# US 12,214,362 B2 · Process of recycling a bituminous waste product such as a waste bituminous membrane product

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- Number: US 12,214,362 B2
- Document ID: US12214362B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/776,077
- Filed: 2020-11-27
- Published: 2022-12-08
- Granted: 2025-02-04
- Earliest claimed: 2019-11-29
- Assignees: S.A. Imperbel N.V.
- Applicants: Imperbel
- Inventors: Guillaume Moreels; Julien Dormal; Caroline Martin; Koen Sneiders; Patrick Cogneau
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12214362B2

## CPC

- B03B 9/061: {the refuse being industrial}
- B02C 18/0084: {specially adapted for disintegrating garbage, waste or sewage}
- B02C 18/06: with rotating knives
- B02C 19/0056: {specially adapted for specific materials not otherwise provided for}
- B02C 23/08: Separating or sorting of material, associated with crushing or disintegrating (B02C23/18 takes precedence {; beater mills combined with sifting devices B02C13/13, B02C13/14; for tumbling mills B02C17/1835})
- B02C 23/38: in apparatus having multiple crushing or disintegrating zones
- C08J 11/06: without chemical reactions
- C08L 95/00: Compositions of bituminous materials, e.g. asphalt, tar, pitch
- C10C 3/007: {winning and separation of asphalt from mixtures with aggregates, fillers and other products, e.g. winning from natural asphalt and regeneration of waste asphalt}
- B02C 23/14: with more than one separator
- C08J 2395/00: Bituminous materials, e.g. asphalt, tar or pitch
- C08L 2555/34: Recycled or waste materials, e.g. reclaimed bitumen, asphalt, roads or pathways, recycled roof coverings or shingles, recycled aggregate, recycled tires, crumb rubber, glass or cullet, fly or fuel ash, or slag
- Y02W 30/52: Mechanical processing of waste for the recovery of materials, e.g. crushing, shredding, separation or disassembly
- Y02W 30/62: Plastics recycling; Rubber recycling
- B03B: SEPARATING SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS
- B02C: CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING IN GENERAL; MILLING GRAIN ({household tools and machines for pulverising foodstuffs, e.g. coffee and spice mills A47J42/00; pharmaceutical mortars A61J3/02; mechanical processing of refuse and garbage B03B9/06; dressing mould materials by grinding B22C5/04}; obtaining metallic powder by crushing, grinding or milling B22F9/04; {recovery of plastics by disintegrating B29B17/00; crushing raw materials in starch making C08B30/02; beaters for papermaking D21D1/02; crushing devices specially for transport in mines E21F13/002; slag crushing devices F23J1/00; fuel milling devices in combustion apparatus F23K1/00; household devices for crushing coal F24B15/02; ice disintegrating devices F25C5/02})
- C08J: WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H (working, e.g. shaping, of plastics B29)
- C08L: COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS (compositions based on polymerisable monomers C08F, C08G; artificial filaments or fibres D01F; textile treating compositions D06)
- C10C: WORKING-UP PITCH, ASPHALT, BITUMEN, TAR; PYROLIGNEOUS ACID (compositions of bituminous materials C08L95/00; carbon filaments by decomposition of organic filaments D01F9/14)
- Y02W: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO WASTEWATER TREATMENT OR WASTE MANAGEMENT

## Abstract

A process of recycling a bituminous product or a bituminous membrane product contacting reinforcement layers. Collecting the waste bituminous products and sorting it in a series of waste bituminous product batches. At least one grinding step of each batch in each series forms a fine ground batch. The fine ground batch is introduced into a recycling unit wherein the fine ground batch is heated and melted and collected as a melted product. The melted product is fed into a mixing tank having a predetermined volume containing fresh carrier.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A process of recycling a bituminous product, or a bituminous membrane product containing reinforcement layers, the process comprising the steps of:
collecting waste bituminous products, or waste bituminous membrane products containing bituminous layers and reinforcement layers and sorting the waste bituminous products in a series of n waste bituminous product batch(es);
at least one grinding step of each batch of said series of n waste bituminous product batch(es) or of a mixture of n waste bituminous product batch(es), thereby forming a fine ground batch;
introducing said fine ground batch into a recycling unit having at least a rotor and a stator and a micronization chamber, said fine ground batch being heated and melted by shear strength upon an operation of the stator, rotor and micronization chamber and collecting a melted product; and
feeding said melted product in a mixing tank having a predetermined volume containing fresh carrier at a level comprised between 25 and 75w %, with respect to the predetermined volume, and at a residence temperature between 160 and 200° C., said mixing tank being continuously agitated with a horizontal screw having mixing blades, said melted product being fed in said mixing tank until a volume of the melted product is comprised between 25 and 75w %, with respect to the predetermined volume to provide a recycled bitumen at a temperature of 180° C. for pumpability and having a predefined viscosity between 500 and 45000 cPS, wherein said at least one grinding step comprises:
a first grinding of each batch of said series of n waste bituminous product batch(es) in a knife shredder for reducing a size of each batch into a first shredded batch having a mean particle size distribution between 20 and 50 cm;
a second grinding of each first shredded batch in a rotor granulator where each first shredded batch is reduced in size to a first crushed batch having a mean particle size distribution between 5 and 25 cm; and
a third grinding of each first crushed batch in a rotor granulator where each first crushed batch is reduced in size to a first ground batch having a mean particle size distribution between 20 and 50 mm.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein before being fed to said recycling unit, said fine ground batch is conveyed on a vibrating sieve to collect a fine ground batch substantially depleted from dust and particles having a particle size d100 lower than 8 mm.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein, before being fed to said recycling unit, said fine ground batch undergoes a step of separating metal pieces from non-metal pieces by application of Foucault current to said fine ground batch and collecting a fine ground mixture substantially depleted from metal pieces.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein the recycled bitumen is further withdrawn by pumping in batches and filtrated in a bag filter, before or after being stored in a storage tank.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein said fine ground batch is melted at a temperature between 110° C. and 260° C.