Working Principle of the Eddy Current Separator

Eddy current separators are suitable for the sorting and separation of various materials in the recycling and environmental protection industries, including shredded municipal solid waste, industrial waste, electronic waste, glass waste, waste plastic doors and windows, urban wood chips, boiler bottom ash, various metal mixtures, and shredded copper and aluminum from scrapped automobiles.

Components of the Eddy Current Separator

The complete set of equipment consists of a control system and a main body. The main body mainly includes a frame, motor, feeding system, sorting assembly (the core component of the equipment), permanent magnet drum, conveyor belt, conveyor drive drum, gearbox, and protective cover.

Working Principle of the Eddy Current Separator

The eddy current separator is designed based on the principle that conductors generate induced currents in a high-frequency alternating magnetic field.

When the machine is working, a high-frequency alternating strong magnetic field is generated on the surface of the sorting roller. When conductive non-ferrous metals enter the magnetic field, eddy currents are induced inside the metal blocks. These eddy currents themselves generate a magnetic field opposite to the direction of the original magnetic field. Non-ferrous metals (such as copper and aluminum) will jump forward along their transmission direction due to the repulsive force of the magnetic field, thus achieving separation from other non-metallic substances; the main separation section is based on the ratio of electrical conductivity to density of the materials, with materials having a higher ratio being easier to separate than those with a lower ratio.