Herbold Meckesheim offers Hot Wash System

Manufacturers of food products and other packaging-intensive goods require large quantities of uniform reusable plastic granulates/flakes. When integrated into a new or existing plastics recycling line, hot wash systems from Herbold Meckesheim USA, Smithfield, Rhode Island, can help processors meet this demand, Herbold Meckesheim USA reports in a news release.

Herbold Meckesheim USA, a subsidiary of Herbold Meckesheim Germany, designs, manufactures, and installs size-reduction equipment and wash-line systems for the plastics industry. The company’s Herbold Hot Wash System, initially designed for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, can also be used to process a variety of other items, including thermoformed foils, trays and foil used in the packaging industry.

According to a news release from Herbold Meckesheim USA, fatty impurities from remnants of lotions, cooking oils or sunscreen are dissolved and washed away, as are residues from labels and adhesives. The elimination of impurities at the front end of the process results in a higher volume of usable flake that is substantially cleaner. This improved cleanliness of the flake is evidenced by a significant reduction of particles found in extrusion melt filters—routinely 50 percent less than non-hot washed flake. The resulting clean flake also has reduced odor, is completely clear and does not yellow.

Herbold Hot Wash Systems are custom configured to best suit the needs of the application using a variety of components, which may include multichamber separation tanks, friction washers, turbo washers, mechanical or thermal dryers.