The separating method of copper and aluminum from heat exchanger in air conditioner

After a detailed study of recoverable materials in heat exchangers included in a post-use air conditioner, an efficient separating method has been developed to recover copper and aluminum, which are component materials of the heat exchangers. In this separating method, the heat exchangers are treated by a rolling machine to enhance the separability with utilizing the difference of mechanical characteristics between copper and aluminum, and then the products are crushed, separated and classified to recover high quality copper and aluminum. This separating method has made it possible to recover copper and aluminum of more than 95% quality from the heat exchangers.