EMERSON, James Bruce (93 Paki Paki Road, Rd4, Hastings, NZ)
WARMAN, Karen Anne (11a Windsor Place, Mairangi Bay, Auckland, NZ)
EMERSON, James Bruce (93 Paki Paki Road, Rd4, Hastings, NZ)
WARMAN, Karen Anne (11a Windsor Place, Mairangi Bay, Auckland, NZ)
Claims
1 A method of solvent based or water based formulation recovery, the method including the steps of (a) collecting a quantity of unused formulation;
(b) characterising the nature of the formulation;
(c) grading the quality of formulation; and
(d) processing the formulation according to its nature and quality to maximise the recovery of formulation and to minimise the quantity of formulation disposed.
2 The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the nature of the formulation is characterised to determine whether the formulation is water or solvent based.
3 The method as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the quantity of unused formulation is either collected from a known site, and/or delivered to a designated formulation recovery premises.
4 The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein a specialised vehicle is used to collect one or more quantities of formulation from one or more sites.
5 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the quality of the formulation is graded to determine whether it is of a sufficient quality for subsequent repackaging into a further formulation container.
6 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the method includes the step of collecting a levy upon collection of the unused formulation.
7 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 including the further step of processing bulk amounts of formulation at a centralised location according to the nature and quality of the formulation.
8 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 wherein the solvent based formulation is processed to recover an amount of solvent.
9 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 wherein the water based formulation is processed into a concrete slurry. 10 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the method includes the step of recycling any associated formulation containers.
11 The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10 wherein the method includes the further step of tracking the location, quantity, nature quality of the formulation recovered and/or any associated levy in a data management system.
12 A vehicle adapted to enable the collection and transport of solvent based or water based formulation recovered from one or more sites, the vehicle including the features of
(a) a processing system adapted to enable the separation of solvent based and water based formulations and to crush any associated packaging;
(b) a first storage compartment for water based formulations; (c) a second storage compartment for solvent based formulations;
(d) a storage area for packaged formulation characterised as being of a quality suitable for re-use;
(e) a third storage compartment for crushed plastics packaging; and
(f) a fourth storage compartment for crushed steel packaging.
13 The vehicle as claimed in claim 12 being further modified to include a lifting mechanism to enable a vehicle operator to lift one or more loads of formulation onto the vehicle.
14 The vehicle as claimed in claim 12 or claim 13 being further equipped with a vapour extraction system.
15 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 14 being further equipped with side impact bars.
16 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 15 being further equipped with one or more bunds.
17 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 16 further including a tracking system to record any one or more of volume/weight details of formulation, pick up locations, and any levies paid or owing. 18 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 17 wherein the first and second storage compartments are each drums positioned on a carousel beneath the crusher and wherein the carousel is rotatable so as to collect formulation into the drums.
19 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 18 wherein the processing system includes one or more of the following features;
(a) a crushing means;
(b) a first storage compartment to receive a quantity of a water based formulation;
(c) a second storage compartment to receive a quantity of a solvent based formulation;
(d) a third storage compartment to receive crushed metal; and
(e) a fourth storage compartment to receive crushed plastic.
20 The vehicle as claimed in claim 19 wherein the crushing means is adapted to crush any packaging including a water based or solvent based formulation and wherein, the formulation drains into either the first or second storage compartment after the container has been crushed.
21 The vehicle as claimed in claim 19 or claim 20 wherein a conveying means conveys any crushed metal or crushed plastic packaging into its respective storage compartments after being crushed.
22 The vehicle as claimed in claim 21 wherein the conveying means is an auger.
23 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 19 to 22 wherein the processing system includes one or more bund areas beneath the third and fourth storage compartment adapted to receive any residual formulation draining from the crusher.
24 The vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 19 to 23 storage compartments are each drums positioned on a carousel beneath the crusher and wherein the carousel is rotatable so as to collect formulation into the drums.
25 A processing system suitable for use in a solvent based or water based formulation recovery programme, the processing system including (a) a crushing means; (b) a first storage compartment to receive a quantity of a water based formulation;
(c) a second storage compartment to receive a quantity of a solvent based formulation; (d) a third storage compartment to receive crushed metal; and
(e) a fourth storage compartment to receive crushed plastic.
26 A processing system as claimed in claim 25 wherein the crushing means is adapted to crush any packaging including a water based or solvent based formulation and wherein, the formulation drains into either the first or second storage compartment after the container has been crushed.
27 The processing system as claimed in claim 26 wherein a conveying means conveys any crushed metal or crushed plastic packaging into its respective storage compartments after being crushed.
28 The processing system as claimed in claim 27 wherein the conveying means is an auger.
29 The processing system as claimed in any one of claims 25 to 28 including one or more bund areas beneath the third and fourth storage compartment adapted to receive any residual formulation draining from the crushing means. |
A Method to Recover Water Based or Solvent Based Formulations, a Vehicle and a Processing System therefor for Enabling said Recovery
The present invention relates generally to a method of recovering water based or solvent based paint formulations and to a vehicle and a processing system therefor for enabling the mobile recovery of paint formulations.
Background
The systematic recovery using mobile collection and processing systems technologies of unused or left over paint formulations and associated formulation containers for further recycling or disposal has not been provided in any form of large scale programme in any country.
It is recognised that large volumes of unused or left over paint formulations can remain on residential or industrial premises for long periods of time. It is estimated that as much as several hundred thousand of litres of paint formulation could be systematically recovered in New Zealand on an annual basis.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for the recovery of unused or left over paint formulations, to provide a vehicle and a processing system therefor for enabling the mobile recovery of paint formulations or to at least provide the public with a useful choice.
Summary of the Invention
In a first aspect there is provided a method of solvent based or water based formulation recovery, the method including the steps of
(a) collecting a quantity of unused formulation;
(b) characterising the nature of the formulation; (c) grading the quality of formulation; and
(d) processing the formulation according to its nature and quality to maximise the recovery of formulation and to minimise the quantity of formulation disposed.
The nature of the formulation is characterised to determine whether the formulation is water or solvent based.
Preferably, the quantity of unused formulation is either collected from a known site, and/or delivered to a designated formulation recovery premises. Preferably, a specialised vehicle is used to collect one or more quantities of formulation from one or more sites.
The maximisation of formulation recovery is intended to mean that as much formulation as possible is recycled to optimise resource recovery and to minimise the amount of formulation disposed of through landfills. It is estimated that up to about 90% of the formulation recovered will be re-used, used in solvent recovery, added to cement additives or the like. It is estimated that up to 10% of the formulation recovered will be irrecoverable and will need to be disposed of in the likes of a landfill.
Preferably, the quality of the formulation is graded to determine whether it is of a quality that is good enough for subsequent repackaging into a further formulation container for use as a formulation in a community based painting project or the like. It is estimated that up to 15% of the formulation collected will be of a quality such that it can be reused in its current state for community based painting projects.
Preferably, the method includes the step of collecting a levy upon collection of the unused formulation. The extent of the levy being dependent on the brand, nature and/or quality of the formulation collected.
Preferably the method includes the further step of processing bulk amounts of formulation at a centralised location according to the nature and quality of the formulation.
Preferably the solvent based formulation is processed to recover an amount of solvent.
Preferably the water based formulation is processed into the likes of a concrete slurry.
Preferably, the method includes the step of recycling any associated formulation containers. Where the containers are steel these are crushed, recycled and processed for subsequent steel recovery. Where the containers are of a plastics material these are recycled and processed for subsequent plastics recovery and reuse.
Preferably, the method includes the further step of tracking the location, quantity, nature quality of the formulation recovered and/or any associated levy in a data management system.
In a second aspect there is provided a vehicle adapted to enable the collection and transport of solvent based or water based formulation recovered from one or more sites, the vehicle including the features of
(a) a processing system adapted to enable the separation of solvent based and water based formulations and to crush any associated packaging; (b) a first storage compartment for water based formulations;
(c) a second storage compartment for solvent based formulations;
(d) a storage area for packaged formulation characterised as being of a quality suitable for re-use;
(e) a third storage compartment for crushed plastics packaging; and (f) a fourth storage compartment for crushed steel packaging.
Preferably the vehicle is further modified to include a lifting mechanism to enable a vehicle operator to lift one or more loads of formulation onto the vehicle.
Preferably the vehicle or processing system is further equipped with safety features, such as side intrusion bars to prevent rupture of the storage compartments, a vapour extraction system and bund areas to contain any formulation spills.
Preferably the vehicle includes a tracking system to record details, such as the volume/weight of formulation picked up, the pick up location, any levies paid or owing and the like.
Preferably, the processing system includes one or more of the following features;
(a) a crushing means; (b) a first storage compartment to receive a quantity of a water based formulation;
(c) a second storage compartment to receive a quantity of a solvent based formulation;
(d) a third storage compartment to receive crushed metal; and (e) a fourth storage compartment to receive crushed plastic.
Preferably, the crushing means is adapted to crush any packaging including a water based or solvent based formulation and wherein, the formulation drains into either the first or second storage compartment after the container has been crushed.
Preferably, a conveying means conveys any crushed metal or crushed plastic packaging into its respective storage compartments after being crushed. More preferably the conveying means is an auger.
Preferably the processing system includes one or more bund areas beneath the third and fourth storage compartment adapted to receive any residual formulation draining from the crusher.
In a third aspect, there is provided a processing system suitable for use in a solvent based or water based formulation recovery programme, the processing system including
(a) a crushing means;
(b) a first storage compartment to receive a quantity of a water based formulation;
(c) a second storage compartment to receive a quantity of a solvent based formulation;
(d) a third storage compartment to receive crushed metal; and
(e) a fourth storage compartment to receive crushed plastic.
Preferably, the crushing means is adapted to crush any packaging including a water based or solvent based formulation and wherein, the formulation drains into either the first or second storage compartment after the container has been crushed.
Preferably, a conveying means conveys any crushed metal or crushed plastic packaging into its respective storage compartments after being crushed. More preferably the conveying means is an auger.
Preferably the processing system includes one or more bund areas beneath the third and fourth storage compartment adapted to receive any residual formulation draining from the crushing means.
Further aspects of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description with reference to the Figures and pilot study results which are given by way of example only:
Figure 1 shows schematically a flow diagram of the steps involved in a solvent based or water based formulation recovery programme.
Figure 2 shows schematically a front perspective view of a vehicle suitable for use in a solvent based or water based formulation recovery programme with the vehicle surrounds shown to be transparent for the purposes of revealing the internal features.
Figure 3 shows schematically a left side view of the vehicle shown in Figure 2.
Figure 4 shows schematically a rear perspective view of the vehicle shown in Figures 2.
Figure 5 shows schematically a rear view of the vehicle shown in Figure 2.
Figure 6 shows schematically a plan view of the vehicle shown in Figure 2.
Figure 7 shows schematically a rear elevation view of a processing system.
Figure 8 shows schematically a side elevation view of the processing system illustrated in Figure 7.
Figure 9 shows schematically a front elevation view of the processing system illustrated in Figure 7.
Figure 10 shows schematically a front perspective view of the processing system illustrated in Figure 7.
Figure 11 shows schematically a rear perspective view of the processing system illustrated in Figure 7.
Detailed Description of the Invention
A flow chart of a solvent based or water based formulation recovery programme is shown in Figure 1. Unwanted or unused paint is collected and/or delivered to a paint
recovery site. The nature of the formulation is characterised to determine whether the formulation is water or solvent based. Depending on the nature of the paint formulation collected a levy for recovery may be applied. For example a solvent based formulation may incur a levy fee because of the more expensive and complex recovery steps involved in recovering solvent. It is envisaged that the extent of the levy will depend on the brand, nature and/or quality of the formulation collected.
The collected formulation is then separated into its respective types and stored in separate bins or storage compartments. If the formulation is of a quality that means it is suitable for re-use the formulation may be repackaged or simply stored for subsequent re-use. It is envisaged that such formulation will be re-used on community projects, such as mural painting or the like. It is estimated that up to 15% of the formulation collected will be of a quality such that it can be reused in its current state with no further processing in the likes of community based painting projects. It is envisaged that the recovery programme will link with community groups either directly or through local authority programmes to supply paint for reuse. One of the goals of the programme is to maximise the amount of paint that is recovered for community based purposes.
The formulation collected that is determined to be of an insufficient quality for subsequent re-use will be separated according to whether it is water based or solvent based and then placed into bulk storage tanks for subsequent processing. It is envisaged that solvent based formulation will be processed to recover the solvent. The water based formulation may be used for concrete slurries or the like.
The method may include the step of recycling any associated formulation containers. Where the containers are steel these are crushed, recycled and processed for subsequent steel recovery. Where the containers are of a plastics material these are recycled and processed for subsequent plastics recovery and reuse.
The processing of the formulation is undertaken wherever possible to maximise the recovery of formulation and any associated packaging and to minimise the quantity of formulation/packaging disposed.
The maximisation of formulation recovery is intended to mean that as much formulation as possible is recycled to optimise resource recovery and to minimise the amount of formulation disposed of through landfills. It is estimated that up to about 90% of the
formulation recovered will be re-used, used in solvent recovery, and added to cement additives or the like. It is estimated that up to 10% of the formulation recovered will be irrecoverable and will need to be disposed of in the likes of a landfill.
Preferably, the method includes the further step of tracking the location, quantity, nature quality of the formulation recovered, the weight of any associated packaging recovered and/or any associated levy in a data management system. It is envisaged that this data will assist in making recycling decisions to optimise resource recovery.
The vehicle 1 illustrated in Figures 2 to 6 is a specialist vehicle set up for the purpose of mobile recovery of water based and solvent based formulations. The rear body of the vehicle 1 includes a storage compartment 2 for storage of solvent based formulation and a storage compartment 3 for storage of water-based formulation. The vehicle preferably has at least one dedicated storage compartment 4 for crushed cans, at least one dedicated storage compartment 5 for crushed plastic and a storage area 6 for quality paint characterised as being of a sufficient quality for reuse in community based projects. It is to be appreciated that the arrangement of storage compartments may be varied. For example, it is envisaged that the storage compartments may be drums located on a carousel, which drums can be readily replaced as needed. The vehicle preferably further includes an extraction or ventilation system (not shown) for the evacuation of paint fumes. Additionally the vehicle preferably includes a lifting mechanism 8, such as a side lifter, fork lifter or tail lifter to enable the lifting of heavy loads into the vehicle.
A console 9 enables an operator of the vehicle or processing system to select whether the formulation is water based or solvent based formulation in a plastics or steel pail. The pail and enclosed formulation is placed on the console area and the processing system 10 (see Figures 7 to 11 for the features of a processing system) is then activated by electronics (not shown) to deposit the pail and formulation into the crusher 13. After the pail has been crushed and punctured by the crusher, if the formulation is solvent based formulation it drains into tank and if the formulation is water based formulation it drains into storage compartment by way of storage compartment feeds 11 and 12 that extend from the crusher into the storage compartments 2 and 3 respectively. In another embodiment the formulations may be collected in large drums instead of fixed tanks. These drums would be held on a carousel underneath the crusher and can be selected by an operator by rotating the carousel so that the formulation drains into the appropriate drum. When full the drum can be sealed and
then transferred from the carousel to a storage rack on the vehicle pending off-loading. The associated crushed pails are then conveyed by a conveying means, such as an auger 14 or 15 depending on the nature of the packaging (shown in Figure 4), into storage compartment 4 or storage compartment 5. The selected storage compartment again depends on whether the material is metal or plastic. The storage compartments 4 and 5 each have a bund 16 and 17 respectively to capture and contain any residual formulation draining from storage compartments 4 and 5. Auger discharge points 19 and 20 are also provided should formulation drain from the crushed packaging during conveyance into the storage compartments 4 and/or 5. It is to be appreciated that while twin augers 14 and 15 are illustrated, a single auger could also be used to transfer the crushed formulation packaging to the appropriate storage compartment. In another embodiment the crusher is a cylindrical sleeve arrangement having a first outer sleeve and a second inner sleeve. A can is located in the first outer sleeve and drops into the inner sleeve when the aperture of the outer sleeve is aligned with the aperture of the inner sleeve. The inner cylinder then revolves to enclose the can, which is then crushed by a ram with the formulation contents being squeezed out through one or more openings in the base of the cylindrical sleeve arrangement. With this embodiment, multiple cans can be loaded into the crusher for a crushing cycle. The loading of cans into the outer cylinder can be either done directly or via a loading system which enables the cans to load continuously while the operator undertakes other tasks.
In another embodiment plastic pails which have waterbourne paint are preferably emptied by hand into a drum or tank and the residual paint can be cleaned from the pail using a revolving spigot and crown system that is preferably located in the truck adjacent to the crusher. The cleaned pails are then transferred to a compartment in the rear of the truck to be discharged when the packaging compartment is full.
Once the vehicle has been driven to the known sites for collection of formulation, and preferably at day end the storage compartments in the vehicle that contain formulation are emptied by gravity or pumped into a larger holding tank and held for subsequent bulk processing. The solvent based formulation is put into a larger solvent based holding tank, preferably for subsequent solvent removal. The water based formulation is put into a larger water based holding tank. The crushed metal may then be either stored or baled and passed onto a metal recycler for recycling. The crushed plastics may be sent to a plastics recycling plant.
It is preferred that the vehicle be further equipped with safety features, such as side intrusion bars 18 (shown in Figure 4) to prevent rupture of the formulation storage compartments, a vapour extraction system and bund areas to contain any formulation spills.
Preferably the vehicle includes a tracking system to record details, such as the volume/weight of formulation picked up, the pick up location, any levies paid or owing and the like. The tracking system may be incorporated into the console used by the vehicle operator so that the operator is prompted at the time of processing the formulation and any associated packaging to record key data.
It is to be appreciated that a stand-alone processing system as illustrated in Figures 7 to 11 could be incorporated into any vehicle that could be used for a formulation recovery programme. Alternatively, the processing system could be located in a designated formulation recovery site, such as a paint retail shop.
Pilot Study
A pilot study was conducted whereby approximately 22,000 litres of waste or unused formulation in paint cans or pails was collected over a short trial.
The nature and quality of the 22,000 litres of paint was characterised into the following categories:
The associated paint cans and pails were also analysed and a total of 10,600 kgs of plastic and steel was recovered and sent for recycling.
The pilot study shows that considerable resource recovery may be undertaken. It will be appreciated that there are significant benefits to be gained from the recovery of such volumes of formulation one of which includes protecting the environment from undesirable disposal of unwanted formulation.
Wherein the foregoing description reference has been made to integers or components having known equivalents thereof, those integers are herein incorporated as if individually set forth. For example, while specific mention has been made to water based or solvent based formulations, the same aspects of the invention could be readily employed for the recovery of oil waste, such as oil filters, used or unused motor vehicle oil.
Although the invention has been described by way of example and with reference to possible embodiments thereof, it is to be appreciated that modifications and/or improvements may be made to those embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.