An automatic sorting system for glass bottles, cans, and plastic bottles

Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. (IHI) is one of the pioneers in developing automatic sorting systems for used glass bottles and delivered its first system in May 1997 to Japan's Izumo Recycling Center. Subsequent efforts in developing sorting systems for returnable glass bottles and for plastic bottles have been successful. A line of an actual plant size of an automatic high rate sorting facility for resource recycling has been installed at IHI Yokohama Works Environmental Technology Center that was inaugurated on April 1, 1998. The demonstration operation of the plant is summarized and reported in this paper.