There are a lot of efforts globally to recycle this problematic waste stream from construction and some solid solutions have come into the market. The problem is bigger than most people realise and in many countries, gypsum board waste is still going to landfill,which is a climate change issue as gypsum board emits methane as it breaks down. Landfill management companies are starting to realise this and increasingly rejecting gypsum board waste to prevent increased emissions from landfill. This has meant that unofficial dumps of gypsum board waste have started to pop up despite solid attempts at driving recycling of the material.
Part of the issue in recycling gypsum board, has been that the grade of the recycled and separated gypsum and the paper streams, has not been high enough to allow for viable financial value to make the recycling model work. This is where we feel the VIS machine has an advantage to existing recycling options.
We saw the potential of our machine based on the paper being non-responsive to the forces in our machine. In partnership with Ash-TEK (USA based engineering solutions company), we set up a proof of concept production grade plant in the USA in 2022 and ran 50 tons of material through the plant to verify the positive small scale results we achieved previous.
The results are solid. We create an ultra fine and high grade gypsum that is 100% clean and has the benefit of the chemical reactivity and particle shape that our process gives to material. The paper waste is also far cleaner of gypsum compared to other processes as in the VIS machine, all gypsum including that clumped to the paper, is exploded out and means very little residue still on the paper. This means the paper can be more effectively recycled with large volume recycling options for use of this paper being possible and we are currently exploring the most financially viable options for this paper recycling.
In the process that our partners AshTEK designed, there are 3 streams of output material:
Through using the fact that some components within a material do not respond to aero acoustic forces in the VIS machine, we have been able to create new options for recycling materials where there were only expensive energy-intensive options to break down materials to seperate components so that they could be recycled. In some cases we have now provided a solution for recycling where components in materials can be efficiently seperated where this was not possible before.
Due to the extreme forces and the patented process of applying the VIS machine forces to solid materials, the particle surface is chemically activated and material achieves a reactivity that is far past its natural state
Unlike conventional mechanical comminution plant, the VIS machine produces a jagged and ridged particle that is not smooth and round. This drastically improves the surface area of a particle, thereby also improving particle response to chemical reactions. This kind of shape if also conducive to mechanical compaction for pelleting or improving structural strength in products like concrete
It is estimated that 12 - 20% of the gypsum board used in construction globally ends up as off-cut or damaged board waste. Most of this is not currently recycled and is contributing to global greenhouse gas emissions in the form of methane as it degrades.
These large paper sections are easily separated from the material post processing from the VIS machine. Due to the unique forces of the VIS machine, the paper has far less gypsum residue on them compared to other processes.
The separated fine material after the primary separation of large paper from the stream. The gypsum is ultrafine at this stage.
