Ocean Waste Collection Ship With Onboard Plastic Pyrolysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
The transportation of ocean debris to land for processing leads to secondary and tertiary environmental problems, including increased weight due to moisture absorption and the emission of dioxins during incineration, and conventional collection methods do not effectively address these issues.
Innovation Solution
A multifunctional ship equipped with detectors, collectors, sorters, compressors, and pyrolysis furnaces to detect, collect, sort, compress, and convert waste plastics into recycled oil, while preventing waste discharge into the ocean and minimizing environmental impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If ocean debris is transported to land for processing, then the debris can be treated and recycled, but secondary environmental problems occur due to moisture absorption increasing weight and dioxin emission during incineration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful elements (moisture and salt) from the ocean debris through drying and compression processes before processing, and separates the recyclable components from the harmful residues, preventing the harmful factors from being transported to land
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful ocean debris into beneficial recycled materials through pyrolysis and other processing methods, transforming the waste plastic into fuel or other useful products while eliminating the harmful dioxin emission problem
2Ease of operation
If ocean debris is collected and stored on land, then the collection process is simplified, but transportation costs increase and environmental pollution is caused
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the collection, processing, and recycling functions into a single ship-based system, eliminating the need for separate transportation to land facilities and reducing the volume of material that needs to be transported
Solution Approach 2:
The ship is designed as a multifunctional platform that can simultaneously perform collection, sorting, processing, and recycling operations, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating dependence on land-based facilities
3Use of energy by moving object
If ocean debris is incinerated on land, then energy can be recovered, but dioxins are emitted causing harmful effects to the human body
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses pyrolysis technology to convert the waste plastic into fuel or other useful products through thermal decomposition in the absence of oxygen, avoiding the formation of dioxins that occur during conventional incineration while still recovering energy
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
The ship effectively addresses environmental and cost problems by recycling ocean debris into recycled oil, reducing waste volume, and preventing ocean discharge, while enabling efficient resource reuse and pollution reduction.
Implementation Method 1
pyrolysis of the selected waste plastic to produce recycled oil
Data Source
AI summary
A multifunctional ship for the collection and recycling of ocean debris and the system thereof may include a hull; a detection device provided on the hull to detect ocean debris floating on the sea or deposited on the seabed; a collection device installed on the hull to collect the ocean debris detected by the detection device; a sorting device installed on the hull to sort the ocean debris collected by the collection device; a compressing device installed on the hull to compress the sorted ocean debris to compress and remove moisture and reduce the volume; a waste plastic recycling device installed on the hull to produce recycled oil by thermally decomposing the waste plastic compressed in the compressing device; a storage tank installed at the bottom of the hull to store the recycled oil produced; and a purifier for purifying wastewater generated in the process of producing recycled oil.