Material Recycling of Plastics in a Blast Furnace System

Abstract

NKK has developed a system in which waste plastics are pulverized by crushing and granulating of lumpy one or agglomerating of film type plastics and injected into a blast furnace. The plastics are used as a substitute for the coke used in ironmaking. The system with an annual capacity of 30, 000 ton, has been operated from October, 1996. It was found that the total recycling ratio of waste plastics reached as high as 76%, with 51% and 25% of material and thermal recycling respectively.