Separate to the max, says Hermion

With smart phones and laptops, and cars and batteries containing ever more plastics, the future demands increasingly smart WEEE plastics recovery tools, proclaims Yulin Wang, who is ceo of Dutch recycling technology provider Hermion. Together with its sister company 3R Technology UK, Hermion has developed a modular line, named Gemini, which Wang says offers recyclers the solution for e-scrap plastics they’ve been waiting for.

In these uncertain times, with low prices for secondary plastics, we could be forgiven for overlooking the importance of smart separation technology, says entrepreneur Yulin Wang over coffee at Hermion’s headquarters in Waalwijk in the Netherlands. ‘The alternative would be to continue, as we still see in some US States and elsewhere, to incinerate and landfill e-scrap plastics. But – trust me – with increased regulation banning incineration and landfilling in more and more places, it will mean a much bigger cost than the money you’d put into smart systems to get the plastics out and create cleaner materials to make new products.’

Plastics all around us

In a nutshell, Wang is saying recyclers face both a tremendous environmental and legal issues. ‘Electronic and electrical devices, as well as modern cars, have increased plastic content and we’re simply not allowed to keep these materials in the precious and semiprecious metals mix once they reach end-of-life and are being recycled. They have to be taken out.’

Recyclers are mostly interested in the precious metals, rather than the plastics, Wang observes, as it’s the these metals that make the most money. But at the same time recyclers see more complex plastics coming in and they are looking for solutions to smartly separate them out to make a clean plastic product for selling on the market.

Restricted e-scrap streams

‘Obviously, this trend is boosted by regulation, mostly in Europe, says Wang. ‘Thanks to the law makers in Brussels, electronics producers have to take responsibility and make sure end-of-life products are properly processed. Which also means they and the recyclers have to secure the complex plastics streams and recycle at home.’

According to Wang, other parts of the world tend to follow European restrictions and guidelines. ‘You see this in Japan, Mexico and New Zealand to name but three. Traders are no longer allowed to export mixed e-scrap streams, not even from the US.’

Demand for smart tech

As a result, Hermion has seen a rapid increase in demand for advanced separation solutions. Wang and his team of engineers have designed and developed a special line, Gemini, to tackle these plastics and separate them from the precious and semiprecious metals.

Gemini is a modular system. ‘You can add or take out parts if you wish depending on your needs,’ says Wang. ‘The more steps that are added the better as the more advanced separation you achieve.’

Closed-loop water treatment

Hermion’s modular line has many advantages. ‘Apart from the modular, custom-made approach, I would say Gemini is the perfect solution for smaller recycling companies. For a small line you would need less than 800 square metres. It can process up to five tonnes of material per hour.’

Another good thing, Wang stresses, is that Gemini can be a ‘relatively low cost’ solution. ‘With an investment of EUR 800 000 you’d have a proper, modern line up and running.’

The metal and plastics separation guarantees ‘100% high value metals recovery’, he points out. ‘Another thing I’m proud of is the closed-loop water treatment system.’

Best practice in Preston

A prototype line has been installed at partner company 3R Technology UK’s  facility in Preston, in north-west England. 3R handles some 20 000 tonnes of e-scrap per year and Wang is confident Gemini will help ramp up the volumes.

Meanwhile Hermion is working on installating Gemini processing lines at plastics recycler Lavergne in Belgium and Canada. ‘Part of the technology is already in place and being used,’ Wang says.

On a mission

The Hermion ceo expects new orders to roll in. In 2024 alone Hermion is attending/exhibiting at 12 major conferences and trade shows around the globe, including: IFAT in Munich, the E-scrap Conference in Orlando and, of course, the ISRI Convention & Expo in Las Vegas in April. ‘With more legislation coming into force, you can imagine the US is a big potential market for us,’ says Wang.

What about Asia? ‘In countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, labour is still cheap so separation is done manually. But that will change within ten, 15 years and we’re going to see recyclers here and in other emerging economies switch to advanced solutions, too.’

For more information, visit: www.hermion.nl | www.3rtechnologyuk.com | www.3rtcollect.com