The collaborative innovation project RecExpert 4.0, coordinated by the Spanish Plastics Center (CEP) with the participation of Gaiker Technology Center, Technological Institute of Castilla Leon (ITCL), birziplastic y Larrañaga Plastics, is under execution, with the aim of investigating an expert system that allows to maintain the productive cycles of the injection process of thermoplastic material, regardless of the percentage of recycled material present in the formulation of the material to be injected. In this way, we want to contribute with guarantees and confidence to reinforce the circular economy of plastic.
The RecExpert 4.0 project aims to take advantage of the new Industry 4.0 technologies to ensure the level of quality of the injected products in the face of the variability of the raw materials and the wide range of influencing variables in the injection process. This need is also increased by the increasing presence of recycled material in injected parts and the new sustainability guidelines at European level.
RecExpert 4.0 contemplates the development of new monitoring systems for the interrogation of quality parameters throughout the various stages of the injection process.
Thus, it is committed to using new optical identification systems, such as hyperspectral cameras, to determine the presence of mixtures of recycled material and assessment of its degree of quality in its dispersion and mixture.
The RecExpert 4.0 project has been financed by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism through the program of aid to support Innovative Business Groups (AEI) in order to improve the competitiveness of small and medium-sized companies.
