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Tag Archives: challenging materials

MRF battery fires burn ‘really fast’ and ‘really hot’

Published: March 5, 2024
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Vinod Singh of Far West Recycling speaks during an Association of Oregon Recyclers presentation on recycling facility battery fires in February. | Dan Holtmeyer/Resource Recycling

At a Portland, Oregon-area transfer station, site superintendent Matt Tracy has noticed smaller lithium-ion batteries often behave like fireworks when they go into thermal runaway: They move erratically and can even become projectiles. Continue Reading

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Textile recycling is at a pivotal moment, experts say

Published: February 13, 2024
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Textiles collected for recycling

Methods for recycling clothing and other textiles exist but must be scaled up to meet the problem, several experts said during a recent panel discussion hosted by TOMRA. | Chatham172/Shutterstock

Textile production is among the world’s least sustainable industries, but that could change if brands, governments and investors supercharge and interweave recycling systems that already exist in isolation, experts said during a recent webinar from Europe. Continue Reading

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Tech to spot hidden batteries draws $6.4M investment

Published: January 29, 2024
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BinIt’s Visia system can combine cameras, X-rays and artificial intelligence to spot batteries hidden under or inside recyclable material streams. | Courtesy of BinIT

A young technology company’s imaging system combines cameras, X-rays and artificial intelligence to allow recycling facility operators to peer into their waste streams and remove the hidden menace of lithium-ion batteries and other hazards, the company’s CEO said in a recent interview. Continue Reading

Panelists shed light on solar panel recycling

Published: November 6, 2023
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Bob Nicholson (left) and AJ Orben (middle) speak at the 2023 E-Scrap and E-Reuse Conference in New Orleans, with Jared Paben (right) moderating the session. | Big Wave Productions/E-Scrap News

Now is the time for interested parties to enter the solar panel recycling sector, but experts say there are plenty of challenges to navigate as well. Continue Reading

Casella pilot scaling up recycling in medicine

Published: October 23, 2023
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Now that its medical waste recycling pilot has yielded “favorable results,” Casella Waste Systems is looking to broaden the project to include more healthcare facilities. | Courtesy of BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company)

As part of a pilot project to explore the recyclability of medical waste, Casella Waste Systems and medical company BD recycled 40,000 pounds of material, including syringes and needles.  Continue Reading

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For facility operators, insurance is now ‘a wild ride’

Published: August 14, 2023
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An April 2021 battery-sparked fire at a MRF in Tulsa, Okla. resulted in a $10 million loss and ended the city’s recycling program for a time. | Tulsa Fire Department

Recycling companies say property insurance has become significantly more expensive and difficult to find as providers shy away from fire risk and other complications. Continue Reading

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WM and Republic move forward on major plastic plans

Published: March 27, 2023
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Both WM and Republic are vertically integrating, with the former making acquisitions and the latter drawing up plans for a new facility. | Lipik Stok Media/Shutterstock

Seeing big business opportunities, the two largest garbage and recycling companies in North America will put tens of millions of dollars into expanding their downstream plastics processing capabilities in coming years. 

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Washington state tackles bagged recyclables

Published: March 27, 2023
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Washington State

Bagged recyclables cause major headaches for MRFs, so the state of Washington wants to teach people to fill their bins with loose items. | Alexander Lukatskiy/Shutterstock

MRF operators and state officials are working to persuade residents in Washington state to keep plastic film out of the curbside stream.

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Feds loan $2B to Redwood Materials to build facility

Published: February 21, 2023
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Redwood’s McCarran, Nev. campus will eventually produce about 100,000 metric tons of cathode active materials each year. | Allyson Kitts/Shutterstock

Redwood Materials has secured a major loan from the federal government, with some strings attached, to help build out its Nevada lithium-ion battery recycling campus.

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