Plasma arc technology to be developed for US Waste Management company

February 24, 2015 0 By Amanda Giasson

Duncan Recycling & Refining will be able to recover precious metals from catalytic converters.

US waste management firm, Duncan Recycling & Refining (DR2), has entered into a deal with UK based manufacturer of plasma arc recycling equipment for the recovery of precious metals, Tetronics International, which will provide DR2 with its technology to enable the company to recover precious metals from catalytic convertors found in automotive vehicles.

The recovery of valuable resources will help reduce waste.

Tetronics International’s arc systems make it possible to recover valuable resources from materials, such as electronics, spent catalysts, and mining ores. The company will be developing and delivering a plasma refining arc for the DR2 plant, which is located in Duncan, Oklahoma.

The plant will utilize plasma to remove and refine the precious platinum group metals and ceramics that are found in catalytic convertors.

The CEO of Tetronics Internationa, Graeme Rumbol, said that “Duncan Recycling & Refining was established partly due to seeing our technology – demonstrating that Tetronics is a world leader in precious metal recovery.”

The waste management plant will have the capacity to process two million catalytic converters, annually.

Waste Management - Catalytic ConverterIt is estimated that DR2’s plant will be able to process six metric tons of catalytic converters every day or approximately two million per year. Once they have been recovered, the valuable metals will be sold, enabling them to be reused in various processes and products. On the other hand, the non-valuable waste will be utilized as building aggregate, which will be made possible by converting the waste into an inert material known as Plasmarok.

According to the president of DR2, David Nichols, he made the decision to install the plasma arc technology from Tetronics at the Oklahoma plant after he saw it perform during a trip he took to Europe, two years back.

Nichols said that “When it is fully operational the plant will help bring jobs to the area, which will start at around one and a half times the average salary in the area.”

By 2016, the waste management plant is expected to be fully operation and, with the installation of the Duncan Recycling & Refining plant, worldwide, Tetronics will have installed 11 precious metal recovery plants.

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