic waste.
– Plastic Drying System Machines
These machines dry different types of wet plastic waste.
– Plastic Separator Machines
These machines separate plastic by type.
Some separator machinery also removes contaminants such as labels, metals, dirt, and more.
– Plastic Pelletizer Machines
There’s different types of plastic pelletizer machines, and some reports even refer to plastic pelletizers as granulators.
However, some pelletizer machines have the ability to turn plastic flakes (from PET for example) into plastic pellets.
– Plastic Recycling Water Treatment Machines
These machines have the ability to recycle water produced from plastic washing plants and machinery, which ultimately may make the process more sustainable.
Other Differences In Plastic Recycling Machinery
Aside from the above ways to categorise plastic recycling machinery, machines may also differ in the following ways:
– By the individual brand, and the individual machine product/system
– By the types of plastic they can accept and process
– By design and construction
– By how they work, and how they process plastic (i.e. by how they primarily process plastic – grind, cut, shred, etc., and the way in which they do it)
– The power they have, and the torque they have
– By the speed they can run at
– The volume of plastic they generally process at a time
– Some machines are standalone machines that perform one specific task, but, there’s also ‘complete solution’ machinery line setups that can perform a range of recycling functions in the one machinery line
– Plus, other differences not listed above
Plastic Recycling Machines For The Home
Right now, there aren’t a wide selection of plastic recycling machines sold specifically for home use.
This has to do with factors such as complexity of design, required knowledge & competence to use machinery, cost, maintenance, size of the machines, and more.
However, a few potential options might be (make sure to confirm this yourself though beforehand if you’re thinking of buying):
– Some online retailers sell cheaper and smaller plastic recycling machines that might fit in a home (such as in an outdoor shed or workshop), and might be affordable for some people
alibaba.com is an example of an online retailer that might sell some plastic recycling machines that might be suitable for home use
– More basic DIY plastic recycling machines
preciousplastic.com is an example of a group that may offer resources or a marketplace for finding plastic recycling machines that might be suitable for home use
Plastic Recycling Machines For Industry & Business
Majority of plastic recycling machines right now are made for industry and business, and to process large volumes of plastic in specific ways.
There’s a range of companies that offer industrial and commercial plastic recycling machinery.
They may offer both standard and custom machinery, and also machinery that perform one specific process, or machinery that perform a number of processes.
Where To Buy Plastic Recycling Machines
There’s a range of places to buy plastic recycling machines online.
They include but aren’t limited to:
– Individual companies/sellers selling bespoke, custom designed and installed, or trademarked/patented machinery
These companies can be found by performing online searches for specific types of plastic recycling machines
– e-commerce wholesalers and retailers that sell a range of machinery and products from different companies
alibaba.com might be one example of an online retailer that features machinery from various sellers
Prices Of Plastic Recycling Machines – How Much Do They Cost?
There’s a range of price ranges for plastic recycling machines.
Some e-commerce wholesalers and retailers offer products and machines in the hundreds and thousands of dollars.
Other machinery online is much more expensive – in the tens of thousands of dollars, hundreds of thousands of dollars, or more – depending on how large and complex the machinery is (along with other requirements for the machinery)
Plastic Recycling Machine Manufacturers
There’s a range of different manufacturers online that each offer different products and machinery.
We’ve given examples of how to find them earlier in this guide.
DIY Plastic Recycling Machines
There’s some resources, such as the one provided by preciousplastic.com, that provide information on DIY/build at home plastic recycling machines.
Precious Plastic do the designs, and people can build them themselves.
They have both ‘Basic’ and ‘Pro’ options.
However, preciousplastic.com also provides options on buying machines, buying moulds, buying materials, finding machine shops, and more. There’s a marketplace they feature for some of these options.
Fully Automatic Plastic Recycling Machines
There’s both semi automatic, and highly automatic plastic recycling machines available from different online retailers and companies.
Check the machine description to check whether it’s fully automatic or not.
Other Plastic Waste Management Machines
There’s also other machines that aren’t necessarily categorised as plastic recycling machines, but they are machines that help manage plastic waste in some way.
One example of a machine that helps manage plastic waste is a plastic compactor, which can help businesses and public service providers compact and reduce the original volume of their plastic waste as preparation to be picked up by, or sold to a plastic recycler.
Sources
1. https://www.conairgroup.com/resources/resource/the-basic-differences-between-plastics-granulators-and-shredders/
2. https://wasteinitiatives.com.au/products/granulators/
3. https://www.plasticrecyclingmachine.net/
4. https://www.alibaba.com
5. https://preciousplastic.com
','' ); } ?>