How a Materials Recycling Facility Works—With Video!

For the mechanically-minded: An illustrated guide and video tour of an MRF.
by Ayn-Monique Klahre

We took a tour through a materials recycling facility for our April issue, a giant warehouse where machines and people move mounds of discarded items through a complicated series of machines that use conveyer belts, magnets, gusts of air and more to sort out the different materials. Check out the map below, which does a good job explaining each step.

Courtesy recyclemore.org

And for those who like to see machines in action, here’s a video guide.

Courtesy recyclemore.org