Heat Recovery for Plastic Pre-form Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for producing plastic containers and preforms are energy-intensive due to the need for high-temperature processing in recycling and manufacturing, which consumes significant energy.
Innovation Solution
The method involves using the heat from heated plastic recyclate to warm new plastic material, reducing energy consumption by transferring excess heat from the recycling process to the new material, and utilizing a heat transfer medium like dry air or inert gases to facilitate this heat exchange.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If high-temperature processing is used for recycling and manufacturing plastic containers, then the plastic material can be effectively processed and decontaminated, but energy consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent captures waste heat from the plastic recyclate after decontamination and converts it into a useful resource for heating new plastic granulate. The heat exchanger transfers thermal energy from the hot recyclate to the cooler new material, turning what would be waste energy into a beneficial heating source for the manufacturing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a heat exchanger as an intermediary device between the plastic recyclate and new plastic granulate. This intermediary facilitates efficient thermal energy transfer while maintaining separate processing streams, enabling heat recovery without contaminating the new material.
2Use of energy by moving object
If heat from heated plastic recyclate is used to heat new plastic material, then energy consumption is reduced, but the system complexity increases due to heat exchange requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The heat exchanger serves as a relatively simple intermediary device that enables heat recovery without requiring complex system redesign. It provides a straightforward thermal coupling between the recyclate and new granulate streams while maintaining operational independence of each processing line.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the thermal energy already present in the heated recyclate to serve the heating needs of the new plastic material. The recyclate essentially heats itself indirectly by transferring its excess heat to the new material, reducing external energy input requirements.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach significantly reduces energy consumption by efficiently utilizing heat from the recycling process to heat new plastic material, thereby lowering the overall energy requirements for producing plastic containers and preforms.
Implementation Method 1
at least part of the amount of heat contained in the heated plastic recyclate is used to heat the new plastic material
Implementation Method 2
Passing a heat transfer medium on the heated plastic recyclate for heating the heat transfer medium and passing the heated heat transfer medium on the new plastic material
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
The method involves providing plastic recyclate and a plastic material. The plastic recyclate is heated to a temperature which lies above temperature required for inserting into and/or processing in an injection molding machine such that the plastic recyclate is decontaminated via heating. The plastic material is heated at a temperature between 140 degrees Celsius and 180 degrees Celsius using a part of the heat contained in the heated plastic recyclate by moving a heat transport unit past the heated plastic recydate for heating the heat transport unit containing dry air and inert gas. An independent claim is also included for a device for producing plastic containers and/or plastic preforms.