ECOPET began its industrial activity in the area of PET container recycling in 2002, being the first plant of this type in the country Uruguay. Since its inception, it has followed a path of successive improvements incorporating new equipment and processes, which have resulted in obtaining recycled material in excellent condition. It is required for high value-added processes, not only in the region (Mercosur, Chile, etc.) but also outside it (USA, Spain and Israel).
Aceretech has been offering PET washing lines since 2020, and the equipment was installed in 2021. It was a complete washing line for post-consumer PET bottles with a capacity of 1000kg per hour. And the final product is clean flakes.
The whole solution is about the process such as: belt - bale breaker - label remover - mill - flotation tanks (various) - hot wash (various) - friction wash (various) - clean water wash - label separator - centrifugal drying - silo etc.
The raw materials are mainly water bottles, PET plastic soft drinks, transparent and coloured soft drink bottles.
They combine cold wash with hot wash with well controlled temperature to have a good washing of the PET flakes.
In the final stage of the washer, there is the spray washer which is passed with clean water to do the last wash. Since in the other equipment the water is recyclable and comes from water treatment.
In this project, we have designed a special label separator to adapt to the height of this client's warehouse. This equipment does the work of separating the labels or dust into the final flakes, and it is an important purification process.
The entire system is PLC-controlled and has modular designs.
By recycling PET bottles we are protecting the environment, reducing the consumption of natural resources in the manufacture of virgin PET resin (because it is a petroleum derivative), reducing the damage to ecosystems resulting from the exploitation of said resource. In addition, by removing the bottles from the trash, we not only reduce the volume of waste to be disposed of in final (sanitary) disposal sites, but we also ensure that the useful life of the same is extended and we prevent them from ending up in landfills.
Aceretech, together with our clients, gives more life to plastics, and contributes to the circular economy.