TOMRA’s AUTOSORT now processes stainless steel and heavy metals

TOMRA Recycling is expanding the application range of AUTOSORT PULSE beyond aluminum alloy separation. The Dynamic LIBS-based sorting system can now be used on a wider range of material streams, including stainless steel, heavy metals, magnesium, and incinerator bottom ash (IBA). 

Using Dynamic LIBS (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy), the system identifies materials by their elemental composition, which allows for precise sorting tasks, such as separating aluminum into different alloys, including the 5xxx and 6xxx classes.

A single machine can now process several lines of scrap 

Instead of being limited to a single application, operators can now use one machine for multiple sorting tasks without investing in additional hardware.

The dynamic laser setup allows AUTOSORT PULSE to analyze the elemental composition of each object and adapt to different scrap conditions. By repeatedly targeting the same point on the material, the laser effectively drills through coatings, paint, oxidation, or dust to identify the composition underneath, giving it an advantage over conventional LIBS or X-ray fluorescence (XRF) solutions. This technology is particularly relevant for heavy metals and IBA-derived streams, where surface conditions often make separation more challenging.

Recyclers can achieve a higher value when sorting metals

In mixed heavy-metal streams, the system can now identify and separate copper, brass, zinc, stainless steel, and other valuable fractions. It can also distinguish between specific material characteristics, such as zinc sheets from Zamak or coated and non-coated material.

For stainless steel applications, AUTOSORT PULSE can now separate different grades, including 316, 304, and 201, from mixed stainless steel streams, enabling recyclers to create more specific and higher-value output fractions from material they already process. 

The system can also be applied to incinerator bottom ash, the mineral residue left after municipal waste incineration. After initial processing, IBA can yield complex metal streams, such as mixed aluminum and mixed heavy metals. AUTOSORT PULSE enables further separation of these fractions, including low- and high-silicon 6xxx series aluminum alloys, as well as copper and brass from mixed heavy-metal streams. This turns material that was once considered difficult to upgrade into valuable metal fractions and supports a higher-quality output from challenging input. 

Finally, another new application is magnesium separation from floated super-light fractions. 

Creating flexibility for recyclers 

Material availability can change quickly, and metal markets are often difficult to predict. Prices and margins can shift significantly, and recyclers need the flexibility to focus on the material streams with the highest demand and value. With AUTOSORT PULSE, operators can switch between streams and adapt sorting to optimize time and capture value where it matters most.

"AUTOSORT PULSE has proven itself in aluminum alloy separation, and we have continued to develop what the technology can enable," said Tom Jansen, vice president and head of Segments at TOMRA Recycling. "Today, our customers can use one system across several material streams, from stainless steel to IBA, heavy metals, and more. What changes is the application, not the technology. That flexibility turns a single investment into real operational and economic value."