Gamma Meccanica recycling line targets challenging materials

Nov. 1, 2019
Gamma Meccanica's new GM90 Compac Tandem recycling line shown at K 2019 can process hard-to-recycle materials that often end up in the landfill.

Recycling machinery manufacturers are developing equipment that can process hard-to-

recycle material that often ends up in the landfill, and Gamma Meccanica SpA’s new GM90 Compac Tandem recycling line shown at K 2019 fits that category.

The Italian company said the GM90 is an intermediate-size Compac Tandem line featuring two extruders that it developed to recover heavily printed and contaminated plastic materials that often are not profitable to recycle. It can process plastics with up to 15 percent moisture content.

The line is also suitable for printed film with a high moisture content.

The first GM90 Compac Tandem will be installed in Gamma’s new customer laboratory at its Bibbiano, Italy, headquarters. It will be used to test customers’ materials.

The GM90 Compac Tandem features the company’s AFT Ecotronic feeding system to optimize the speed of the line’s cutter-compactor to maintain the set temperature without the use of water. The primary extruder has a screw diameter of 90mm; the secondary extruder has a 105mm screw, water-cooled motors and the company’s TDA 4.0 water-ring pelletizer.

Gamma provides additional feeding flexibility with a feeding system mounted to the main auger of the cutter-compactor that can run independently of the cutter-compactor, which saves energy, the company said. The feeding system can also run concurrently with the compactor to dose regrind into the densifier. Also available is a range of volumetric dosing devices that can handle pellets, crumb rubber, powder and other materials.

The Ecotronic system increases motor revolutions above the nominal speed; variable motor speeds save energy and allow users to better control for the temperature of the material without adding water.

Gamma said the line has a patented degassing system to remove moisture from the melt. The pelletizer, available in six different sizes, is designed to reduce line stoppages, and to operate more quickly and more smoothly than earlier models.

A range of screen changers is available to handle different material requirements.

The machine’s throughput ranges from 550 pounds per hour to 1,100 pounds per hour, depending on the material and processing conditions.

Gamma’s exclusive North American representative is Innovative Recycling Solutions.

Contact:

Innovative Recycling Solutions LLC, Greer, S.C., 877-675-0775, www.irecyclingsolutions.com

About the Author

Ron Shinn | Editor

Editor Ron Shinn is a co-founder of Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing and has been covering the plastics industry for more than 35 years. He leads the editorial team, directs coverage and sets the editorial calendar. He also writes features, including the Talking Points column and On the Factory Floor, and covers recycling and sustainability for PMM and Plastics Recycling.