Current background

The recycling of automotive cables has a dual value of resources and environmental protection: 25% of the world’s discarded cables come from cars, and the copper consumption of new energy vehicle cables has increased by 3-5 times. Recycling 1 ton of copper can reduce 16 tons of ore mining and 3 tons of carbon emissions; The degradation of its insulation layer takes 200-500 years, and recycling is a key link in the circular economy – it not only alleviates the pressure on strategic resources, but also blocks the risk of plastic pollution and promotes the green transformation of the automotive industry.

Ingredients and Recycling Value

Automotive wiring harnesses are mainly made of copper (70% -80%), plastic, and rubber, and recycling has both resource and environmental value. Taking the annual processing of 5000 tons of production line as an example: 3500 tons of copper and 1200 tons of recycled plastic are recovered annually. Not only does it alleviate the pressure of copper mining (1 ton of recycled copper ≈ 16 tons of ore saved), but it also blocks the risk of plastic pollution, achieving a dual reduction in economic benefits and environmental governance costs, becoming a key practice of circular economy in the automotive industry.

Recycling process

1. Shredding processing: preliminary crushing

Waste car cables enter the shredder and are cut into small sections (20-40MM) to complete initial crushing, laying the foundation for subsequent processes.

2. Crushing and separation: improve dissociation degree

The shredded material enters the crusher and is processed into 5-10 mm uniform particles, increasing the dissociation degree between copper and insulation layer to over 95%, ensuring subsequent sorting efficiency.

3. Airflow sorting: density difference separation

After crushing, the material enters the air flow sorting machine, and based on the density difference between copper (8.9g/cm ³) and plastic (1-1.5g/cm ³), preliminary separation is achieved through air flow, with a copper based material enrichment rate of over 80%.

4. Electrostatic sorting: Conductivity sorting

The mixed material after airflow sorting enters the electrostatic sorting machine, which utilizes the difference in conductivity between copper and insulation between plastic to achieve efficient separation of copper and plastic, with a copper purity of over 99.5%.

5. Pulse dust removal: exhaust gas purification

The gas containing dust generated during the recycling process is treated by pulse dust removal equipment (with an hourly processing capacity of 10000m ³, the dust concentration can be reduced to below 10mg/m ³), and through the synergistic effect of airflow pulses and filter bags, the exhaust gas is discharged in compliance with standards.

Recovery value

The industrial process of “shredding → crushing → airflow sorting → electrostatic sorting → pulse dust removal” has been adopted for the recycling of automotive cables, creating a resource loop that not only solves the problem of copper scarcity (reducing ore mining and carbon emissions), but also blocks the plastic pollution chain (replacing native plastics and shortening degradation cycles). From the data, a production line that processes 5000 tons per year can save 56000 tons of copper ore and reduce carbon emissions by 15000 tons per year. This practice is driven by technology, promoting the automotive industry to move towards a “resource recycling ecology” and providing an industrial model for sustainable development.