METHOD FOR THE TREATMENT OF PAPER END PRODUCTS AND TREATMENT EQUIPMENT FOR THE APPLICATION OF THIS METHOD

Description

Domain technique:

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and an installation for treating final materials from paper mills, these final materials being recovered at the outlet of disintegration machines, called pulpers, arranged to shred, disintegrate, crush old recycled paper and cardboard to extract a pulp composed of cellulose fibers and water which will feed a circuit for preparing paper pulp, these final materials still comprising cellulose fibers contaminated by various materials containing at least a fraction of metallic materials, a fraction of synthetic materials and a fraction of cellulosic materials. Previous technique:

[0002] The raw material for paper mills comes mainly from the recycling of old paper, newspapers, cardboard, etc., which are collected by collection centers and packaged in bags or bales, the bales generally being strapped with wire or similar. The share of this recycled paper waste can represent up to 90 to 95% of the raw material for paper mills. The bales are sent to machines called "pulpers" or "disintegrators" where they are opened, shredded, disintegrated and crushed to extract the cellulose fibers. These machines generally consist of a cylindrical tank fed with water and in which a rotor, which disintegrates the paper bale, allows individual cellulose fibers, independent of each other, to be extracted and suspended in water to form a pulp which is sent to a paper pulp preparation circuit.

[0003] However, these bags or bales of recycled waste paper are contaminated by all sorts of materials other than cellulose fibers, such as plastics, expanded polystyrene, glues, inks, metals, scrap metal, wood, etc. and by iron wire or similar used for example to strap the bales. These other materials, hereinafter called "ultimate materials" can represent approximately 8% of the total weight of a bale. Indeed, for example, a bale of 1.08 tons is needed to produce 1 ton of paper. These ultimate materials include both strands formed by intertwined scrap metal at a level of approximately 20% extracted from the pulpers by grapples accessing the tank through its opening in the upper part, and materials remaining at the bottom of the pulpers at a level of approximately 80% evacuated during the emptying of the tanks through a drain pipe located in the lower part.In addition, all of these final materials contain a significant proportion of cellulose fibres that are not recovered by the pulpers, as they are closely linked to the final materials. This significant proportion of cellulose fibres amounts to approximately 50% and represents a net loss for paper mills.

[0004] Until now, the majority of final materials from paper mills have been treated as final waste and are not or only slightly recovered. They are mostly buried or incinerated. They represent significant expenses for paper mills because they are required to cover all the costs generated by the removal and recovery of their final materials. For example, the cost of landfilling for burial or incineration is around 150 euros per ton of final materials. Thus, for a paper mill that produces, for example, 40,000 tons of paper per year, the removal of its final materials represents a mandatory and incompressible expense of approximately 480,000 euros per year, which is of course an exorbitant cost.

[0005] This situation will continue to deteriorate, knowing that the rate of final materials in recovered paper will continue to grow and production capacity will increase further in the coming years. Thus, the overall cost of processing final materials will inevitably continue its upward curve, becoming an unbearable cost for paper mills. In addition, this situation will generate many disadvantages linked to the increase in the number of landfills, the unnecessary consumption of energy to evaporate the water contained in the final materials, the destruction of recyclable materials including paper fiber from wood, the degradation of our ecosystem, etc.

[0006] Paper mills are now looking for solutions to maximize the value of their end materials in order to reduce their costs and adopt a circular economy approach, which requires waste from one industry to be recycled into raw materials for another or the same industry.

[0007] Solutions for sorting and recycling waste in general, aimed at recovering cellulose fibres in particular, have been known for many years. Examples include publications WO 1992 / 016686 A1, EP 0 570 757 B1, WO 1995 / 007810 A1 and WO 2008 / 007204 A1. However, none of these solutions meet the needs of paper mills to have a relatively simple and energy-efficient processing line that can recover at least 98% of the final materials produced and recover almost all of the cellulose fibres closely linked to these final materials. Presentation by the invention:

[0008] The present invention aims to provide a solution for the recovery of final materials which is part of sustainable development and which makes it possible to generate significant savings both on the item "treatment of final materials in landfill or incinerator with transport" and on the item "purchase of reusable raw material" of paper mills by means of a relatively simple and low-energy treatment line, making it possible to extract almost all of the cellulose fibers (up to 99%) closely linked to the final materials to recover them directly by reinjecting them into the paper pulp preparation circuit.It also proposes to separately extract contaminants such as synthetic materials and metallic materials in order to allow their recovery in dedicated sectors such as plastics and steelmaking, these contaminants being treated mechanically, without altering their physical and chemical properties, so that they retain their initial characteristics and can be recycled and reused.

[0009] For this purpose, the invention relates to a process of the type indicated in the preamble, in which said final materials loaded with moisture at more than 50% by mass are recovered, in which the treatment operations of said process are carried out on said final materials loaded with moisture, and in which, among said treatment operations, at least the following operations are carried out chronologically: 1) crushing and / or shredding of said moisture-laden final materials into calibrated pieces, 2) mechanical separation of said fraction of metallic materials from said final materials, in order to be able to recover it at least in part in the steel industry, 3) mechanical separation of said fraction of synthetic materials from said fraction of cellulosic materials, in order to be able to recover it at least in the plastics industry, and 4) mechanical separation of the cellulose fibers from said fraction of cellulosic materials, in order to be able to recover them by reinjecting them into said paper pulp preparation circuit of the paper mills.

[0010] The said final materials can be recovered with a moisture content of 70 to 80% by mass.

[0011] In certain cases, said final materials may comprise strands formed from wire metal materials and extracted from said pulpers. In this case, among said treatment operations, a preliminary grinding and / or shredding operation of said strands into pieces of a first caliber corresponding for example to a maximum dimension of between 150 and 300 mm, and preferably equal to 250 mm, is preferably carried out, and said strands reduced into pieces are added to said final materials loaded with moisture.

[0012] Advantageously, a grinding and / or shredding operation is carried out on said final materials loaded with moisture, added as the case may be to said strands reduced into parcels, into parcels of a second size, smaller than the first size, and corresponding for example to a maximum dimension of between 60 and 100 mm, and preferably equal to 80 mm.

[0013] A first operation of separation of said final materials reduced into parcels can then be carried out in which said fraction of metallic materials is mechanically separated from the other fractions of synthetic and cellulosic materials.

[0014] To carry out said first separation operation, the difference in magnetism of said materials can be used, and it can be carried out in two stages in which the magnetic metallic material particles are separated on the one hand, and the non-magnetic metallic material particles on the other.

[0015] After said first separation operation, a cleaning step can be carried out by mechanical vibration to rid said parcels of magnetic and / or non-magnetic metallic materials of the other remaining cellulosic and synthetic materials, and said fraction of cleaned metallic materials can thus be recovered for recovery in dedicated channels.

[0016] A second operation of separation of said final materials reduced into parcels freed from said fraction of metallic materials is then advantageously carried out, in which said fraction of cellulosic materials is separated from the other fraction of synthetic materials.

[0017] To carry out the second separation operation, the difference in mass density of the said materials can be used, and on the one hand the fraction of cellulosic materials which falls by gravity can be recovered, and on the other hand the fraction of synthetic materials which remains in suspension by suction.

[0018] Advantageously, it is possible to proceed by centrifugation in the presence of water and by simultaneous beating, said fraction of cellulosic materials loaded with water falling through a sieve of a third size smaller than the second size, and corresponding for example to a maximum dimension of between 4 and 8 mm and preferably equal to 6 mm, and it is thus possible to convey the reduced fraction of cellulosic materials to said circuit for preparing the paper pulp of the paper mills.

[0019] Preferably, said reduced fraction of cellulosic materials is passed through a purification station arranged to separate the cellulose fibers from said fraction of cellulosic materials in order to recover them in said circuit for preparing the paper pulp of paper mills.

[0020] On the other hand, the fraction of synthetic materials recovered by suction can be conveyed to a compactor and a granulator crusher for recovery. In this case, and beforehand, the heavy fraction can be separated from the light fraction of said synthetic materials.

[0021] For this purpose, the invention also relates to an installation of the type indicated in the preamble, arranged to implement said treatment method and to work on final materials loaded with humidity at more than 50% by mass and preferably between 70 and 80% by mass, and comprising at least: 1) a grinding and / or shredding station arranged to grind and / or shred said moisture-laden final materials into calibrated pieces, 2) a metal sorting station arranged to mechanically separate said fraction of metal materials from said final materials in order to be able to recover it at least in part in the steel industry, 3) a cellulosic sorting station arranged to mechanically separate said fraction of synthetic materials in order to be able to recover it at least in the plastics industry, from said fraction of cellulosic materials, and 4) a purification station arranged to separate the cellulose fibers from said fraction of cellulosic materials in order to be able to recover them by reinjecting them into said paper pulp preparation circuit of the paper mills.

[0022] In the case where said final materials comprise strands formed from wire metal materials and extracted from said pulpers, said installation may comprise at least one grinding and / or shredding station for metals arranged to grind and / or shred said strands into pieces of a first size, the maximum dimension of which is for example between 150 and 300 mm, and preferably equal to 250 mm, and means for adding said strands reduced into pieces to the final materials loaded with moisture.

[0023] Said grinding and / or shredding station for metals advantageously comprises at least one grinder and / or one metal shredder provided with a shear rotor completed by a fixed cutting grid located downstream of said shear rotor and defining said first caliber.

[0024] The shear rotor of said metal crusher and / or shredder is preferably arranged to rotate at a low rotation speed of the order of 20 rpm, to deploy a high power of the order of 250 kW and to process strands whose maximum dimension is for example less than or equal to 600 mm.

[0025] Said installation may advantageously comprise at least one universal crushing and / or shredding station arranged to shred said final materials, added as the case may be to said strands reduced into pieces, into pieces of a second caliber smaller than the first caliber, the maximum dimension of which is for example between 60 and 100 mm, and preferably equal to 80 mm.

[0026] Said universal crushing and / or shredding station may advantageously comprise at least one universal crusher and / or shredder provided with a shear rotor and completed by a fixed perforated grid located downstream of said shear rotor and defining said second caliber.

[0027] Said metal sorting station may comprise a magnetic metal sorting station comprising at least one magnetic field separator arranged to separate from said final materials reduced to particles, said fraction of magnetic metal materials from other fractions of non-magnetic, synthetic and cellulosic metal materials.

[0028] In addition or as a substitute, said metal sorting station may include a non-magnetic metal sorting station including at least one eddy current separator arranged to separate said final materials reduced into parcels, said fraction of non-magnetic metal materials from other fractions of magnetic, synthetic and cellulosic metal materials.

[0029] The installation advantageously comprises at least one vibrating conveyor downstream of said universal grinding station, and said magnetic metal sorting station and / or said non-magnetic metal sorting station are preferably located on the path of said vibrating conveyor.

[0030] Said installation may further comprise, downstream of said magnetic metal sorting station and / or said non-magnetic metal sorting station, a cleaning station provided with a perforated vibrating belt arranged to remove the fraction of metallic materials from the other remaining fractions of synthetic and cellulosic materials.

[0031] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, said cellulosic sorting station comprises at least one centrifuge fed by water and by said final materials reduced to parcels, freed from said fraction of metallic materials, said centrifuge being arranged to separate said fraction of synthetic materials from said fraction of cellulosic materials by difference in mass density, so that said fraction of synthetic materials is recovered by suction and said fraction of cellulosic materials mixed with water is recovered by gravity.

[0032] In this case, said centrifuge advantageously comprises a fixed drum provided in its lower part with a calibrated sieve of a third size lower than the second size, a rotor rotating in said drum and provided with beating blades and a scraper, said beating blades being arranged to separate by beating said fraction of synthetic materials from said fraction of cellulosic materials, and said scraper being arranged to force the passage of said fraction of cellulosic materials through said sieve to be sent to said purification station.

[0033] Said sieve may define a third caliber whose maximum dimension is for example between 4 and 8 mm and preferably equal to 6 mm, and said rotor may be arranged to rotate at high speed between 900 and 1000 rpm.

[0034] Said purification station may advantageously comprise at least one flotation tank for separating the floating light materials from said fraction of cellulosic materials, and at least one purifier for separating the cellulosic fibers from said fraction of cellulosic materials before returning them in the form of pulp to said paper pulp preparation circuit.

[0035] Said installation may comprise, downstream of said cellulose sorting station, a compactor arranged to treat said fraction of synthetic materials so that it can be recovered. In this case, it may comprise upstream of said compactor, a synthetic sorting station arranged to separate by difference in mass density the heavy fraction from the light fraction of said synthetic materials. Summary description of the drawings:

[0036] The present invention and its advantages will appear better in the following description of an embodiment given by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawings, in which: there figure 1 is a schematic view of the treatment and recovery installation according to the invention, the figure 2 is a schematic view of a metal crusher forming part of the installation according to the invention, the figure 3 is a schematic view of a universal crusher forming part of the installation according to the invention, the figure 4 is a schematic view of a centrifuge forming part of the installation according to the invention, and the Figures 5 and 6 are schematic top and side views of the centrifuge of the figure 4 . Illustrations of the invention and best way to carry it out:

[0037] In the illustrated embodiment, identical elements or parts bear the same reference numbers.

[0038] In reference to the figure 1, the installation 1 for processing the final materials of paper mills according to the invention can constitute one or more lines for processing final materials, integrated or not into the paper mills. The figure 1 represents on the left two disintegration machines or pulpers 2 which belong to the paper mills, and from which the final materials M come which are treated by the installation 1 of the invention to allow their separation and their recovery.

[0039] As is known, paper mill pulpers 2 comprise a tank supplied with water and provided with a rotor at the bottom of the tank comprising blades intended to burst and open the bale B of recycled waste paper and cardboard introduced through the opening in the upper part of the tank. The rotation of the rotor will make it possible to crush and disentangle the cellulose fibers or cellulosic fibers which, when added to water, will form a paper pulp, also called pulp P. The term "cellulose fibers" covers the cellulosic fibers and particles intended to form the pulp P when they are mixed with water. This pulp P is extracted from the tank by an outlet pipe 3 to be conveyed to a paper pulp preparation circuit (not shown).The final materials M which remain at the bottom of the tank are loaded with moisture and extracted from the tank by a drain pipe 4, pass through a perforated drum 5, openwork cylinder, or similar to recover more pulp P in order to reinject it into the paper pulp preparation circuit, then are conveyed to the treatment installation 1 by a conveyor belt 6, a conveyor belt or similar. These final materials D are loaded with moisture at a rate at least equal to 50% and preferably between 70 and 80%.

[0040] Depending on the quality or purity of the B bales of recycled old paper and cardboard arriving at the paper mills, the final materials M from the pulpers 2 are more or less loaded with contaminants such as plastics, films, PVC, polystyrene, glues, inks, metals, scrap metal, wood, iron wire or similar.In the remainder of the description, the generic term "MS synthetic materials" is used to designate all non-cellulosic and non-metallic materials contained in the final materials M and which may generally include all synthetic materials and plastic materials in film form or not, and in particular all organic synthetic materials, such as polyamide, polyester, chlorofiber, acrylics, vinyls, elastomers, aramids, polypropylenes, polyethylenes, polylactics, polyureas, polyurethanes, and all mineral synthetic materials, such as glass fibers, carbon fibers, boron fibers, etc. these lists are of course not exhaustive.The term "metallic materials MM" is also used to designate all non-cellulosic and non-synthetic materials contained in the final materials M and which may generally include iron and its alloys, aluminum and its alloys, copper and its alloys, and in particular all metallic elements of the Mendeleev classification. Finally, the term "cellulosic materials MS" is used to designate all non-synthetic and non-metallic materials in the final materials M and which may include, for example, wood, cellulose fibers, straw, cotton, etc. This list is not exhaustive. Thus, the final materials M may contain at least a fraction of cellulosic materials MC, a fraction of synthetic materials MS and a fraction of metallic materials MM. It happens that during the disintegration of the bales B in the pulpers, a part of the final materials M in the form of fibers, wires, films, cables, etc.intertwines and forms one or more strands T which, given their dimensions, cannot be evacuated through the drain pipe 4 and are extracted from the tank through its opening in the upper part by means of a grapple 7. The strands T are conveyed to the treatment installation 1 by a conveyor belt 6, a conveyor belt or similar.

[0041] In the example shown, which is intended to be as exhaustive as possible since the said ultimate materials M comprise strands T and magnetic and non-magnetic metallic materials, as well as a wide variety of pollutants, the treatment installation 1 comprises: a first hopper 10 arranged to receive the strands T, and located upstream of a grinding and / or shredding station 11 for metals, a grinding and / or shredding station 11 for metals arranged to reduce the strands T into calibrated pieces according to a caliber C1 hereinafter called “first caliber C1”, a second hopper 12 arranged to receive on the one hand the strands reduced into TC1 pieces and on the other hand the ultimate materials M loaded with moisture from the pulpers 2, this second hopper 12 being located downstream of the grinding and / or shredding station 11 for metals and upstream of a universal grinding and / or shredding station 13, a universal grinding and / or shredding station 13 arranged to mix and reduce the strands into TC1 pieces and the humid ultimate materials M according to a caliber C2, hereinafter called “second caliber C2”, even if the crushing and / or shredding station 11 for metals is not present in the installation,the second caliber C2 being obviously smaller than the first caliber C1, a vibrating conveyor 14 located downstream of the universal crushing and / or shredding station 13 and arranged to distribute and spread the mixed final materials reduced into MC2 parcels over the entire width of said conveyor in order to facilitate the sorting operations which follow, a magnetic metal sorting station 15, arranged above and perpendicular to the vibrating conveyor 14, and arranged to extract by magnetic attraction the parcels of magnetic metal materials MM contained in the MC2 final materials, a first conveyor belt 16 located downstream of the magnetic metal sorting station 15 and upstream of a metal cleaning station 17 arranged to convey the parcels of magnetic metal materials MM contained in the MC2 final materials, a metal cleaning station 17,arranged to remove said parcels of magnetic metallic materials MM still containing cellulosic materials MC and synthetic materials MS, a second conveyor belt 18 located downstream of the cleaning station 17 and arranged to convey the clean or pure parcels of magnetic (ferrous) metallic materials MM into a recovery bin 19 for recycling, for example in the steel industry or similar depending on their nature, a third conveyor belt 20 located downstream of the metal cleaning station 17 and upstream of the second hopper 12, and arranged to recirculate in the treatment installation 1 the parcels of unfit magnetic metallic materials MM still containing cellulosic materials MC and synthetic materials MS, a non-magnetic metallic sorting station 21 located downstream of the vibrating conveyor 14,and arranged to extract by magnetic repulsion the parcels of non-magnetic (non-ferrous) metallic materials MM contained in the final materials MC2, a recovery bin 22 located downstream of the second non-magnetic metallic sorting station 21 and arranged to recover the parcels of non-magnetic (non-ferrous) metallic materials MM for recycling, for example in the steel industry or similar, depending on their nature, a third hopper 23 located downstream of the non-magnetic metallic sorting station 21 and arranged to recover the parcels of cellulosic materials MC and synthetic materials MS contained in the final materials MC2 freed from all the parcels of metallic materials MM, a cellulosic sorting station 24 located downstream of the third hopper 23 and arranged to separate by density the parcels of cellulosic materials MC from the parcels of synthetic materials MS contained in the final materials MC2,for their recycling in the paper pulp preparation circuit of paper mills, a purification station 27 located downstream of the cellulose sorting station 24 and arranged to separate by density the cellulose fibers forming a pulp P from the remaining parcels of cellulose materials MC, a synthetic sorting station 25 located downstream of the cellulose sorting station 24 and arranged to separate by density the parcels of synthetic materials MS contained in the final materials MC2, for their recycling in plastics processing or similar depending on their nature, a recovery bin 26 for the final waste DU located downstream of the synthetic sorting station 25 corresponding to the non-recoverable final materials M.

[0042] The invention is of course not limited to this example of treatment installation 1, which is intended to be exhaustive, given that depending on the composition of the final materials M, the presence of one or the other station may not be essential. For example, the first hopper 10 and the grinding station 11 for metals may not be present if the final materials M are free of strands T. Similarly, one of the metal sorting stations 15, 21 may not be present if the final materials M are free of magnetic or non-magnetic metal materials.

[0043] Then, the schematic representation of the treatment plant 1 at the figure 1does not illustrate all the means allowing the routing of the final materials M from one station to another. This routing can be carried out for any suitable means of transport such as conveyor belts, chutes, conduits, and the like. These means of transport are adapted according to the stations to be loaded and unloaded, the configuration that one wishes to give to the treatment installation 1 and the available space. Similarly, the schematic representation of the treatment installation 1 at figure 1does not illustrate the water circuit which allows the recovery of water from the final materials M at the various treatment stations, in particular at the cellulosic sorting station 24. This circuit for recycling water from the final materials M and reinjecting it into these final materials M thus avoids the need for additional water. This circuit can also be connected to the recycling circuit for water from the industrial process of paper mills and / or to the water network to be able to top up with water if the humidity level of the final materials M should be insufficient.

[0044] This treatment plant 1 has the advantage of allowing the separation between cellulose fibres, MC cellulosic materials, MS synthetic materials and MM metallic materials, without the addition of water or with little water, and without unnecessary energy input, in order to be able to recover each of these materials in a recycling circuit. In particular, cellulose fibres can be recycled immediately by reinjecting them directly into the paper pulp preparation circuit of the paper mill when treatment plant 1 is an integral part of the paper mill.

[0045] Of course, the processing facility 1 can be separate, or even remote from the paper mill. In this case, it is necessary to provide adequate means of packaging and transporting the final materials D on the one hand and the various sorted materials resulting from these final materials D on the other.

[0046] The various stations constituting the treatment installation 1 described with reference to the figure 1 will now be described with reference to preferred embodiments.

[0047] In reference to the figure 2, the grinding and / or shredding station 11 for metals comprises at least one metal grinder and / or shredder 110 of a known type and particularly suitable for grinding, shredding and shearing metal masses, such as the strands T from the final materials M in order to transform them into pieces of a caliber C1, called in the following “first caliber”. In the remainder of the description, the term “grinder” covers both grinders and shredders which perform substantially the same work. This metal grinder 110 comprises in a known manner a shear rotor 111 provided with cutting blades, cooperating with cutting counter-blades 112 provided on a fixed frame. Its shear rotor 111 is designed to rotate at low speed and for example at a speed of the order of 20 rpm and to develop a high power of the order of 250 kW thanks to its drive by a hydraulic motor, without these values ​​being limiting.It comprises an inlet mouth 113 provided upstream of the shear rotor 111 and on which the first hopper 10 is arranged, as well as an outlet mouth 114 provided downstream of said rotor to create a flow of material which moves under the effect of gravity perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the shear rotor 111. This metal crusher 110 is designed to admit at the inlet strands T whose largest dimension is at most equal to 600 mm. It is specially completed by a fixed cutting grid 115, located downstream of the shear rotor 111 and upstream of the outlet mouth 114, and arranged to define the first caliber C1 of the parcels obtained after crushing. Thus, the strands T are shredded into parcels whose largest dimension is at most equal to 250 mm. These values ​​are given as an example and are not limiting.

[0048] In reference to the figure 3, the universal grinding and / or shredding station 13 comprises at least one universal grinder and / or shredder 130 of a known type and particularly suitable for grinding, shredding and shearing any type of material, such as that contained in the ultimate materials M loaded with moisture, with or without the addition of strands reduced into TC1 parcels, in order to transform these mixed ultimate materials into parcels of a caliber C2, which is obviously lower than the first caliber C1. This caliber C2 is called in the remainder of the description “second caliber” even if there is no first caliber C1 when the treatment installation does not comprise a grinding and / or shredding station 11 for metals. Here again and in the remainder of the description, the term “grinder” covers both grinders and shredders which do substantially the same work.This universal crusher 130 comprises, in a known manner, a shear rotor 131 provided with cutting blades, cooperating with cutting counter-blades 132 provided on a fixed frame. Its shear rotor 131 is designed to rotate at a speed higher than that of the metal crusher 110, for example of the order of 300 rpm, and to develop a power a little less strong than that of the metal crusher 110, of the order of 220 kW thanks to its drive by two combined electric motors, without these values ​​being limiting. It comprises an inlet mouth 133 provided upstream of the shear rotor 131 and on which the second hopper 12 is arranged, as well as an outlet mouth 134 provided downstream of said rotor to create a flow of material which moves under the effect of gravity perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the shear rotor 131.This universal shredder 130 is designed to admit at the inlet materials whose largest dimension is at most equal to 250mm. It is specially supplemented by a fixed perforated grid 135, located downstream of the shear rotor 131 and upstream of the outlet mouth 134, and arranged to define the second caliber C2 of the parcels obtained after shredding. Thus, the final mixed materials M and TC1 are shredded into parcels whose largest dimension is at most equal to 80mm. These values ​​are given as an example and are not limiting. However, the choice of the second caliber C2 determines the quality of the sorting operations which follow. It must not be too large (beyond 100-120mm) to allow separation by density between the cellulosic materials MC and the synthetic materials MS at the cellulosic sorting station 24.It must not be too small (below 40-50mm) to avoid clogging of MS synthetic materials with MC cellulosic materials at cellulosic sorting station 24.

[0049] At the outlet of the universal grinding station 13, the final mixed materials reduced to MC2 particles are discharged onto a vibrating conveyor 14 of a known type, on which the particles of mixed materials will, under the effect of the vibrations, spread out and be distributed in a thin layer over the entire width of the conveyor to allow effective separation of the fraction of metallic materials MM from the other fractions of synthetic materials MS and cellulosic materials MC.

[0050] Depending on the nature of the known metallic materials MM in the ultimate materials M, the separation of the fraction of metallic materials MM can be carried out by means of two sorting stations 15, 21 to dissociate among the metallic materials MM, the magnetic or ferromagnetic metallic materials, and the non-magnetic or non-magnetic or non-ferrous metallic materials. With reference to the figure 1, the magnetic metal sorting station 15 comprises at least one magnetic separator, known as an "overband", which allows the sorting of magnetic metal materials. A fixed magnetic system, such as a permanent magnet, is located inside a frame around which a discharge belt driven by a geared motor rotates. The magnetic separator is placed above the vibrating conveyor 14 and preferably perpendicular to its direction of travel. Under the effect of the magnetic attraction, the parcels of ferromagnetic materials carried by the vibrating conveyor 14 are drawn out of the vibrating conveyor 14. As soon as the magnetic attraction ceases, they then fall back, either into a hopper or onto the first conveyor belt 16.

[0051] The parcels of mixed materials which remain on the vibrating conveyor 14 and which have been freed from the parcels of ferromagnetic materials, are then discharged onto a conveyor belt equipped with the non-magnetic metal sorting station 21. Still with reference to the figure 1, the non-magnetic metal sorting station 21 comprises at least one eddy current separator which allows the sorting of non-magnetic metal materials. An eddy current separator uses a variable magnetic field inductor arranged near the conveyor belt to separate the parcels of materials reacting to an electromagnetic flux from the others. More precisely, the parcels of non-magnetic metal materials, such as aluminum, magnesium, etc., are ejected and fall into a recovery bin 22, and the parcels of synthetic materials are inert and fall from the conveyor belt under the effect of gravity, either into a recovery bin or into a third hopper 23. The parcels of non-magnetic metal materials contained in the recovery bin 22 can be recovered and recycled through dedicated channels.

[0052] The parcels of magnetic metallic materials, sorted at the magnetic metallic sorting station 15, will undergo further cleaning to remove any remaining stuck particles of synthetic and cellulosic materials in order to guarantee their purity. The cleaning station 17 comprises at least one cleaning screen provided with a vibrating perforated cloth with a size corresponding to the second size C2. Under the effect of the vibrations, the parcels of metallic materials bounce and collide, causing the other parcels of non-metallic materials to detach. The clean parcels of metallic materials fall through the perforated vibrating cloth onto a second conveyor belt 18 and then into a recovery bin 19, and will be able to be recovered and recycled directly in the steel industry.The other parcels of non-metallic materials as well as the parcels of unsuitable magnetic metallic materials are evacuated via the third conveyor belt 20 and returned to the second hopper 12 feeding the second grinding station 13 to undergo the grinding operation once again. Of course, this cleaning station 17 can also be provided downstream of the non-magnetic metallic sorting station 21.

[0053] The cellulosic sorting station 24 comprises at least one centrifuge 240 fed with the final materials reduced to MC2 particles, completely freed from the fraction of metallic materials MM. The example shown in figure 1shows several centrifuges 240 in parallel, and in particular three units. Of course, this example is not exhaustive, the number of centrifuges being able to vary according to the volume of final materials to be treated. The final materials MC2 only comprise the fraction of synthetic materials MS and the fraction of cellulosic materials MC. They are conveyed from the third hopper 23 located downstream of the metal sorting stations 15, 21, inside the centrifuge 240 by a feed screw 241, which can be an Archimedes screw or similar. The centrifuge 240 is also supplied with recycled water which comes from the final materials M, and possibly from the industrial process of the paper mills, and where appropriate from the water network.It is designed to separate the MS synthetic material fraction from the MC cellulosic material fraction by their density (volumetric weight), so that the lighter MS synthetic material fraction is recovered by suction and the heavier MC cellulosic material fraction mixed with water is recovered by gravity. To allow for optimal separation, the moisture content of the MC2 ultimate materials is important, and must be at least between 60 and 80% and preferably between 68 and 70%. Similarly, to allow for optimal separation, the size of the material parcels is important. It must not be too small to prevent the MS synthetic and MC cellulosic material parcels from agglomerating together in a paste or sludge, and it must not be too large to be able to separate the MS synthetic material parcels from the MC cellulosic materials, as previously mentioned.This cellulosic sorting station 24 thus constitutes the main element of the treatment installation 1 according to the invention because it makes it possible to recover up to 99.9% of the cellulosic materials MC contained in the ultimate materials M thanks to the grinding and sorting of the ultimate materials M carried out upstream.

[0054] With particular reference to figures 4 to 6, the centrifuge 240 comprises a fixed drum 242 into which the feed screw 241 opens, and a screen 243 in the lower part defining a third caliber C3, obviously smaller than the second caliber C2. This third caliber C3 can be between 4 and 8 mm and preferably equal to 6 mm, without these values ​​being limiting. It further comprises a rotor 244 movable in rotation inside the drum 242 and arranged to rotate at high speed, for example between 900 and 1000 rpm. This rotor 244 is equipped with beating blades 245 and a scraper 246. When the rotor 244 rotates, the beating blades 245 have the effect of stirring the ultimate materials MC2, striking them and separating them by their density by causing the heaviest materials, namely the cellulosic materials MC, to fall into the bottom of the drum 242 towards the sieve 243, and by keeping the lightest materials, namely the synthetic materials MS, in suspension.Meanwhile, the scraper 246, which in contact with the inner wall of the drum 242, has the effect of forcing the cellulosic materials MC to pass through the sieve 243 while ensuring the automatic unclogging of the sieve 243.

[0055] The reduced cellulosic materials MCC3 and loaded with water form a paste which is extracted from the centrifuge 240 by an outlet pipe 247 towards a purification station, which may comprise at least one flotation tank 26 and a purifier 27. The purpose of the flotation tank 26 is to separate the floating light materials likely to be contained and / or agglomerated in the paste, such as glues, polystyrene, wood, etc. from the cellulose fibers. It comprises for example two superimposed compartments, separated by a calibrated grid. The heavy materials (cellulose fibers and water mixed) fall to the bottom by passing through the grid, and are evacuated by a pump towards the purifier 27. The light materials in suspension are recovered by an Archimedes screw and evacuated, in particular towards the recovery tank 26 for the ultimate waste DU.Then the purifier 27 makes it possible to purify the cellulose fibers in order to remove the last contaminants before returning the cellulose fibers with added water in the form of pulp P to the paper mill pulp preparation circuit. It comprises, for example, a calibrated cylindrical screen, in which a rotor equipped with blades rotates to press the pulp P through the screen. The screen may have a size between 0.10 and 0.20 mm and preferably 0.16 mm without these values ​​being limiting. The residual materials remaining in the purifier 27 are evacuated, in particular towards the recovery tank 26 for the ultimate waste DU. The purification station may also comprise an additional tank 31, called a “vat”, which receives the pulp from the flotation tank 26 and water from the industrial paper mill process in order to adapt the water concentration of the pulp for the operation of the purifier 27.

[0056] The other remaining materials, under the terminology MS synthetic materials, are extracted from the centrifuge 240 by a suction unit 248 connected to the drum 242 by an extraction conduit 249 towards a synthetic sorting station 25. This synthetic sorting station 25 comprises at least one air separator, of a known type, which has the purpose of separating the MS synthetic materials by their weight. The example shown in figure 1shows several synthetic sorting stations 25 allowing several sorting levels, including three stations in parallel at the outlet of the centrifuges 240 ensuring a first sorting level, and a downstream station ensuring a second sorting level. Of course, this example is not limiting, the number of synthetic sorting stations 25 and the number of sorting levels can vary depending on the volume to be processed. The parcels of heavy synthetic materials, such as for example polyvinyl chlorides (PVC), high-density polystyrenes (HDPS), etc., fall into a chute and are collected in a recovery tank 28 for further treatment in a dedicated line which is not part of the invention. And the parcels of light synthetic materials, such as polypropylenes, polyethylenes, expanded polystyrenes, etc., are entrained in an air flow and sent into a compactor 29, of a known type, where they pass between two discs which, by friction, will heat the synthetic material to compact it and consequently reduce its volume. An air circulation makes it possible to maintain the temperature at a value chosen according to the synthetic material to be compacted. The treatment installation 1 further comprises a granulator grinder 30, of a known type, downstream of the compactor 29, to transform the compacted synthetic material into granules of homogeneous particle size, which are then packaged in large flexible bags, called big-bags, or similar, with a view to being recovered and recycled in plastics processing, in particular in extrusion. Application possibilities industrial:

[0057] The treatment installation 1 according to the invention is of course industrializable and can constitute one or more treatment lines, integrated or not in the industrial process of paper mills. It can also be extended to other non-paper industries which seek to reduce their costs of evacuation of the final materials produced. As an example, it is possible to cite the food industries faced with the recycling of complex food containers, which can include cellulose fibers, polyethylene films and aluminum barrier films.

[0058] It is clear from this description that treatment facility 1 and its associated treatment process meet the set objectives, namely an ecological and economical industrial solution, making it possible to recycle and recover almost all of the final materials from paper mills, thus bringing industries, particularly paper, into the virtuous circle of the circular economy.

[0059] The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described but extends to any modification and variant obvious to a person skilled in the art while remaining within the claimed scope. In particular, the equipment making it possible to produce the treatment installation 1 according to the invention is described as non-limiting examples.

Claims

1. Method for treating final materials derived from paper mills, these final materials (M) being collected at the outlet of disintegration machines, called pulpers (2), arranged to comminute, disintegrate, triturate recycled waste paper and cardboard to extract therefrom a paper stock (P) composed of cellulose fibres and water which will feed a paper stock preparation circuit, these final materials (M) further comprising cellulose fibres contaminated with various materials containing at least one fraction of metallic materials (MM), one fraction of synthetic materials (MS) and one fraction of cellulose materials (MC), method in which said final materials (M) loaded with moisture to more than 50% by mass are recovered, in which the treatment operations of said method are carried out on said final materials (M) loaded with moisture, and in which, among said treatment operations, at least the following operations are carried out chronologically: 1) shredding and / or comminuting said final materials (M) loaded with moisture into calibrated packages, 2) mechanically separating said fraction of metallic materials (MM) from said final materials (M), in order to be able to recover it at least partially in the steel industry, 3) mechanical separating said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), to be able to recover it at least in plastics processing, and 4) mechanical separating the cellulose fibres from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), to be able to recover them by reinjecting them into said circuit for preparing the paper stock of the paper mills.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterised in that said final materials (M) loaded with moisture are collected in an amount of 70 to 80% by weight.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said final materials further comprise strands (T) formed from wire-like metallic materials and extracted from said pulpers (2), characterised in that, among said treatment operations, an operation of shredding and / or comminuting said strands (T) into packages of a gauge (Cl) corresponding to a maximum size of between 150 and 300mm, and preferably equal to 250mm, is carried out, and in that said strands reduced into packages (TC1) are added to said final materials (M) loaded with moisture.

4. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that an operation of shredding and / or comminuting said final materials (M, TC1) into packages of a size (C2), corresponding to a maximum dimension of between 60 and 100mm, and preferably equal to 80mm, is carried out.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterised in that a first operation of separating said final materials reduced into packages (MC2) is carried out, in which said fraction of metallic materials (MM) is mechanically separated from the other fractions of synthetic materials (MS) and cellulosic materials (MC).

6. The method according to claim 5, characterised in that, to carry out said first separation operation, the difference in magnetism of said materials is used, and the process is carried out in two steps in which, on the one hand, the packages of magnetic metallic materials (MM) and, on the other hand, the packages of non-magnetic metallic materials (MM) are separated.

7. The method according to any one of claims 5 and 6, characterised in that, after said first separation operation, a cleaning step is carried out by mechanical vibration to get the said packages of magnetic and / or non-magnetic metallic materials (MM) rid of other remaining cellulosic (MC) and synthetic (MS) materials, and said fraction of cleaned metallic materials (MM) is collected in order to recover it in dedicated industries.

8. The method according to claim 4, characterised in that a second operation is carried out for separating said final materials reduced into packages(MC2) rid of said fraction of metallic materials (MM), in which said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) is separated from the other fraction of synthetic materials (MS).

9. The method according to claim 8, characterised in that, in order to carry out the second separation operation, the difference in the mass density of said materials is used, and, on the one hand, the fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) which falls by gravity and, on the other hand, the fraction of synthetic materials (MS) which remains in suspension are collected by suction.

10. The method according to Claim 9, characterised in that, in order to carry out said second separation operation, said fraction of cellulose materials (MC) loaded with water is carried out by centrifugation in the presence of water and by simultaneous beating, said fraction of cellulose materials (MC) loaded with water falling through a sieve of a gauge (C3) corresponding to a maximum size of between 4 and 8mm and preferably equal to 6mm, and in that the reduced fraction of cellulose materials (MCC3) is conveyed to said paper stock preparation circuit of the paper mills.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterised in that the fraction of reduced cellulosic materials (MCC3) is passed through a scrubber (27) to mechanically separate the cellulose fibres forming a pulp (P) from said reduced fraction of cellulosic materials (MCC3) for recover them by reinjecting them into said paper stock preparation circuit of the paper mills.

12. The method according to claim 9, characterised in that the fraction of synthetic materials (MS) collected by suction is conveyed to a compactor (29) and a granulating mill (30) to recover them.

13. The method according to Claim 12, characterised in that, before the fraction of synthetic materials (MS) is conveyed to a compactor (29) and a granulating mill (30) to recover them, the heavy fraction is separated from the light fraction of said synthetic materials (MS).

14. A treatment plant (1) of final materials derived from paper mills, these final materials (M) being collected at the outlet of disintegration machines, called pulpers (2), arranged to comminute, disintegrate, triturate recycled waste paper and cardboard to extract therefrom a paper stock (P) composed of cellulose fibres and water which will feed a paper stock preparation circuit, these final materials (M) further comprising cellulose fibres contaminated with various materials containing at least one fraction of metallic materials (MM), one fraction of synthetic materials (MS) and one fraction of cellulose materials (MC), said treatment plant being arranged to carry out the treatment method according to any one of the preceding claims and to work on final materials (M) loaded with moisture at more than 50% by mass and preferably between 70 and 80% by mass, and said plant comprising at least: 1) a shredding and / or comminuting station (11, 13) arranged to shred and / or to comminute said ultimate materials (M) loaded with moisture into calibrated packages, 2) a metal sorting station (15, 21) arranged to mechanically separate said fraction of metallic materials (MM) from said final materials (M), to be able to recover it at least partially in the steel industry, 3) a cellulosic sorting station (24) arranged to mechanically separate said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) in order to be able to recover it, at least in plastics processing, from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), and 4) a purification station (27) arranged to mechanically separate the cellulose fibres from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), to be able to recover them by reinjecting them into said circuit for preparing the paper stock of the paper mills.

15. The plant according to claim 14, said final materials further comprising strands (T) formed from wire-like metallic materials and extracted from said pulpers (2), characterised in that said plant comprises at least one shredding and / or comminuting station (11) for metals arranged to shred and / or comminute said strands (T) into packages of a gauge (C1), the maximum size of which is of between 150 and 300mm, and preferably equal to 250mm, and means for adding said strands reduced in packages (TC1) to the final materials (M) loaded with moisture.

16. The plant according to claim 15, characterised in that said metal shredding and / or comminuting station (11) comprises at least one metal shredder and / or comminutor (110) provided with a shear rotor (111) completed by a fixed cutting grid (115) located downstream of said shear rotor and defining said gauge (C1).

17. The plant according to claim 16, characterised in that the shear rotor (111) of said metal shredder and / or comminutor (110) is arranged to rotate at a low rotational speed of the order of 20rpm, deploy a high power of the order of 250kW; and process strands (T) whose maximum size is less than or equal to 600mm.

18. The plant according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterised in that it comprises at least one universal shredding and / or comminuting station (13) arranged to shred said final materials (M, TC1) into packages of a gauge (C2), the maximum size of which is between 60 and 100mm, and preferably equal to 80mm.

19. The plant according to claim 18, characterised in that said universal shredding and / or comminuting station (13) comprises at least one universal shredder and / or comminutor (130) provided with a shear rotor (131) and completed by a fixed perforated grid (135) located downstream of said shear rotor (131) and defining said gauge (C2).

20. The plant according to claim 18, characterised in that said metal sorting station comprises a magnetic metal sorting station (15) comprising at least one magnetic field separator arranged to separate said fraction of magnetic metallic materials (MM) from the other fractions of non-magnetic metallic materials (MM), synthetic material (MS) and cellulosic material (MC) contained in said final materials reduced in packages (MC2).

21. The plant according to claim 18, characterised in that said metal sorting station comprises a non-magnetic metal sorting station (21) comprising at least one eddy current separator arranged to separate said fraction of non-magnetic metallic materials (MM) from the other fractions of magnetic metallic materials (MM), synthetic materials (MS) and cellulosic materials (MC) contained in said final materials reduced into packages(MC2).

22. The plant according to any one of claims 20 and 21, characterised in that it comprises at least one vibrating conveyor (14) downstream of said universal shredding station (13), and in that said magnetic metal sorting station (15) and / or said non-magnetic metal sorting station (21) are located in the path of said vibrating conveyor (14).

23. The plant according to claim 22, characterised in that it comprises, downstream of said magnetic metal sorting station (15) and / or said non-magnetic metal sorting station (21), a cleaning station (17) provided with a perforated vibrating belt arranged to get the fraction of metal materials (MM) rid of the other fractions of synthetic materials (MS) and cellulosic materials (MC) remaining.

24. The plant according to claim 18, characterised in that said cellulosic sorting station (24) comprises at least one centrifuge (240) supplied with water and with said final materials reduced in packages (MC2) rid of said fraction of metallic materials (MM), said centrifuge being arranged to separate said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) by difference in mass density, such that said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) is collected by suction and said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) mixed with water is collected by gravity.

25. The plant according to claim 24, characterised in that said centrifuge (240) comprises a fixed drum (242) provided in its lower part with a calibrated screen (243), a rotor (244) rotating in said drum (242) and provided with beating blades (245) and a scraper (246), said beating blades (245) being arranged to separate by beating said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), and said scraper (246) being arranged to force the passage of said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) through said screen (243) to be sent to the purification station (27).

26. The plant according to claim 25, characterised in that said screen (243) defines a gauge (C3) the maximum dimension of which is of between 4 and 8mm and preferably equal to 6mm.

27. The plant according to claim 25, characterised in that said rotor (244) is arranged to rotate at high speed between 900 and 1000rpm.

28. The plant according to claim 14, characterised in that said purification station comprises at least one flotation tank (26) for separating the floating light materials from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC), and at least one scrubber (27) for mechanically separating the cellulosic fibres from said fraction of cellulosic materials (MC) before returning them in the form of pulp (P) to said paper stock preparation circuit.

29. The plant according to claim 24, characterised in that it comprises, downstream of said cellulosic sorting station (24), a compactor (29) arranged to treat said fraction of synthetic materials (MS) so that it is recovered.

30. The plant according to claim 28, characterised in that it comprises upstream of said compactor (29), a synthetic sorting station (25) arranged to separate by mass density difference the heavy fraction from the light fraction of said synthetic materials (MS).