US 12,440,852 B1
System and process for sorting and recovery of recyclable materials from mixed municipal solid waste
Robert Torriere, Tyngsborough, MA (US)
Assigned to WM INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY HOLDINGS, L.L.C, Houston, TX (US)
Filed by WM Intellectual Property Holdings, L.L.C., Houston, TX (US)
Filed on Jul. 5, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/218,490.
Application 18/218,490 is a continuation of application No. 17/881,466, filed on Aug. 4, 2022, granted, now 11,707,747.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/229,950, filed on Aug. 5, 2021.
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. B03B 9/06 (2006.01)
CPC B03B 9/06 (2013.01) 3 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A process for sorting and recovering materials from a solid waste stream, the process comprising:
screening the solid waste stream in a primary screener to separate corrugated cardboard from the solid waste stream,
screening the solid waste stream in a secondary screener comprising a vibrating sizing screen to separate 2D materials from 3D materials, resulting in a 2D solid waste stream having 2D materials comprising paper, film plastic, cardboard, brown fiber and containers, and a 3D solid waste stream having 3D materials comprising cardboard, plastic containers, aluminum containers and fines;
passing the 2D solid waste stream through one or more optical sorters to separate plastic, cardboard, and brown fiber from the 2D solid waste stream;
recombining the 2D solid waste stream and the 3D solid waste stream to produce a recombined solid waste stream;
after recombining and with no additional treatment, introducing the recombined solid waste stream into a mechanical separator and separating the recombined solid waste stream into fines materials, mixed paper materials, and containers materials comprising bottles, cans, and residual paper;
conveying the containers materials from the mechanical separator to one or more magnets to remove ferrous material;
recovering residual paper from the containers material; and
combining the residual paper with the mixed paper materials from the mechanical separator.