A metal sorting system for the separation of non-ferromagnetic metals from fragmented material.

摘要

A system for sorting non-ferromagnetic metals from a mixture of fragmented material containing such metals and rubber and plastics material comprises a linear motor 20 situated immediately underneath the belt 22 of a conveyor along which the fragmented material is passed at a predetermined speed. The linear motor is mounted so as to have at least a component of travelling field at right angles to the direction of flow of the conveyor and the frequency and power of operation of the linear motor is selected to cause at least a selected portion of the non-ferromagnetic metal to be propelled from the belt in a direction substantially at right angles to the direction of flow of the conveyor. A number of linear motors 124,126 may be used to select different portions of the non-ferromagnetic material by choice of frequency and power of operation. The selected portions may be different metals.