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In 2003 a Material Recycling Facility (MRF) was added to the front end of the waste combustors. The purpose of the MRF is to remove recyclables, hazards and problem items from the trash before combustion.
 How the Process Works:
- The trucks dump the trash in the tipping hall.
- The front end loader employee removes very large metal pieces.
- The trash is then dumped onto a conveyer then brought to an air conditioned and/or heated enclosure where employees pick out large unburnables like microwaves and mufflers.
- Next, employees pull out corrugated cardboard and toss onto a large chute or storage bunker. When it’s full, it’s conveyed to a baler and baled for market.
- Employees don’t touch unopened bags.
- After the trash passes through the picking station, it goes into a large trommel screen (a rotating drum) that is 10’ diameter x 40’ long. The drum has two sizes of holes called fines which are 2” – 6”. The trommel screen has knives to rip open the garbage bags. As the drum rotates it mixes everything up.
- During the process the fines (small bits of broken glass, lottery tickets, gravel, cigarette butts and etc.) fall through unto a conveyer and then are passed over a magnetic head pulley which pulls only small items such as button batteries, pins, screws, nails and etc. The collected remaining combustibles continue on to the storage pit where they are mixed with other MSW that is to be fed to the waste combustor.
- The next separation process is cans and other items of the same size. They fall through onto a magnetic separator. All items which are magnetized fall into one bunker. The similar shaped objects which were not removed by the magnet continue on and are then separated by an eddy current separator which repels the aluminum into a bunker where it is ultimately baled. The collected remaining combustibles continue on to the storage pit where they are mixed with other MSW that is to be fed to the waste combustor.
- All other items not removed fall out the end of the trommel onto a belt conveyor. This belt also runs under a magnet picking up other larger metal objects. All three lines merge and are conveyed to the storage pit.
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