Devices and methods for decomposing composite materials and mixtures thereof into individual material components.

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device and method for decomposing composite materials, as well as form-fitting structures containing composite materials, and mixtures thereof. By tribomechanical and mechanochemical treatment of the above materials in a reactor (1) under the action of a fluid composed of gas and liquid, it becomes possible to selectively deform the composite materials due to physical differences in the composite materials.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to both a device and a method for decomposing composite materials and mixtures into their individual material components. In particular, the present invention relates to a device according to the preamble of claim 1 as known, for example, from Patent Document 1.

Background Art

[0002] Such devices and methods are used to decompose composite materials as well as connected structures containing composite materials and their mixtures by tribomechanical and mechanochemical treatments, and by utilizing the physical differences between various particles in a material stream composed of composite materials, a reforming action that acts on the decomposition of the material stream is selectively carried out inside the reactor. The decomposition is carried out by an interlayer thrust force along the interface of the abutting regions of different composite materials.

[0003] Many materials can only be reused within a limited range due to the complexity of their structures. Composite materials and their mixtures in particular represent a problem. Since these materials have become an indispensable part of daily life, it is necessary to propose solutions for the recycling of composite materials and material mixtures.

[0004] Due to the daily addition of new materials to known materials, it is always necessary to develop new recycling solutions, which on the one hand makes it possible to separate different materials from each other, and on the other hand avoids the generation of polluting waste or gases (CO2, NOX,...).

[0005] These composite materials may be form-locked to other composite materials and are therefore difficult to separate.

[0006] Furthermore, these composite material compositions often prevent the use of conventional methods such as heat treatment or treatment with liquid chemicals.

[0007] Electronic equipment waste, in particular, constitutes a highly complex type of waste, and for such waste, it is difficult to break down the different components into each of the composite materials.

[0008] In addition to printed circuit boards made of composite materials, electronic waste such as the electronic waste shown in Figure 1 also includes numerous form-locking components such as housings and connectors.

[0009] Another type of waste that is difficult to recycle is composite packaging made of PE and aluminum in the form of a three-layer laminate, as shown in Figure 2. The aluminum acts as a barrier to light and is used to protect the product wrapped in this laminate from diffusion. In most cases, the aluminum layer is located between the two plastic layers or laminated on both sides. The thickness of the aluminum layer ranges from 6 μm to 80 μm depending on the application.

[0010] As another example of a well-known composite material, Figure 3 schematically shows a printed circuit on a substrate. Such a printed circuit board consists of up to more than 50 copper and glass fiber epoxy resin (FR4) layers, where the copper and glass fiber epoxy resin layers function as conductors (copper) or insulators (glass fiber epoxy). These copper layers have a thickness of 17 μm to 34 μm. The glass fiber epoxy resin layers have a thickness of more than 50 μm.

[0011] Furthermore, precious metals, especially gold, can be placed at the contact points. However, the thickness of the layer is only a few micrometers.

[0012] Figure 4 shows sandwich panels used as exterior materials, particularly for facades or vehicle structures. This material is durable and lightweight. The thickness of the outer metal layer, for example, aluminum, is 100 μm to 300 μm, and the thickness of the plastic core material is approximately 2 mm to 4 mm.

[0013] These composite materials present problems when they are recovered after use and therefore become waste. It is well known that the production of these composite materials can already generate a considerable amount of waste.

[0014] Therefore, in the manufacturing of printed circuit boards, up to 20% of production waste is generated during the manufacturing process.

[0015] In the manufacture of composite packaging materials such as laminated tubes, up to 30% of production waste can be generated in some cases.

[0016] Literature shows that only about one-third of the amount of metal used, such as aluminum, is recovered in the economic cycle. For more expensive metals like copper, this figure is about 50%. This can be explained, on the one hand, by the lack or excessive cost of recovery logistics, and on the other hand, by the lack or excessive cost of methods for separating different substances from composite materials.

[0017] Because these materials are complex, they are generally not mechanically recyclable as starting materials, and for this reason, their potential sources are excluded from the economic cycle. The resulting environmental costs are a double problem. On the one hand, producing new materials leads to further environmental pollution from ore smelting, and on the other hand, from the transportation of waste that cannot be used as raw materials.

[0018] Furthermore, the primary extraction of raw materials, particularly metals, requires enormous amounts of energy, and such energy could potentially be saved within a consistent circular economy.

[0019] Research has shown that a consistent circular economy alone could save approximately 20% of the energy generated worldwide.

[0020] Currently, materials processed using inefficient thermal or wet chemical processes are generally of low quality, resulting in harmful residues and significant environmental pollution due to relatively high emissions of polluting gases, sludge, wastewater, and slag.

[0021] In the device described in Patent Document 1 and shown in Figure 8 (reactor 1), it has been proven that this device is inefficient and produces insufficient results at the expense of considerable wear. This is mainly related to insufficient supply of the material to be decomposed into the annular space 10 (Figure 9) inside the reactor and the lack of pre-conditioning of the material to be processed. In this well-known device, the mixture to be decomposed falls directly onto the rotatable rotor 3 through a funnel-shaped material inlet (supply hopper) and is propelled upward into the annular space 10 relative to the housing of the fixed stator 2. Only then does the material to be decomposed reach the mechanical engagement area between the rotor tool 6 and the stator tool 7, and the supply to the annular space 10 becomes uncontrolled and chaotic. When wear occurs on the rotor 3 and stator 2, particularly on the rotor tool 6 and stator tool 7, the supply of fluid adapted to the current state of wear is no longer available, making it impossible to continuously maintain the conditions necessary for hot immersion within the reactor 1. In the prior art, the ambient air supplied to the reactor 1 is a random result reflecting the conditions present at the time in the equipment room where the reactor 1 shown in Figure 8 is installed and used. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0022] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2017 / 036534 [Patent Document 2] International Publication No. 2006 / 117065 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0023] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to enable more efficient and environmentally friendly separation of composite materials and material mixtures, while extending the service life of such devices and achieving as uniform and reliable as possible decomposition of the composite materials separated in such devices over the entire life of the device and regardless of wear due to operating time and for composite materials configured differently in as wide a range as possible, by improving the devices known from the prior art so as to provide a means for achieving that.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0024] According to the present invention, this problem is solved by the device according to claim 1 and the method according to claim 11. The other claims relate to advantageous embodiments of such devices and methods.

[0025] The advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, particularly with respect to the preferred embodiments related to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0026] [Figure 1] It is a schematic view of electronic waste. [Figure 2] It is a view showing a composite packaging material known from the prior art. [Figure 3] It is a view showing a laminated composite material known from the prior art, comprising a metal layer and a glass fiber epoxy layer. [Figure 4] It is a view showing another laminated composite material known from the prior art, such as a laminated composite material used in a facade or vehicle structure. [Figure 5] It is a view showing a biaxial plate crusher that can be used in a preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention for decomposing a composite material before introducing it into the reactor of the device according to the present invention. [Figure 6]Figure 7 shows schematic diagrams of different steps in each preferred embodiment of the method according to the present invention for decomposing composite materials in the device according to the present invention. [Figure 7] This figure shows an embodiment of a device (reactor) according to the present invention, which can be continuously filled with a mixture of gaseous material, liquid material, and composite material to be processed, in order to enable the continuous implementation of the method according to the present invention. [Figure 8] This figure shows a device (reactor) for decomposing composite materials, as described in Patent Document 1. [Figure 9] Figures 7 and 8 show detailed diagrams of the annular space inside the reactor, which is formed between the rotor and the stator, allowing the rotor tools and stator tools to act together on the composite material components in the material flow being delivered into the reactor. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0027] A preferred embodiment of the device (reactor 1) according to the present invention for separating composite materials and mixtures is shown in Figure 7.

[0028] Similar to the well-known device shown in Figure 8, a preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention shown in Figure 7 (reactor 1) comprises a drive unit 4 for driving a rotor 3, the rotor 3 being preferably connected to a bearing / shaft unit having a rotation axis oriented substantially parallel to Earth's gravity.

[0029] In the reactor 1 shown in Figures 7 and 8, the rotor 3 comprises at least one rotor tool 6 (Figure 9). The rotatable rotor 3 is surrounded by a fixed stator 2, which has a stator tool 7 (Figure 9) directed toward an annular space 10 (Figure 9). In another embodiment (not shown), the rotor may surround the stator.

[0030] The rotor 3 and stator 2 are preferably substantially cylindrical within the reactor 1. However, depending on the type and composition of the material flow being decomposed, non-cylindrical shapes may also be used for the rotor 3 and stator 2.

[0031] In the well-known device (reactor 1) shown in Figure 8, the device has a material inlet in the form of a simple feed hopper 5b, and the material flow delivered to reactor 1 falls into the interior of reactor 1 through the feed hopper 5b. In the well-known device shown in Figure 8, as the material to be separated falls from above the rotor 3 and stator 2, the material reaches an annular region 10 (Figure 9) uncontrolled, where it is crushed between the rotor tool 6 and stator tool 7, and then reaches a material outlet 9 located below the rotor 3 and stator 2.

[0032] In contrast, in the device according to the present invention shown in Figure 7, the material inlet is made in the form of an injector-mixer 5a. This allows a metered supply of pre-treated material, particularly decomposed material, to be supplied into the reactor 1 in a material flow. Furthermore, the injector-mixer 5a enables variable metering of the working fluid, allowing the working fluid to be mixed into the material flow being decomposed within the injector-mixer 5a under conditions that change over time.

[0033] Furthermore, in the device according to the present invention, a curved disc 8 is positioned between the injector-mixer 5a on one side of the reactor 1 and the rotor 3 and stator 2 on the other side, to precisely divert the flow of the composite material to be decomposed, supplied to the injector-mixer 5a, and deliver it into the engagement region within the annular space 10 (Figure 9) between the rotor tool 6 and the stator tool 7.

[0034] The disc 8 is concave relative to the material flow introduced into the reactor 1 from above by the injector-mixer 5a. This allows fragments of the material flow, which are delivered into the reactor 1 by the injector-mixer 5a and further broken down there, to be targeted and directed onto the surface of the curved disc 8 and into the annular engagement region (annular region 10) between the rotor tool 6 and the stator tool 7. Thus, the curved disc 8 allows the material flow to be targeted and directed towards the region where it is broken down inside the reactor 1, without having to detour over the fragments supplied into the material flow being broken down from the outside, so that the rotor tool 6 and the stator tool 7 can directly carry out their desired mechanical crushing operation. This improves the efficiency of the breakdown of the supplied material flow. Furthermore, it avoids unnecessary wear of components inside the reactor 1 that are exposed to the cluttered inflow of material in the prior art.

[0035] In a particularly preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention, for additional fine-tuning, the curved disc 8 inside the reactor 1 is further provided to be adjustable in the direction of the rotation axis of the rotor 3. This allows for optimal adjustment of the distance of the curved disc 8 to both the injector-mixer 5a and the rotor 3 and stator 2 in the vertical direction. This allows for further optimization of diverting the material flow introduced into the reactor 1 by the injector-mixer 5a to target the engagement region between the rotor tool 6 and the stator tool 7. Such adjustment of the distance between the curved disc 8 and the injector-mixer 5a or the distance between the rotor 3 and the stator 2 can also be made in response to the blunting of the rotor tool 6 and stator tool 7 over time.

[0036] This eliminates the drawbacks of prior art devices with respect to wear on the rotor tool 6 and stator tool 7, and the insufficient yield during the continuous decomposition of fragments inside the reactor 1. In the injector-mixer 5a, the device according to the present invention (reactor 1) shown in Figure 7 allows for the imparting of a gas-liquid mixture (fluid) to the feed-in and decomposed material flow, which is then vigorously mixed with the fluid. In particular, in another particularly preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention, used for pre-crushing electronic waste shown in Figure 1, the pre-crushing of the material flow of composite material (particularly electronic waste components) to be later fed into the injector-mixer 5a is carried out by a two- or three-axis plate crusher shown in Figure 5. Unlike conventional plate crushers, this new plate crusher operates in two or three new directions (axes).

[0037] An exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 5 illustrates a biaxial plate crusher. In such a novel type of plate crusher, alternating pressure is applied to the material as it is released from directions substantially perpendicular to each other, causing the material to break down into individual components and canceling out the cohesive structures in the material flow. This makes it possible to select specific individual components before actually introducing the material flow into the reactor 1 (reactor 1) of the device according to the present invention, and, if necessary, allows the broken-down components to be pre-separated before entering the reactor 1.

[0038] In another particularly preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention, other means for pre-sorting fragments from the material flow supplied into the injector-mixer 5a can be connected between the plate crusher and the injector-mixer 5a, particularly in the form of a lifting magnet, an induction separator, and / or a multi-sensor separator. These allow for the sparse sorting / separation of components, particularly magnetic or magnetizable components, as well as certain plastic components from the supplied material flow, as shown in the block diagram of an embodiment of the method according to the present invention in Figure 6. The advantages of such a procedure are obvious, as in this way the majority of the material can be extracted with minimal effort from the material flow supplied to the reactor 1 before the material flow enters the interior of the reactor 1, thereby removing the material from the reactor 1.

[0039] Furthermore, in another preferred embodiment of the present invention, other means for communication can be connected between a lifting magnet, induction separator, and / or multi-sensor separator on one side and the injector-mixer 5a on the other side. These other grinding means may be, in particular, shredders, hammer mills, and / or granulators designed to grind further fragments from the material flow transmitted to the reactor 1 and mix them uniformly so that their size is <15 mm. These grinding means enable further grinding and mixing of particles in the material flow introduced into the reactor 1 of the device herein by the injector-mixer 5a, as shown in the block diagram of an embodiment of the method according to the present invention in Figure 6.

[0040] Following this optional pre-crushing and intermediate separation in the steps “Plate Crusher,” “Loose Sorting,” and “Crushing / Mixer” in Figure 6, the material stream to be broken down is supplied to the reactor 1 (Figure 7) according to the present invention, and a gas-liquid mixture (fluid) is added into the injector-mixer 5a for actual decomposition within the reactor 1.

[0041] However, if the material stream to be broken down has a suitable composition from the outset (for example, a soft plastic composite membrane that does not need to be broken down in a plate crusher, is not affected by a lifting magnet, and cannot be crushed by a hammer mill), any of these pre-crushing and intermediate separation steps can be omitted entirely or at least partially. Thus, any of the steps in Figure 6, “plate crusher,” “sparse sorting / separation,” and “crushing / mixer,” can be installed or omitted upstream of the reactor 1 according to the present invention, depending on the starting material being processed.

[0042] From the prior art described in Patent Document 1, it is only known that the material is supplied to the reactor 1 via a supply hopper 5b (Figure 8) in the presence of ambient air. However, according to the present invention, by suitably adding a fluid under conditions specifically adapted to the material to be decomposed, a significant improvement in the mode of action in such a reactor 1 during the decomposition of the composite material can be achieved. This is because the targeted tribomechanical and mechanochemical action of the fluid on the composite material to be decomposed can be achieved.

[0043] In particular, the most preferred process parameters for the fluid used in the injector-mixer 5a according to the present invention are as follows:

[0044] The inlet temperature of the liquid being mixed into the fluid is, For water, the temperature range is 5°C to 25°C. In particular, for liquid nitrogen used for desired chemical deactivation inside reactor 1, the temperature range is -250°C to -200°C, and For oil, the temperature should be between 10°C and 30°C. The inlet temperature of the gas mixed into the fluid is, The ambient air temperature is 10°C to 30°C, and For argon, the temperature range is 5°C to 25°C.

[0045] The aforementioned liquid is supplied to the injector-mixer 5a at atmospheric pressure, and the aforementioned gas is supplied at 500-800 kPa, to which solid material of the material flow to be decomposed is added. In this case, the fluid density can be considerably affected by the increase in the proportion of liquid or gas. The thermal energy generated by friction during the process is efficiently dissipated and preferentially used by the liquid contents. As the fluid density increases, the residence time of the solid material (composite material decomposed in the supplied material flow) in the annular space 10 inside the reactor 1 increases. Furthermore, as the proportion of liquid increases, electrostatic charging of particles is prevented by equalizing the electrostatic potential between particles in the material flow.

[0046] This differs from the prior art described in Patent Document 1.

[0047] Furthermore, after the material exits the reactor 1 in the mainstream through the material outlet 9, further separation of the decomposed components can optionally be carried out in a wet gravity separator, liquid cyclone, and on a flotation tank or sedimentation pond, or in a filter. This is shown in Figure 6. The mixture discharged from the optionally connected cyclone or filter can be moistened with water in the material stream being discharged from the reactor 1 by an optional venturi nozzle immediately after exiting the reactor 1. This has the obvious advantage of preventing dust formation and capturing all structures, and in some cases, the finest structures such as precious metals or rare earth metals.

[0048] To utilize these composite materials or to use them as a source of raw materials, these composite materials preferably undergo a mechanical post-processing process according to the present invention. An object of the present invention is to decompose and then separate different materials into each of the material streams supplied by the device (reactor 1) shown in Figure 7. In a preferred embodiment of the method according to the present invention for operating the device according to the present invention, the above can be carried out in five process steps, for example, as schematically shown in Figure 6.

[0049] 1. Disassembly of structures, such as computer housings, is performed by a plate crusher (Figure 5), which applies alternating pressure from two (and possibly three) movable plates on opposing fixed plates. When the applied force acts on the computer housing, the structure or form-locked joints are disassembled or fragmented. The housing and internal structure are then disassembled and can subsequently be removed from inside the plate crusher by a scraper.

[0050] 2. Separation or loose sorting of materials. Now exposed materials such as plastics, printed circuit boards, and sheet metal parts. Steel housings, or more generally, ferromagnetic portions of the material stream to be separated, are removed by lifting magnets. Plastic components and Fe-Cu components (transformers, motors, etc.) are separated by an inductive separator or a multi-sensor separator. Residues consisting of composite materials such as printed circuit boards, connectors, and cables are fed to the next process step.

[0051] 3. Next, the remaining portion of the flow undergoes conventional mechanical grinding in a shredder, hammer mill, granulator, etc., and is processed to a size of, for example, <15 mm. This material is then uniformly mixed and prepared for further processing.

[0052] 4. The materials are then metered by adding a fluid (gas / liquid mixture) to the reactor 1 of the device according to the present invention via an injector-mixer 5a, preferably at the pressure and temperature shown above. The actual decomposition of each composite material into different material qualities takes place within the reactor 1. These are discharged and extracted from the reactor 1 by air pressure (i.e., by a suction system). This process is described in more detail below. The mixture and fluid are then separated in the material stream discharged in a cyclone and filter system optionally connected downstream of the reactor 1. Alternatively, the mixture can be homogenized in the form of a turbidity by adding further liquid in a venturi mixer (not shown), optionally installed in the material stream discharged downstream of the reactor 1 and directly added by a pump (not shown) for density separation.

[0053] 5. Next, the mixture is separated by density separation by adding another liquid. A flotation tank, liquid cyclone, and wet gravity separator can be used for this purpose. In a flotation tank (usually filled with water), density < 1 g / cm³ 3 These substances are extracted as non-fixable components. These are thermoplastics and other organic substances. Density > 1 g / cm³ 3The heavier plastics, along with minerals and metals, are supplied as a precipitate by suspension to an optionally connected wet hydrosector or liquid cyclone and discharged from reactor 1. There, separation can be carried out into plastics, aluminum and other light metals, copper and copper alloys, precious metals and concentrated rare earth metals. The separation is based on the presence of different densities for each of the materials being decomposed and different mobility for each of the material particles in the fluid. For this purpose, vibration excitation of the inclined surface of the wet hydrosector is used, and this vibration excitation takes advantage of the different transmission behavior of each of the different materials. The particles of each different composite material exhibit different mobility relative to each other in the surrounding liquid due to their respective different densities and particle sizes. This separates the particle types on the wet hydrosector during vibration excitation of the wet hydrosector. Discharge then takes place via a water bearing chute, each of which is arranged and designed in different ways. The material is then dried as needed. Steps 1) to 5) above preferably relate to materials resulting from electrical and electronic waste (Figure 1).

[0054] Materials that are not foam-locked (Figures 2-4) generally do not require process steps 1 and 2. In this case, the process preferably only begins with grinding in process step 3).

[0055] If the input material to be processed consists of a mixture with a size <15 mm, the material is directly introduced into the reactor, so process step 3) is also not required.

[0056] Figure 6 shows an overview of the individual stations or components that appear in the device and method of the present invention.

[0057] As shown in Figure 6, composite materials are decomposed using the physical differences between the materials (composite elements) present within them. These physical differences naturally appear in the boundary layer, that is, where one material is distinguished from an adjacent material.

[0058] The physical properties of each material, particularly differences in density, elasticity, ductility, and vibration damping, are enhanced by the addition of additives, especially water and gas, preferably conditioned ambient air. Furthermore, the heat generated during the process is dissipated by utilizing the amount of liquid or water contained in the fluid. Mechanical stress on the composite material causes deformation, which separates (delaminates) the material layer by layer, and the deformation also changes due to the different elastic recovery behavior of each component of the composite material. In addition, the gas-liquid mixture (fluid) delivered to the device in the injector-mixer 5a promotes the decomposition of elastic components such as plastics and rubber by increasing the absorption of the vibrations generated.

[0059] This is not a matter of crushing or grinding.

[0060] The difference in yield strength and elasticity of the composite elements ultimately leads to fracture of the composite material at the contact surface.

[0061] Contrary to Patent Document 1, the material to be processed is supplied, for example, via an injector-mixer 5a such as a venturi mixer, in which a gas-liquid mixture is mixed with the solid material to be processed (composite material particles in the supplied material stream). Depending on the application, the fluid can preferably be air and water, or nitrogen or argon can be added in applications requiring inactivation. Similarly, it has been found that a mixture of lime and wood flour can be added by adding a solid additive to absorb oil or lithium. This prevents oxidation on the one hand and allows the mixture to be discharged in solid form on the other hand.

[0062] In the event of wear on the rotor 3 or stator 2 within the reactor 1, fluid modifications are made to maintain the parameters necessary for mineralization. Wear on the rotor 3 and stator 2 significantly increases the flow velocity of the material through the annular space 10, thus shortening the residence time within the reactor 1 and thereby hindering sufficient mineralization of the material. Conversely, increasing the fluid density results in a longer residence time within the annular space 10, while still ensuring sufficient thermal immersion of the material.

[0063] Therefore, it is clear that the availability of the equipment will be significantly improved.

[0064] Due to the controlled supply of the solid-fluid mixture by a curved, and in some cases vertically adjustable, disc 8 (Figure 7), the mixture is delivered directly into the annular space 10 (Figure 9) without bouncing off the stator 2 in front of the annular space 10. Thus, entry into the annular space 10, where the material decomposition takes place, can be controlled using certain parameters. Furthermore, wear in the entry zone of the material into the annular space 10 is significantly reduced, in particular. Another effect is increased processing capacity in the device, as losses due to uncontrolled material supply are no longer present.

[0065] To obtain these decomposition effects, a device (reactor 1) as shown in Figure 7 is required, in which a mixture of gas, liquid, and the composite material to be processed is continuously filled. This supply material flow is mixed or pre-conditioned immediately before reaching reactor 1.

[0066] The mixture should preferably be supplied in the following proportions of volume units: 2 to 5 volume units of solid (composite material), 1.2 to 1.5 volume units of liquid (preferably water), and 5,000 to 12,000 volume units of gas (preferably conditioned ambient air).

[0067] This mixture is supplied into reactor 1, which consists of a rotating part (rotor 3) and a stationary part (stator 2). The arrangement of the axes (horizontal or vertical) has been found not to be obviously important to the actual process of decomposing the material. However, for optimal supply, it has proven practical to supply the material / gas / liquid mixture from above into a vertically positioned device (reactor).

[0068] The material being processed (input) undergoes tremendous particle acceleration, which utilizes mechanochemical effects (i.e., effects caused by the action of the fluid or its components) and tribomechanical effects (i.e., effects caused by high-frequency, alternating reverse thrusts, as described later) to subsequently cause the decomposition or desorption of different layers, respectively.

[0069] This particle acceleration process is repeated at high frequency, generating interlayer thrusts along interactively continuous interfaces in all directions (axes) (thrust-reverse thrust-thrust-...). This particle acceleration and these high-frequency, alternating reverse thrusts generate interlayer shear forces, which are continuous in different material-specific directions. Fluids (gas-liquid mixtures) significantly enhance these opening effects.

[0070] If the shear force exceeds the binding force of the assembly, the assembly will be released later.

[0071] This process is realized by the device according to the present invention (reactor 1) shown in Figure 7. The operation of this device is as follows:

[0072] The reactor 1 has a vertically positioned rotating part (rotor) 3, which can be driven by a drive 4 to increase its peripheral speed up to a maximum of 300 m / s. A mixture of solid material (composite material) and fluid is pre-mixed in an injector-mixer 5a, and according to the tribomechanical and mechanochemical conditions between the rotor tool 6 and stator tool 7, each having different properties, the composite material is dissolved or detached. An adjustable curved disc 8 accelerates the mixture according to the target and deflects it into the contact area (annular space 10) between the rotor 3 and stator 2. After decomposition, the mixture is removed from the reactor 1 and transferred to a material discharge system 9.

[0073] Along the path from the inlet to the outlet of reactor 1, each different material introduced exhibits very different impact times or residence times within reactor 1 due to their respective different physical properties such as density, elasticity, ductility, and surface conditions. Heavier fractions of the mixture remain in the annular space 10 for only a short time, while lighter fractions of the mixture exhibit longer residence times. After immersion, when the metal particles are released, the "transmission spiral" of the metal particles through the annular space 10 changes (due to the superposition of the falling motion of the metal particles under the influence of gravity and the circular motion imposed by the rotor 3), thereby changing the residence time of the metal particles within the annular space 10. Thus, these decomposed metal particles can be retracted from further mechanical stress within the annular space 10 and immediately discharged. This significantly reduces wear and increases the energy efficiency or processing capacity within reactor 1. Furthermore, the residence time within reactor 1 can be influenced on the one hand by the peripheral speed of the rotor 3, and on the other hand by increasing the fluid content and its composition.

[0074] Due to the impact of materials within the annular space 10 between the stator 2 and rotor 3, materials such as metals are deformed and rounded due to their ductility, while elastic materials such as plastics or rubber are hardly modified as they absorb most of the impact, vibration, and shock waves. Inorganic materials are finely ground due to their brittleness. After the process, the mixture exists as particles of different particle sizes, each unique to each material.

[0075] The fragile parts are transformed into fine particles, the metals into reformed spherical layers, and the elastic components into flake or chip forms.

[0076] The entire particle size distribution ranges from a few micrometers to the size of the input material provided, i.e., the supply size, typically up to 15 mm. Within this range, the material is strengthened differently according to its normal distribution.

[0077] Next, it is useful for this decomposed mixture to undergo classification or sorting. However, due to dust problems, it has been found that the materials should preferably be separated in a wet process. Furthermore, generally, it is not necessary to dry the mixture in the material stream discharged from the reactor, because the subsequent separation will be carried out in a humid environment anyway. Nevertheless, a dryer can be optionally installed downstream of the reactor outlet.

[0078] Any additional separator station (particularly a wet gravity separator) connected downstream of the reactor outlet allows for the formation of numerous individual fractions in a single step. The density and buoyancy behavior of the material are then used.

[0079] In the case of a disassembled electronic printed circuit board, the following fractions are obtained. <50μm inorganic components including rare earth metals <200μm precious metal 100μm~500μm copper and copper metals, or other heavy metals >1mm aluminum or aluminum alloy <300μm Inorganic material Si compound >500μm plastic

[0080] Patent Document 2 describes a similar device used for the same purpose, and it is known from the literature that the decomposition of composite materials is carried out by the stall of the transport fluid, in this case the ambient air, and therefore the composite material is inevitably decomposed. The transport fluid (air) is supplied to the material to be decomposed in the opposite direction, i.e., against the material flow and gravity. Furthermore, this air is absolutely necessary for the decomposition of the material and the maintenance of turbulence. Similarly, this airflow is used to dissipate the heat generated.

[0081] The pulverization described in Patent Document 2 is not strictly the objective of this invention. The decomposed material (layer) is not crushed.

[0082] Therefore, the application of ambient air to the material flow and weight is unnecessary.

[0083] The novelty and inventiveness lie in the fact that the thermal immersion is not carried out by fine grinding, grinding, or acceleration caused by turbulence or the like. Thermal immersion is carried out by mechanochemical and tribomechanical effects generated by the mixture of gas and water (fluid) and the input material (composite material) due to the impact on the rotor and stator elements.

[0084] In principle, the device according to the present invention can optionally include a working gas and / or working fluid that acts on and chemically reacts with the material being opened, thereby improving the yield or rate when the material flow being processed is opened.

[0085] However, the obvious advantage of the present invention is that, strictly speaking, the device according to the present invention can achieve sufficient efficiency for a number of composite materials to be opened by purely physical processing steps, simply by adding water and controlled ambient air, thereby, in principle, completely eliminating the need to supply special chemicals in a complex and costly manner (and the subsequent, and potentially equally complex and costly, disposal of those chemicals). [Explanation of Symbols]

[0086] 1. Reactor 2 staters 3 rotors 4 drives 5. Material Inlet (Injector-Mixer 5a, Supply Hopper 5b) 6 Rotor Tools 7. Stator Tools 8. Curved disc 9 Material outlet 10 Ring space

Claims

1. A device for decomposing a supplied material flow into individual fragments of the composite material, comprising a composite material and a foam lock structure containing the composite material, and a mixture of the composite material and the foam lock structure, wherein the device A rotor (3) and a stator (2) inside a reactor (1), wherein the rotor (3) and stator (2) are capable of rotating relative to each other, defining an annular space (10) between the rotor (3) and the stator (2), and in the annular space (10), the flow of the supplied material can be mechanically decomposed by the cooperation of rotor tools or stator tools (6, 7) mounted on the rotor (3) or the stator (2), A drive unit (4) for driving the rotor (3), A material inlet (5) for transporting the supplied material flow into the reactor (1), A material outlet for discharging the material flow mechanically separated between the rotor (3) and the stator (2) and for discharging it from the inside of the reactor (1), Equipped with, The material inlet to the interior of the reactor (1) is designed as an injector mixer (5a), and in the injector mixer (5a), a fluid can be supplied to the material flow to be mixed. A device wherein a curved disc (8) is positioned inside the reactor (1) between the injector mixer (5a) on one side and the rotor (3) and stator (2) on the other side, thereby diverting the material flow supplied by the injector mixer (5a) into an annular region (10) between the rotor (3) and the stator (2).

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the distance between the curved disc (8) and the injector mixer (5a) is adjustable.

3. The device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plate crusher is connected upstream of the injector mixer (5a) in the supplied material flow, the plate crusher comprises two or three pairs of plates, each pair of plates comprising a fixed plate and a plate movable in a substantially perpendicular direction relative to the fixed plate for crushing the material flow that is passed between the plates.

4. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a lifting magnet, an induction separator, and / or a multisensor separator are mounted upstream of the injector mixer (5a) in the supplied material flow.

5. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a shredder, hammer mill, and / or granulator for crushing and uniformly mixing particles is mounted upstream of the injector mixer (5a) in the supplied material stream.

6. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a cyclone or venturi mixer is connected downstream of the material outlet (9) of the reactor (1), and the material flow discharged at the material outlet (9) is mixed with a working gas flow, and the particles in the discharged material flow are separated into one or more fractions by utilizing the different mobility of each of the particles in the discharged material flow relative to the working gas due to differences in density and particle size.

7. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein at least one flotation tank and / or at least one liquid cyclone is connected downstream of the material outlet (9) in the discharged material flow, the at least one flotation tank and / or the at least one liquid cyclone is adapted to separate fractional particles from the material flow discharged from inside the reactor (1), the particles having a density lower than the predetermined density of the added working fluid.

8. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein at least one wet gravity separator is connected downstream of the material outlet in the discharged material stream, and the at least one wet gravity separator is adapted to perform separation of the particles in the discharged material stream into one or more fractions by utilizing the respective different mobility of the particles in the discharged material stream due to differences in density and particle size.

9. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein a dryer is connected to the material flow discharged from the reactor (1) after the material outlet (9).

10. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein a blower is connected to the discharged material flow, and the material flow is extracted from the reactor (1) by air pressure.

11. A method for decomposing a mixture of a material flow and a foam lock structure containing a composite material into individual material components, in a device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the supplied material flow is mixed with a transfer fluid (liquid-gas mixture) in the injector mixer (5a) of the device.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the decomposition of the supplied material stream is carried out according to the parameters of 2 to 5 volume units of a composite solid substance, 1.2 to 1.5 volume units of a liquid, preferably water, and 5,000 to 12,000 volume units of a gas, preferably controlled ambient air.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the gas is controlled ambient air that has been dust-free and whose temperature and humidity are controlled and adjusted.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the heat dissipation is carried out by the transfer fluid during the decomposition of the material flow supplied inside the reactor (1).

15. The particles in the material stream discharged from the material outlet have a density greater than the density of the working fluid supplied into the material stream, are suspended in the working fluid, and are supplied to a wet gravity separator, and each of the fragment fractions is precipitated as sediment from the suspension by the wet gravity separator and / or Separation into plastics, aluminum and other light metals, copper, copper alloys, precious metals and / or concentrated rare earth metals is carried out, which is by separation based on a combination of different densities for each of the particles in the discharged material stream and vibration excitation of the inclined surface of a wet gravity separator, the wet gravity separator utilizes different mobility for each of the individual particles in the material stream being separated and / or The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the mixture is transported by air pressure to a gas cyclone and / or filter, to which a gas, in particular air, is extracted, a liquid, in particular water, is added to form a suspension, the suspension is processed in a flotation tank and / or on a wet gravity separator and / or water cyclone, and the individual fractions in the suspension are separated from each other.

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