Eddy Current Separators (ECS) recover non-ferrous metals such as aluminum, copper, brass, and zinc from the shredded material flow. These metals have high market value, and their recovery often makes the entire recycling operation economically viable.
Operating principle
High-intensity permanent magnets rotate at high speed inside the discharge drum. This rotation generates alternating magnetic fields that induce eddy currents in non-ferrous conductive particles, creating fields that repel and eject them onto a different trajectory from the inert material.
The result is physical separation between the non-ferrous fraction (ejected) and the remaining material (gravity fall).
Critical variables
Efficiency depends on particle size, conductivity, belt speed, magnetic pole configuration (concentric or eccentric), and particle shape. Flat or thin pieces respond differently than bulky pieces.
The difference between recovering 70% or 95% of the aluminum lies in installation details — splitter position, rotor speed, material bed height. These adjustments are defined through testing with actual material.
Jaguar Industrial sizes and integrates ECS separators based on field testing and experience across dozens of plants.