A method and system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method (100) for obtaining a purified textile material (10) from a mixed textile stream (MS). The method comprises discriminating (110a) a first type of textile material using a near infrared spectroscopy system. Diverting (110b) said first type of textile material into a first textile material fraction (2). Discriminating (111a) said first type of textile material in the first textile material fraction. Diverting (111b) said first type of textile material into a cleaned first textile material fraction (3). Reducing (120) a material item size of material in the cleaned first textile material fraction. Subsequent to reducing (120) the material item size, discriminating (130a) material different from the first type of textile material. Diverting (130b) said material thereby obtaining the purified textile material. The present disclosure further relates to a system (1) for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream.

Description

[0001] A METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR OBTAINING A PURIFIED TEXTILE MATERIAL FROM A MIXED TEXTILE STREAM, SUCH AS A STREAM OF SINGULATED GARMENT

[0002] Field of invention

[0003] The present invention generally relates to method for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment. The present invention also generally relates to a system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment.

[0004] Technical Background

[0005] Textiles are used for a wide range of different products, where one of the most common is clothes. There is a high demand for new clothes and textile products, resulting in the industry producing more and more new products. Producing new textiles from raw materials requires a lot of water and energy and even more to produce a finished textile product. The high demand for new clothes and products made of textiles result in a growing amount of textile waste that needs to be handled.

[0006] One solution for decreasing the energy and water consumption of the textile industry is to donate used textiles and thereby allow them to be reused, or to be used in new ways. However, the vast majority of used textiles eventually end up in a dump, such as a landfill. Another way of handling textile waste is through recycling. By recycling the textile material it may be reused and the processing of raw material for the production of new textiles may partly be avoided. Hence, it may also be avoided that the used textiles end up in a landfill. Recycling also decreases the energy and water consumption compared to producing a new product.

[0007] However, to be able to reuse the recycled textile material it is necessary that the quality of the recycled textile material is as high as possible. A high quality may be achieved by sorting mixed textile materials dependent on their material, e.g. cotton or acrylics, or by sorting them dependent on their colour. Today the sorting may be done manually or by robots. Existing methods are, however, generally too labour-intensive and expensive. Furthermore, the existing methods are not able to sort the textile material into fractions with high enough purity. Therefore, there is a need for a more accurate method for sorting a mixed textile stream into fractions with higher purity levels and an overall textile recycling method which is both effective and efficient, as well as providing higher profit margins.

[0008] Summary of the invention

[0009] In view of the above, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide an improved method for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment.

[0010] It is also an object of the present disclosure to provide an improved system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment.

[0011] It is also an object to provide a solution that addresses at least some of the issues described above, namely, to recover or sort a mixed textile stream into different fractions with a higher precision, creating higher purity levels of a desired textile material as compared to prior art solutions.

[0012] A further object is to provide a method that is able to sort out textile material from other types of material with a higher efficiency and in a generally more cost-efficient way.

[0013] To achieve at least one of the above objects, and also other objects that will be evident from the following description, a method having the steps defined in claim 1 is provided according to the present disclosure. Preferred variants of the method will be evident from the dependent claims.

[0014] More specifically, there is provided according to a first aspect a method for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment, said method comprising, discriminating a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream into a first textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream, discriminating said first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction into a cleaned first textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the first textile material fraction, reducing a material item size of material in the cleaned first textile material fraction, subsequent to reducing the material item size, discriminating material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction thereby obtaining the purified textile material.

[0015] The method is advantageous in that the third step of discriminating and the third step of diverting are performed subsequent to the step of reducing the material size, as the step of reducing the material size may separate impurities such as zippers, buttons, or other types of material from the textile material that is intended to be in the first textile material fraction. Thus, the third step of discriminating and the third step diverting are able to sort out impurities from the first textile material fraction. By sorting out impurities from the first textile material fraction the purity of the obtained purified textile material may be further increased.

[0016] It is also advantageous to subject the textile material to the second step of discriminating and to the second step of diverting the material subsequent to the first step of discriminating and the first step of diverting as it further increases the purity of the first textile material fraction. The first step of discriminating and the first step of diverting are performed when all different types of textile material and potentially other materials are in the mixed textile stream. Therefore, there may be material items that are missed by the discrimination steps due to accidently stacking or that the material item is incorrectly diverted due to said stacking or, due to an error in the discrimination, or for any other reason that may occur. Thus, by providing the second discriminating and the second diverting step incorrectly sorted materials may be discriminated and then diverted from the first textile material fraction, which further increases the purity of the first textile material fraction. It is generally advantageous with a high purity of the obtained purified textile material as it may allow the purified textile material to be recycled and reused for the same kind of product again. If the purity is too low, it may not be possible to recycle and reuse the purified textile material for the same sort of products. In other words, a satisfactory level of purity is of essence when recycling textiles. Each time a material is recycled the quality of the material may be decreased. The decrease of quality is dependent of the purity levels of the purified textile material. A higher purity level results in a lower level of quality decrease. With a high purity level, plastic textiles may for example be possible to recycle into virgin plastic through a polymerisation process.

[0017] The mixed textile material stream typically comprises different types of textile garments, such as clothes, curtains, and the like. However, it is to be noted that the mixed textile material stream may also comprise other materials not necessarily being textile materials. Such other materials are typically undesired and will thus be diverted so as to not end up in the purified textile material. In practice, the mixed textile material stream is mainly made up of textile garments. Thus, the content of the mixed textile material stream will also be referred to as textile garments. The textile garments typically enter the first step of discriminating one and one as singulated garments or singulated textile material items. By discriminating singulated garments the level of precision in the steps of discriminating and the steps of diverting may be further increased.

[0018] The step of discriminating may be set to sort a specific type of material, or a colour, or a combination of these two. Each step of diverting is based on the information from the pre-sequent step of discriminating such that the steps of diverting divert the already discriminated first type of textile material. By diverting it is meant that the discriminated type of textile material is separated from the other types of material in the mixed textile stream. It may also be the other types of material that is separated from the discriminated type of material. At the first and second steps of discriminating and first and second steps of diverting the mixed textile stream typically comprises complete garments that are discriminated and thereafter diverted. In the third step of discriminating and the third step of diverting the complete garments have been reduced in size and therefore these two steps do not handle complete garments but instead smaller parts of each garment.

[0019] The method may further comprise, discriminating a second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, into a second textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the mixed textile stream from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, discriminating said second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second textile material fraction into a cleaned second textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the second textile material fraction, reducing a material item size of material in the cleaned second textile material fraction, subsequent to reducing the material item size, discriminating material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction thereby obtaining a second purified textile material.

[0020] It may be advantageous to add a step of discriminating and a step of diverting for sorting out a second type of textile material from the mixed textile stream since it allows the method to handle more types of material at the same time which further enhances the efficiency of the method. The recycling levels may also be increased through sorting out a second type of textile material. The further steps may also decrease the labour intensity of the method because of the decrease of necessity to repeat the method with new types of textile material that was not of the first type of textile material.

[0021] The step of discriminating a second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream is performed when the first type of textile material has already been diverted from the mixed textile stream. The second type of textile material that is discriminated and thereafter diverted goes through an equal purifying process as the first type of textile material, however with different settings aiming at purifying the second type of textile material. As an example, the first type of textile material may be of white colour while the second type of textile material may be of another colour. Thus, the settings for the respective discrimination steps are set to match the respective demanded types of textile material. The step of reducing the material size may also have different settings dependent on the type of textile material. In other words, the settings used for the second type of textile material may be different compared to the corresponding settings for the first type of textile material, as an example, the size may differ. The method may further comprise, discriminating a further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, into a further textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the further type of textile material from the mixed textile stream from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, discriminating said further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the further textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the further textile material fraction into a cleaned further textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the further type of textile material from the further textile material fraction, reducing a material item size of material in the cleaned further textile material fraction, subsequent to reducing the material item size, discriminating material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction thereby obtaining a further purified textile material.

[0022] As is understood by the skilled person, the method may be adapted to obtain any needed or desired number of purified textile materials. By sorting out more types of textile materials the method is easily adapted to the kind of sorting system that is required in a specific area or country, thereby further increasing the efficiency of the method. The obtained purified textile material, and if present, the second purified textile material, and if present, the further purified textile material, may have a purity level of 85%, preferably 90% and more preferably 95%.

[0023] The high purity level may ensure or foresee with a high likelihood that the obtained purified textile material or textile materials have quality levels that are high enough to be recycled.

[0024] The first type of textile material, and if present, the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material, may be discriminated based on a main material and / or a main colour of each item in the mixed textile stream for each type of textile material.

[0025] By discriminating the material based on the main material or the main colour of each type of textile material a desired type of textile material may be separated from the mixed textile stream. The sorting based on the main material or / and the main colour may further enhance the possibility to adapt to the desires of e.g. clients.

[0026] The method may further comprises discriminating the first type of textile material, and if present, the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material, from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting the first type of textile material, and if present the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted into a recovery textile material fraction that is re-joined with the initial mixed textile stream.

[0027] It may be advantageous to have a discriminating step and a diverting step of the material in the mixed textile stream subsequent to when all the types of textile material have been diverted. Thereby, material items of each type of textile material may be sorted out and reintroduced into the start of the mixed textile stream. The material items of each type of textile material may because of various reasons not be discriminated or diverted when they should have been. This may be due to stacking of material items which may not allow all of them to be discriminated or due to a miss in a diverting step, or a discriminating step. Thus, providing the material items that were missed under the first step of discrimination and the first step of diverting with a further chance to be discriminated and diverted into the right type of textile material fraction, thereby further enhancing the recycling levels of the method. This loop may continue until the material item is correctly sorted. Therefore, both increasing the effectiveness and the yield of the method.

[0028] The step of reducing a material item size may comprise shredding of material of the first textile material fraction, and if present, material of the second textile material fraction, and if present, material of the further textile material fraction.

[0029] It may be advantageous to use shredding for reducing the size of the material items since it is a well-known and generally cost-efficient method. The shredding may typically be done by a shredder.

[0030] The material items may have a size with a maximum cross-sectional extension that is at most 18 mm, subsequent to the step of reducing the material item size.

[0031] It may be advantageous to reduce the maximum cross-sectional extension to below 18 mm as it may increase the rate of success when discriminating and diverting the type of textile material into the purified textile material. The reduced size may also facilitate the removal of e.g. zippers, buttons and non-textile logos originating from the respective garments in the mixed textile material stream. In practice such zippers, buttons and non-textile logos may also be reduced in size correspondingly to the textile of the textile garments being reduced in size. As complete garment may have different materials at different parts of the garment the reduced size may also increase the chance of a single material in the material items which have been subjected to the size reduction. Therefore the purity of the obtained purified textile material may be further increased.

[0032] The obtained purified textile material , and if present, the obtained second purified textile material, and if present, the obtained further purified textile material , may be one of the group consisting of: cotton, viscose, acrylics, polyester, wool, polyamide, cotton denim, white cotton, a textile material comprising more than 90 % viscose, a textile material comprising more than 90 % acrylics, a textile material comprising more than 90 % cotton, a textile material comprising more than 80 % wool, a material comprising more than 90 % cotton denim, a material comprising more than 90 % white cotton and a material comprising more than 90 % polyester.

[0033] As is understood by the skilled person the method is suitable for obtaining a plurality of different textile material and it may be adapted for other types or other compositions of textile material.

[0034] The discriminating steps may comprise acquiring a spectrum of the type of textile material originating from the mixed textile stream and wherein the diverting steps comprises diverting the type of textile material originating from the mixed textile stream based on the acquired spectrum.

[0035] When the discriminating process acquires a spectrum, it may be compared against a database with spectra or against simplified spectra or by an exclusion method to decide which objects that should be diverted. As an example, the database may have a range of spectrums that are considered as one type of textile material and if the spectrum matches any of these it is diverted. Another example is when simplified spectrums are used, where some properties in the spectrum profile is searched and if the acquired spectrum matches this property it is diverted. The objects that originate from the mixed textile stream may be in the mixed textile stream itself or in any of the subsequent fractions that are sorted e.g. the first type of textile material fraction or the cleaned first type of textile material fraction.

[0036] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream, such as a stream of singulated garment said system comprising; a first classification and sorting arrangement, a cleaning classification and sorting arrangement, a material item size reduction arrangement, and a purifying classification and sorting arrangement, wherein the first classification and sorting arrangement comprising, a first classification and sorting station configured to receive the mixed textile stream, the first classification and sorting station comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream, and an ejection unit configured to divert the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream into a first textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream, wherein the cleaning classification and sorting arrangement comprising, a first cleaning classification and sorting station configured to receive the first textile material fraction from the first classification and sorting arrangement, the first cleaning classification and sorting station comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate said first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction, and an ejection unit configured to divert the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction into a first cleaned textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the first textile material fraction, wherein the material item size reduction arrangement comprises a first shredder configured to receive the first cleaned textile material fraction and to decrease the size of material items in the first cleaned textile material fraction, wherein the purifying classification and sorting arrangement comprising, a first purifying classification and sorting station configured to receive the first cleaned textile material fraction from the material item size reduction arrangement, the first purifying classification and sorting station comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction, and an ejection unit configured to divert material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction, thereby sorting out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction thereby obtaining the purified textile material.

[0037] In general, features of this aspect provide similar advantages as discussed above in relation to the previous aspect of the invention. The features of the method may be provided for the system by themselves or as combination. Consequently, said features and advantages will not be repeated in order to avoid undue repetition.

[0038] The system may be configured to process between 3 and 5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour, and preferably between 4 and 4.5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour.

[0039] A system that is able to process between 3 and 5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour may be advantageous as it is able to process high quantities of mixed textile, thereby is it possible for cities and areas to cooperate when processing and recycling mixed textile materials. Also, large scale advantages, such as a reduced overall labour and / or energy demand may also be achieved.

[0040] A further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given below. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred variants of the present inventive concept, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the scope of the inventive concept will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

[0041] Hence, it is to be understood that this inventive concept is not limited to the particular component parts of the device described as such device may vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for purpose of describing particular variants only and is not intended to be limiting.

[0042] Brief description of the drawings

[0043] The aspects of the present inventive concept, including its particular features and advantages, will be readily understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. The figures are provided to illustrate the general structures of the present inventive concept. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

[0044] Fig. 1 is a flow chart over a system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream.

[0045] Fig. 2 is a flow chart over a system for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream with further stations in the system as compared to the system of Fig. 1 .

[0046] Fig. 3 is a perspective schematic view of a classification and sorting station.

[0047] Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating the different steps in a method for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream.

[0048] Fig. 5 is a flow chart illustrating the different steps in a method for obtaining a purified textile material from a mixed textile stream with further steps in the method as compared to the method of Fig. 4.

[0049] Detailed description of the preferred embodiments

[0050] The present inventive concept will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which currently preferred variants of the inventive concept are shown. This inventive concept may, however, be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the variants set forth herein; rather, these variants are provided for thoroughness and completeness, and fully convey the scope of the present inventive concept to the skilled person. The increasing need of restricting the climate impact from humanity result in a need for circular economy with higher levels of recycling. To obtain a high level of quality in the recycled material it is important that the recycled material has a high purify level, which may be achieved through sorting. Therefore, there is a rise in demand for efficient sorting plants and systems. Fig. 1 illustrates a flow chart of a system 1 for obtaining a purified textile material 10 from a mixed textile stream MS, such as a stream of singulated garments. The mixed textile material stream MS typically comprises different types of textile garments, such as clothes, curtains, and the like. However, it is to be noted that the mixed textile material stream MS may also comprise other materials not necessarily being textile materials. Such other materials are typically undesired and will thus be diverted so as to not end up in the purified textile material 10. In practice, the mixed textile material stream MS is mainly made up of textile garments. Thus, the content of the mixed textile material stream will also be referred to as textile garments.

[0051] The system 1 comprises a first classification and sorting arrangement 20, a cleaning classification and sorting arrangement 30, a material item size reduction arrangement 40, and a purifying classification and sorting arrangement 50. Now also referring to Fig. 3, the first classification and sorting arrangement 20 receives the mixed textiles stream and provides a first sorting. A first classification and sorting station 22 that comprises a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system that discriminates a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS. The textile garments typically enter the classification and sorting station 22 one and one as singulated garments or singulated textile material items. The first classification and sorting station 22 further comprises an ejection unit 224 that diverts the discriminated first type of textile material from the other types of textile material. By diverting it is meant that the discriminated type of textile material is separated from the other types of material in the mixed textile stream. It may also be the other types of material that is separated from the discriminated type of material. The ejection unit 224 of the first classification and sorting station 22 diverts the first type of textile material into a first textile material fraction 2, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream MS. The near infrared spectroscopy system 222 may be set to discriminate the first type of textile material based on a specific type of material, or a colour, or a combination of these two. The ejection unit 224 diverts the first type of textile material based on the information from the pre- sequent near infrared spectroscopy system 222, such that it diverts the already discriminated first type of textile material.

[0052] The other types of textile material from which the first type of textile material has been separated is represented by dotted arrows in the figures. This material may be sorted in another system, or seen as waste, or recycled through another method. The further dotted arrows in the figures will not be described again as them all represent material that has been sorted out from the system 1 .

[0053] The cleaning classification and sorting arrangement 30 comprises a first cleaning classification and sorting station 32 that receives the first textile material fraction 2 from the first classification and sorting arrangement 20. The first cleaning classification and sorting station 32 is generally of the same type as the first classification and sorting station 22. How it works will for the sake of efficiency not be repeated and the classification and sorting stations will be further described in connection to Fig. 3. Any further classification and sorting station that will be mentioned also is of the same type as the classification and sorting station described in connection to Fig. 3. A major difference between the first classification and sorting station 22 and the first cleaning and classification sorting station 32 is that the cleaning and classification sorting station 32 is sorting out other types of material from the first type of textile material fraction 2 thereby obtaining a cleaned first type of textile material fraction 3. The first classification and sorting station 22 handles the complete mixed textile material stream MS, which may result in that there may be material items that are missed by the discrimination due to accidently stacking or that the material item is incorrectly diverted due to said stacking, or due to an error in the discrimination, or for any other reason that may occur. By providing the first cleaning classification and sorting station 32 material that incorrectly ended up in the first type of textile material fraction 2, may be sorted out from the first type of textile material fraction 2. Thus, the purity of the first type of textile material fraction 2 is increased in the cleaned first type of textile material fraction 3.

[0054] The material item size reduction arrangement 40 comprises a first shredder 42 that receives the first cleaned textile material fraction 3 and reduces the size of material items in the first cleaned textile material fraction 3. When the item size reduction arrangement 40 reduces the material size it may separate impurities such as zippers, buttons, or other types of material from the type of textile material that is intended to be in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3. In practice such zippers, buttons and non-textile logos may also be reduced in size correspondingly to the textile of the textile garments being reduced in size. As complete garment may have different materials at different parts of the garment the reduced size may also increase the chance of a single material in the material items which have been subjected to the size reduction. The material items may be reduced to a predetermined size of a maximum cross-sectional extension. The predetermined size may for example be that the maximum cross-sectional extension of the material items is at most 18 mm. However, other sizes may be used to advantage.

[0055] The purifying classification and sorting arrangement 50 comprises, a first purifying classification and sorting station 52 that receives the first cleaned textile material fraction 3 from the material item size reduction arrangement 40. A major difference of the first purifying classification and sorting station 52 compared to the other classification and sorting stations is that the first purifying classification and sorting station 52 sorts out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3, thereby obtaining the purified textile material 10. Another major difference is that the first classification and sorting station 22 and the first cleaning classification and sorting station 32 discriminate and diverts the mixed textile stream MS which typically comprises complete garments. The first purifying classification and sorting station 52 is located subsequent the material item size reduction arrangement 40, which result in that the complete garments have been reduced in size and therefore the first purifying classification and sorting station 52 do not handle complete garments but instead smaller parts of each garment. Thus, the first purifying classification and sorting station 52 is able to sort out impurities from the cleaned first textile material fraction 3. By sorting out impurities from the cleaned first textile material fraction 3 the purity of the obtained purified textile material 10 may be further increased.

[0056] Turning to Fig. 2 an example of the system 1 for obtaining a purified textile material 10 from mixed textile stream MS with further stations, compared to Fig. 1 , in the system 1 is illustrated. The stations that already has been described in connection to Fig. 1 form part of the system 1 in Fig. 2 as well and will not be further described in this section. It should be stressed that the stations in system 1 in Fig. 1 are sufficient to reach a synergy effect when sorting the mixed textile stream MS.

[0057] In Fig. 2 there are examples of which type of stations that may further be part of the system 1. Any one of the stations from Fig. 2 may be a part of the system 1 in Fig. 1 , by themselves or in combination. The stations are illustrated together to facilitate the understanding of the description. The different stations described below may be used alone or in any combination depending on the requirement of the plant in which the system 1 is operating. The classification and sorting stations are generally of the same type as the classification and sorting station described in connection to Fig. 3.

[0058] In Fig. 2, the first classification and sorting arrangement 20 further comprises a second classification and sorting station 23. The second classification and sorting station 23 receives the mixed textile stream MS from the first classification and sorting station 22 and discriminates and diverts a second type of textile material. The second classification and sorting station 23 discriminates and diverts the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS when the first type of textile material has already been diverted from the mixed textile stream MS.

[0059] The second type of textile material has other properties, such as another material composition and / or another colour than the first type of textile material. As an example, the first type of textile material may be of white colour while the second type of textile material may be of another colour, such as red. Thus, the settings for the respective classification and sorting stations are set to match the respective demanded types of textile material. The second classification and sorting station 23 allows the system 1 to sort more types of textile material at once.

[0060] When the second type of textile material is diverted it is sorted into a second type of textile material fraction 4. The second type of textile material fraction 4 is received by a second cleaning classification and sorting station 33 of the cleaning classification and sorting arrangement 30. The second cleaning classification and sorting station 33 discriminates the second type of textile material and diverts the second type of textile material into a cleaned second type of textile material fraction 5. The cleaned second type of textile material fraction 5 is received by a second shredder 44 of the material item size reduction arrangement 40. The second shredder 44 reduces the material item size of the material items in the cleaned second type of textile material fraction 5. Thereby, impurities such as zippers, buttons, or other types of material from the textile material that is not intended to be in the cleaned second textile material fraction 5 may be separated from the garments. When the size of the material items of the cleaned second type of textile material fraction 5 has been reduced, the cleaned second type of textile material fraction 5 is received by a second purifying classification and sorting station 54 of the purifying classification and sorting arrangement 50.

[0061] A major difference of the second purifying classification and sorting station 54 compared to the other classification and sorting stations is that the second purifying classification and sorting station 54 sorts out material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction 5 thereby obtaining a second purified textile material 12.

[0062] The classification and sorting arrangement 20 further comprises a further classification and sorting station 24 that receives mixed textile stream MS from the second classification and sorting station 23. Hence, both the first type of textile material and the second type of textile material have already been sorted out from the mixed textile stream MS when it is sorted by the further classification and sorting station 24. A further type of textile material is discriminated and diverted by the further classification and sorting station 24 into a further type of textile material fraction 6, thereby separating the further type of textile material from other types of textile materials. The further type of textile material fraction 6 is received by a further cleaning classification and sorting station 34 of the cleaning classification and sorting arrangement 30. The further cleaning classification and sorting station 34 discriminates the further type of textile material and diverts the further type of textile material into a cleaned further type of textile material fraction 7.

[0063] The cleaned further type of textile material fraction 7 is received by a further shredder 46 of the material item size reduction arrangement 40. The further shredder 46 reduces the material item size of the material items in the cleaned further type of textile material fraction 7. The cleaned further type of textile material fraction 7 is received by a further purifying classification and sorting station 56 of the purifying classification and sorting arrangement 50. The further purifying classification and sorting station 56 sorts out material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction 7 thereby obtaining a further purified textile material 14.

[0064] The classification and sorting arrangement 20 further comprises a recovery classification and sorting station 25, which is of the same type as the other classification and sorting stations. The recovery classification and sorting station 25 receives the mixed textile stream MS from the further classification and sorting station 24. The recovery classification and sorting station 25 discriminates and diverts material of the first, second and / or further type of textile material and reintroduces them to the mixed textile stream MS, prior to it enters the first classification and sorting station 22. In practice, the recovery classification and sorting station 25 generally discriminates and diverts material of the first, second and further type of textile material and reintroduces them to the mixed textile stream MS, prior to it enters the first classification and sorting station 22. It may be advantageous to have a recovery classification and sorting station 25 subsequent to when all the types of textile material have been diverted as the material items of each type of textile material may be sorted out and reintroduced into the start of the mixed textile stream MS. The material items of each type of textile material may because of various reasons not be discriminated or diverted when they should have been. This may be due to stacking of material items which may not allow all of them to be discriminated or due to a miss in a diverting step, or a discriminating step. Thus, providing the material items that were missed by the first classification and sorting station 22, the second classification and sorting station 23 or the further classification and sorting station 24 a further chance to be discriminated and diverted into the right type of textile material fraction is provided. Hereby recycling levels of the system 1 may be further enhanced meaning that less material will be wasted. The above-described loop including the recovery classification and sorting station 25 may continue until a material item is correctly sorted.

[0065] As is understood by the skilled person, the system 1 may be adapted to obtain any needed or desired number of purified textile materials. By sorting out more types of textile materials the system 1 is easily adapted to the kind of sorting system that is required in a specific area or country, thereby further increasing the efficiency of the system 1. As an example, the system 1 may be configured to process between 3 and 5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour, and preferably between 4 and 4.5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour. Turning to Fig. 3 a perspective schematic view of a classification and sorting station 700 is illustrated. The first 22, second 23 and further 24 classification and sorting stations, the recovery classification and sorting station 25, the first 32, second 33 and further 34 cleaning classification and sorting stations and the first 52, second 54 and further 56 purifying classification and sorting stations may all be of the same type as the classification and sorting station 700 that is described here. However, other types of stations may be used to advantage. Each of said stations may have one or more of the features described below. However, in the following the station 700 is for reasons of simplicity described as a classification and sorting station 700.

[0066] The classification and sorting station 700 is fed with pieces, objects, or items of material 710. The pieces of material 700 are conveyed through a detection zone 720. However, the pieces of material 700 may be provided through the detection zone 720 by any suitable mean or manually without any technical means. A light source arrangement 730 and a NIR spectroscopy system 222 are provided. The spectroscopy system 222 is adapted to receive and analyse light 732, from the light source arrangement 730, which is reflected and / or scattered by the pieces of material 710 in the detection zone 720. Hence, the NIR spectroscopy system 222 typically acquires a spectrum of the pieces of material 710 from the stream of material that is conveyed through the detection zone 720. The NIR spectroscopy system 222 of the classification and sorting station 700 is configured to discriminate a type of textile material from other textile materials, based on the acquired spectrum. In other words, the NIR system 222 is typically set up such that a specific type of textile material is discriminated from other types of material owing from its spectrum.

[0067] The classification and sorting stations 700 may further comprise a visible light spectroscopy system 760 configured to acquire a spectrum of textile material originating from the mixed textile material stream MS that is conveyed through the detection zone 720. The depicted classification and sorting station 700 also include an ejection unit 224. The ejection unit 224 of the classification and sorting station 700 is typically configured to divert a specific type of textile material originating from the mixed textile material stream MS based on the acquired spectrum thereby sorting a type of textile material fraction based on its colour and / or material composition.

[0068] The visible light spectroscopy system 760 may through the acquired spectrum determine different colours of the textile material that is conveyed through the detection zone 720. An advantage of determining the colours of the high textile material is that it may be sorted into different fractions based on colours.

[0069] The classification and sorting station 700 may further comprise a laser triangulation system 740 configured to determine height information of material 710 that is conveyed through the detection zone 720. The ejection unit 224 of said at least one classification and sorting station may be further configured to divert said type of textile material based on the determined height information.

[0070] The laser triangulation system 740 is typically configured to emit a line of laser light 742 towards the detection zone 720. The depicted laser triangulation system 740 includes a camera-based sensor arrangement 744 configured to receive and analyse light 746 which is reflected and / or scattered by pieces of material 710 in the detection zone 720. By means of the laser triangulation system 740 the classification and sorting station 700 may be able to detect textile material that the NIR spectroscopy system 222 have difficulties to detect. One example of such textile material may be black textile material when conveyed on a black conveyor belt. By detecting height differences on a conveyor belt used to convey the material being sorted, the classification and sorting station 700 may combine such height information with the acquired information from the NIR spectroscopy system 222 to determine if there is any black textile material, or other textile material that is hard to detect on the conveyor belt. Accordingly, further textile material may be discriminated and hence recycled.

[0071] The classification and sorting station 700 may further comprise a camera 750 configured to acquire images of textile material originating from the mixed textile stream MS that is conveyed through the detection zone 720. The classification and sorting station 700 may comprise an artificial neural network in combination with the camera 750. Such artificial neural network may be configured to detect different characteristics of textile material that is conveyed through the detection zone 720 based on images acquired by the camera 750. The ejection unit 224 of the classification and sorting station 700 may in this case further be configured to divert textile material that is conveyed through the detection zone 720 based on the detected characteristics of textile material. In other words, characteristics of textile material may thus be determined by the artificial neural network from the, by the camera 750, acquired images. The characteristics may be a shape, a colour, features at the surface or anything in the visual appearance of the textile material that may be determined and classified by the artificial neural network. The camera 750 may thus provide the possibility to further sort the material into different fractions. With the help of the artificial neural network, it may be possible to sort textile material of the same material composition into different fractions depending on quality and origin.

[0072] Now turning to Fig. 4, a method 100 for obtaining a purified textile material 10 from a mixed textile stream MS, such as a stream of singulated garment will be described. The method 100 starts by discriminating 110a a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0073] The method 100 proceeds with diverting 110b the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS into a first textile material fraction 2, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream MS. The method 100 proceeds with discriminating 111a said first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction 2 using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0074] The method 100 proceeds with diverting 111 b the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction 2 into a cleaned first textile material fraction 3, thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the first textile material fraction 2.

[0075] The method 100 proceeds with reducing 120 a material item size of material in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3.

[0076] The method 100 proceeds with, subsequent to reducing 120 the material item size, discriminating 130a material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3 using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0077] The method 100 proceeds with diverting 130b material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3, thereby sorting out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction 3 thereby obtaining the purified textile material 10.

[0078] It is to be noted that the steps or acts of the above method 100 may be conducted in any suitable order and hence not just in the order given above. Further, one or more of the steps or acts may be conducted in parallel. It is also to be noted that the steps or acts may be conducted by different equipment, at different times and / or at different sites. In other words, as an example, the method may be performed in a distributed manner at a plurality sites where different steps or acts are conducted at different points in time. However, the method may to advantage be conducted in the sequence described above at a single site.

[0079] Turning to Fig. 5, the method 100 from Fig. 4 is illustrated together with a set of alternative steps. The alternative steps may be added alone or in any combination to the method 100 in Fig. 4 depending on the requirements. The steps already mentioned in connection to Fig. 4 will, for the sake of efficiency, not be described again.

[0080] The method 100 further comprises the step of discriminating 112a a second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0081] The method 100 proceeds with diverting 112b the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, into a second textile material fraction 3, thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the mixed textile stream MS from which the first type of textile material has been diverted.

[0082] The method 100 proceeds with discriminating 114a a further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0083] The method 100 proceeds with diverting 114b the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, into a further textile material fraction 6, thereby sorting out material of the further type of textile material from the mixed textile stream MS from which the second type of textile material has been diverted.

[0084] The method 100 proceeds with discriminating 116a the first type of textile material, and if present, the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material, from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system. The method 100 proceeds with diverting 116b the first type of textile material, and if present the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream MS from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted into a recovery textile material fraction 8 that is re-joined with the initial mixed textile stream MS.

[0085] Hereafter, the different steps for processing the second textile fraction 4 and further textile fraction 6 will be described. For the sake of efficiency the steps will be described together. However, it should be understood that it is two different flows and that the steps are performed parallel to each other and may be performed in different stations, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The steps are generally the same as for the first textile fraction 2 that was described in connection to Fig. 4. It should be understood that the first textile fraction is a different flow from the other two, as illustrated in Fig. 5.

[0086] The method proceeds with discriminating 113a, 115a the second and further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second and further textile material fraction 4, 6 using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system.

[0087] The method proceeds with diverting 113b, 115b the second and further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second and further textile material fraction 4, 6 into a cleaned second and further textile material fraction 5, 7, thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the second and further textile material fraction 4, 6.

[0088] The method proceeds with reducing 122, 124 a material item size of material in the cleaned second and further textile material fraction 5, 7.

[0089] The method proceeds with, subsequent to reducing 122, 124 the material item size, discriminating 132a, 134a material different from the second and further type of textile material in the cleaned second and further textile material fraction 5, 7using a near infrared spectroscopy system 222 and / or a visible spectroscopy system. The method proceeds with diverting 132b, 134b material different from the second and further type of textile material in the cleaned second and further textile material fraction 5, 7, thereby sorting out material different from the second and further type of textile material in the cleaned second and further textile material fraction 5 thereby obtaining a second and a further purified textile material 12, 14. As is understood by the skilled person, the method may be adapted to obtain any needed or desired number of purified textile materials. By sorting out more types of textile materials the method is easily adapted to the kind of sorting system that is required in a specific area or country, thereby further increasing the efficiency of the method.

[0090] The method may comprise that the obtained purified textile material 10, and if present, the second purified textile material 12, and if present, the further purified textile material 14, may have a purity level of 85%, preferably 90% and more preferably 95%.

[0091] The method may comprise that the step of reducing 120, 122, 124 a material item size may comprise shredding of material of the first textile material fraction 2, and if present, material of the second textile material fraction 4, and if present, material of the further textile material fraction 6.

[0092] The obtained purified textile material 10, and if present, the obtained second purified textile material 12, and if present, the obtained further purified textile material 14, may be one of the group consisting of: cotton, viscose, acrylics, polyester, wool, polyamide, cotton denim, white cotton, a textile material comprising more than 90 % viscose, a textile material comprising more than 90 % acrylics, a textile material comprising more than 90 % cotton, a textile material comprising more than 80 % wool, a material comprising more than 90 % cotton denim, a material comprising more than 90 % white cotton and a material comprising more than 90 % polyester.

[0093] As is understood by the skilled person the method is suitable for obtaining a plurality of different textile material and it may be adapted for other types or other compositions of textile material. It is to be noted that the steps in the steps or acts of the above method 100 may be conducted in any suitable order and hence not just in the order given above. Further, one or more of the steps or acts may be conducted in parallel. It is also to be noted that the steps or acts may be conducted by different equipment, at different times and / or at different sites. In other words, as an example, the method may be performed in a distributed manner at a plurality sites where different steps or acts are conducted at different points in time. However, the method may to advantage be conducted in the sequence described above at a single site. Additionally, variations to the disclosed variants can be understood and effected by the skilled person in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measured cannot be used to advantage.

Claims

CLAIMS1 . A method (100) for obtaining a purified textile material (10) from a mixed textile stream (MS), such as a stream of singulated garment, said method comprising, discriminating (110a) a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (110b) the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) into a first textile material fraction (2), thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream (MS), discriminating (111 a) said first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction (2) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (111 b) the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction (2) into a cleaned first textile material fraction (3), thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the first textile material fraction (2), reducing (120) a material item size of material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3), subsequent to reducing (120) the material item size, discriminating (130a) material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (130b) material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3), thereby sorting out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3) thereby obtaining the purified textile material (10).

2. The method (100) according to claim 1 further comprising,discriminating (112a) a second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (112b) the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, into a second textile material fraction (3), thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the first type of textile material has been diverted, discriminating (113a) said second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second textile material fraction (4) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (113b) the second type of textile material from other types of textile material in the second textile material fraction (4) into a cleaned second textile material fraction (5), thereby sorting out material of the second type of textile material from the second textile material fraction (4), reducing (122) a material item size of material in the cleaned second textile material fraction (5), subsequent to reducing (122) the material item size, discriminating (132a) material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction (5) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (132b) material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction (5), thereby sorting out material different from the second type of textile material in the cleaned second textile material fraction (5) thereby obtaining a second purified textile material (12).

3. The method (100) according to claim 2 further comprising,discriminating (114a) a further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (114b) the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, into a further textile material fraction (6), thereby sorting out material of the further type of textile material from the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the second type of textile material has been diverted, discriminating (115a) said further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the further textile material fraction (6) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (115b) the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the further textile material fraction (6) into a cleaned further textile material fraction (7), thereby sorting out material of the further type of textile material from the further textile material fraction (6), reducing (124) a material item size of material in the cleaned further textile material fraction (7), subsequent to reducing (124) the material item size, discriminating (134a) material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction (7) using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (134b) material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction (7), thereby sorting out material different from the further type of textile material in the cleaned further textile material fraction (7) thereby obtaining a further purified textile material (14).

4. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the obtained purified textile material (10), and if present, the secondpurified textile material (12), and if present, the further purified textile material (14), has a purity level of 85%, preferably 90% and more preferably 95%.

5. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first type of textile material, and if present, the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material, is discriminated based on a main material and / or a main colour of each item in the mixed textile stream for each type of textile material.

6. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims further comprising, discriminating (116a) the first type of textile material, and if present, the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material, from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted, using a near infrared spectroscopy system and / or a visible spectroscopy system, diverting (116b) the first type of textile material, and if present the second type of textile material, and if present, the further type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) from which the first type of textile material, or if present, the second type of textile material, or if present, the further textile material, has been diverted into a recovery textile material fraction (8) that is re-joined with the initial mixed textile stream (MS).

7. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of reducing (120, 122, 124) a material item size comprises shredding of material of the first textile material fraction (2), and if present, material of the second textile material fraction (4), and if present, material of the further textile material fraction (6).

8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the material items have a size with a maximum cross-sectional extension that is at most 18 mm, subsequent to the step of reducing the material item size.

9. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the obtained purified textile material (10), and if present, the obtained second purified textile material (12), and if present, the obtained further purified textile material (14), is one of the group consisting of: cotton, viscose, acrylics, polyester, wool, polyamide, cotton denim, white cotton, a textile material comprising more than 90 % viscose, a textile material comprising more than 90 % acrylics, a textile material comprising more than 90 % cotton, a textile material comprising more than 80 % wool, a material comprising more than 90 % cotton denim, a material comprising more than 90 % white cotton and a material comprising more than 90 % polyester.

10. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the discriminating steps comprises acquiring a spectrum of the type of textile material originating from the mixed textile stream and wherein the diverting steps comprises diverting the type of textile material originating from the mixed textile stream based on the acquired spectrum.

11. A system (1 ) for obtaining a purified textile material (10) from a mixed textile stream (MS), such as a stream of singulated garment, said system comprising; a first classification and sorting arrangement (20), a cleaning classification and sorting arrangement (30), a material item size reduction arrangement (40), and a purifying classification and sorting arrangement (50), wherein the first classification and sorting arrangement (20) comprising, a first classification and sorting station (22) configured to receivethe mixed textile stream (MS), the first classification and sorting station (22) comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system (222) and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate a first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS), and an ejection unit (224) configured to divert the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the mixed textile stream (MS) into a first textile material fraction (2), thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the mixed textile stream (MS), wherein the cleaning classification and sorting arrangement (30) comprising, a first cleaning classification and sorting station (32) configured to receive the first textile material fraction (2) from the first classification and sorting arrangement (20), the first cleaning classification and sorting station (32) comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system (222) and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate said first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction (2), and an ejection unit (224) configured to divert the first type of textile material from other types of textile material in the first textile material fraction (2) into a first cleaned textile material fraction (3), thereby sorting out material of the first type of textile material from the first textile material fraction (2), wherein the material item size reduction arrangement (40) comprises a first shredder (42) configured to receive the first cleaned textile material fraction (3) and to decrease the size of material items in the first cleaned textile material fraction (3), wherein the purifying classification and sorting arrangement (50) comprising, a first purifying classification and sorting station (52) configured to receive the first cleaned textile material fraction (3) from the material item size reduction arrangement (40), the first purifying classification and sorting station (52) comprising a near infrared, NIR, spectroscopy system (222) and / or a visible spectroscopy system configured to discriminate material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3), and an ejection unit (224) configured to divert material different from the firsttype of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3), thereby sorting out material different from the first type of textile material in the cleaned first textile material fraction (3) thereby obtaining the purified textile material (10).

12. The system (1 ) according to claim 11 , wherein the system (1 ) is configured to process between 3 and 5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour, and preferably between 4 and 4,5 tonnes of mixed textile material per hour.

Images