Recycling waste agricultural films—such as greenhouse covers, mulch films, and silages—presents some of the most demanding working conditions in the plastic recycling industry. Unlike clean post-industrial scrap, post-consumer agricultural film waste is heavily contaminated with soil, sand, organic debris, and extremely high moisture levels (often exceeding 10-15% after washing).
Conventional pelletizing extruders frequently fail under these harsh conditions, suffering from severe screw wear, constant nozzle clogging, trapped air bubbles, and thermal degradation.
This case study highlights how an agricultural plastic recycling facility successfully conquered heavy contamination and high water content using Foshan Jiuxin Machinery’s Agricultural Film Recycling Granulator Line.
The Challenge: Heavy Contamination & Excess Moisture
Processing raw agricultural mulch film involves three primary technical obstacles:
- Severe Abrasive Wear: Residual dirt and sand particles act as abrasives, rapidly wearing out conventional screw flights and barrel walls.
- Melt Trapped Moisture & Bubbles: Residual water inside the film turns into steam during heating, causing surging, voids, and brittle recycled pellets.
- Frequent Screen Clogging: High dirt content requires constant filter screen changes, leading to massive production downtime and operator labor.
The Solution: Foshan Jiuxin Low-Temperature Eco-Friendly Granulator
To tackle these extreme working conditions, Foshan Jiuxin Machinery implemented a customized agricultural film recycling machine engineered for high durability, powerful degassing, and continuous filtration.
Key Engineering Features & Solutions
- Multi-Vent Dual-Stage High Vacuum Degassing: Equipped with extended L/D ratio barrels and multi-stage vacuum vents that aggressively strip out deep-seated water vapor, organic gases, and ink residues before pelletization.
- Heavy-Duty Bimetallic Screw & Barrel: Custom-alloyed bimetallic screw flights resist sand and abrasive mineral wear, maintaining tight tolerance and steady output over long operational lifespans.
- Integrated Force Compactor & Feeder: Densifies lightweight, washed film flakes while generating frictional heat to flash-evaporate surface moisture before entering the extrusion zone.
- Non-Stop Hydraulic Screen Changer: Utilizes large-surface-area continuous hydraulic filtration units that automatically purge solid sand and dirt particles without stopping the line.
- Low-Temperature Eco-Friendly Processing: Gently melts PE agricultural films at strictly controlled lower temperatures, preventing polymer chain breakdown, black spots, or acrid smoke emissions.
Project Performance & Results
By switching to the Foshan Jiuxin low-temperature eco-friendly pelletizing setup, the recycling plant achieved remarkable operational improvements:
- Stable 60 kg/h Throughput: Continuous, non-stop feeding and filtration eliminated capacity bottlenecks caused by wet flakes.
- High-Purity Resin Output: Produced dense, bubble-free, dark-spot-free PE recycled granules suitable for secondary pipe extrusion and blown film manufacturing.
- 50% Longer Component Lifespan: Bimetallic wear protection drastically reduced barrel replacement frequency despite high sand content.
Troubled by wet or dirty agricultural films in your recycling plant?Contact Foshan Jiuxin Machinery Today to consult with our extrusion experts and discover our tailored farm film recycling solutions.