N121-072 TITLE: Shipboard Cardboard Preprocessing for Navy Pulpers and Incinerators

TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Materials/Processes, Sensors

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: PMS-312, Non-Propulsion Engineering Systems

OBJECTIVE: The objective is to develop a low cost, high reliability and safe capability to automatically, and with minimal manual intervention, break down cardboard boxes to approximately 20x40 inch size pieces or smaller and eliminate any plastic tape and labels affixed to the boxes in preparation for pulping or incineration on U.S. Navy ships.

DESCRIPTION: Shipboard operations accumulate large quantities of cardboard (3,000 lb/day average) on Aircraft Carriers and the amount of cardboard is increasing. Boxes must be quickly broken down by Sailors in preparation for pulping and incineration. The preparation is labor-intensive, rigorous, and a hazardous task because staples, bands and other fasteners in the cardboard and use of box cutters can cause frequent cuts and other injuries. The volume of cardboard to be disposed increases substantially during underway replenishment, in which the quick disposal of cardboard is required because of time limits on underway disposal. To add to the burden, operators must remove all plastic tape and labels from the cardboard before it is loaded into and processed by the Navy pulper to reduce the probability of machinery performance degradation.

Carriers typically spend 35 man-hours daily breaking down and removing labels/tape from corrugated cardboard boxes -- all by hand. Most tape and plastic labeling must be identified and removed from the cardboard prior to processing in the pulper, to reduce the risk of machinery performance degradation. Not only is this a tedious and time-consuming task for already overworked Sailors, but it often causes long lines and delays outside solid waste compartments, which unnecessarily ties up shipboard personnel, impedes other ship operations, and creates safety hazards.

Commercially available equipment assessed and evaluated to date through the Environmental Technology Identification and Assessment Program cannot reduce the labor requirements of cardboard pre-processing while also meeting shipboard requirements [see Reference 5]. While no technology currently exists for this maritime operational requirement, it is believed that there are analogous systems commercially available in disparate industries which might provide some insight. One such example is that of the hardwood log industry, in which knots, imperfections, and defects in wood are recognized using laser scanners and graphic user interfaces (GUI) [see Reference 4]. The recycling industry also utilizes optics to sort plastics, and additional machinery to remove and sort the labels.

The technical challenge is to reliably identify and remove the adhesive-backed plastic tape and labeling materials with a minimum of Sailor manpower using mechanical, chemical, or other means while maintaining or exceeding the current capabilities of pulpers aboard ships (single-wall, double-wall, and up to 65x43x36 inch triple- wall corrugated cardboard). Solid waste size reduction and cardboard processing with minimal sailor intervention (to facilitate processing by the pulper and incinerator) are published needs in the NAVSEA 05P5 Environmental Quality Needs Database. The Navy seeks a low cost, high reliability technology or technique that will facilitate this breakdown process while reducing the manual labor effort required by 50 percent or more. This technology must be compact enough to fit in existing solid waste equipment compartments, light-weight, user-friendly and safe to operate; it should not add to the ship�s maintenance burden. The Navy has been assessing commercially available solutions but the technologies do not exist to meet reliability, labor or cost requirements.

PHASE I: Develop a concept for cardboard pre-processing that meets the requirements described above for Navy pulpers and incinerators. Demonstrate the feasibility for cardboard pre-processing, technology development and shipboard use. Propose a system concept using new technologies capable of reducing manpower by 50 percent, with minimal size and weight, and is easy to safely use. Provide an estimate of the system size, cost, process rate, labor burden, required utilities, technology maturity at the end of Phase I, safety risk, and development risks. Create a plan, with key milestones, for Phase II development.

PHASE II: Based on the results of Phase I and the Phase II development plan, build a prototype for land-based evaluation. Develop an evaluation plan and evaluate the ability of the prototype to safely reduce manpower requirements and to be easy to use. Refine the concept based on land-based evaluation results with any modifications necessary to meet the required capabilities described in Phase I. Develop a refined estimate of the system size, cost, process rate, labor burden, required utilities, consumables, technology maturity, safety risk, and development risks.

PHASE III: If Phase II development is successful, the contractor is expected to support the Navy in transitioning the cardboard preprocessor to Navy use should a Phase III award be made. The contractor will support qualification and certification tests and other efforts required for shipboard installation. Operational and training manuals will also be required for operators. Tests could include shock, vibration, electromagnetic interference, and power system compliance.

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: The technology developed under this topic will also be directly applicable to commercial shipping/packaging as well as cruise lines and shipping companies.

REFERENCES:
1. Large Pulper Technical Manual, S9593-C2-MMM-010

2. NSTM 593, S9086-T8-STM-010

3. http://www.fas.org/, The Federation of American Scientists Website provides multiple articles on cardboard processing and pulpers.

4. A Graphical Automated Detection System to Locate Hardwood Log Surface Defects Using High-Resolution Three-Dimensional Laser Scan Data, http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/gtr/gtr-p-78papers/11thomasp78.pdf

5. NSWCCD-63-TM-2010/10, Technical Assessment of Shredder for Processing Cardboard and Comparison to the Navy Solid Waste Shredder and Navy Large and Small Pulpers, May 2010

KEYWORDS: Cardboard pre-processing; solid waste management; pollution prevention; cardboard shredding; cardboard cutting; cardboard sizing

** TOPIC AUTHOR (TPOC) **

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