Patent · US Expired

Bottle recycling apparatus and method

US5225137A · kind A · utility

27Cited by
7References
19Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 3, 1992
Grant dateJul 6, 1993
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 3, 2012

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10S425/046
  • WIPO fieldOther special machines
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

In general, used thermoplastic liquid containers such as oil and solvent bottles are discarded. When recycling oil bottles, the usual practice is to wash the bottles with a solvent to remove oil therefrom. Washing of the bottles results in large quantities of used, oil-containing solvent, which present a disposal problem. A simple solution to the problem of recycling liquid containers with no preliminary washing or cleaning operation includes the steps of tumbling the bottles to promote liquid separation, shredding the bottles into small pieces and draining the liquid therefrom, grinding the pieces of plastic to yield a particulate thermoplastic, and mixing the particulate thermoplastic and any liquid remaining therein with an additive, e.g. an oil absorbent and a filler such as calcium carbonate, glass, mica or talc, and when the liquid is an oil, an absorbent to produce an extrudable mixture which can be used to form new containers.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.