Machinex co-collection system integrates optical sorters for use in organics waste management

Machinex has delivered a new organic material recovery system (OMRC) in Quebec City. Machinex says that this is a technological first within co-collection organics recovery systems in North America. This facility eases the organic waste management for the residents of Quebec City.

From its headquarters in Plessisville, the Machinex team developed a new system integrating optical sorting technology for use in organic waste management. The new system offers a processing capacity of 250,000 tons of municipal solid waste per year while sorting 86,600 tons of organic waste per year. At the centre of this system are three MACH Hyspec optical sorters which can reach up to 3,000 ejections per minute. This sorting technology plays a crucial role in the treatment of organic materials, offering a sustainable solution for Quebec City and its residents. 

"Here at Machinex, we are proud to contribute to this achievement", says Jonathan Ménard, vice president of sales and strategic positioning at Machinex. "This system is a first in North America! It's a new way to sort organic materials. In recent years, we have successfully tested our methods in waste treatment across Europe and we bring this innovative technological approach to Quebec, which is more efficient and durable." 

Equipped with a high-speed, short wave infra-red (SWIR) hyperspectral detection system, the MACH Hyspec is the technology that allows for the accurate identification and sorting of purple bags containing organic waste. Once detected, the bags are quickly propelled onto another conveyor through compressed air ejection. This use of an optical sorter needed important equipment adjustments to transition from sorting recyclable materials to organic materials.

"Our research and development team, which is behind the versatile MACH Hyspec optical sorter, transformed this challenge in an incredible achievement, thereby creating a new application for the functional and highly performant technology," said Machinex Group CEO, Mr. Pierre Paré. "We're truly proud of this achievement and extremely proud of the people who have worked towards this success."

During the inauguration of the Organic Material Biomethanation Centre, which includes the organic material recovery system, the City of Quebec announced the valorized products resulting from biomethanation – renewable natural gas and digestates – are now available on the market.