Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

Interior Freight & Bottle Depot Limited (IFBD) operates a beverage container redemption facility (bottle depot)at which the public returns recyclable beverage containers in return for the deposits paid on those containers.IFBD sorts the containers according to material type, and then ships them to recycling facilities. Currently,there is no known device for accurately counting used aluminum beverage containers (soda and beer cans)because many arrive crumpled, flattened, or otherwise distorted. Without a system for accurately counting thesedeformed cans, IFBD cannot prove to aluminum recyclers the number shipped in each load. These uncountedcans represent a significant financial loss to IFBD and to the hundreds of other bottle depots across Canada.Moreover, without an accurate method for counting these cans it is difficult to tell how many cans are beingrecycled and how many may be finding their way into landfills.This research project is intended to culminate into the development of a prototype device that can be installedonto a standard aluminum beverage container conveyer system to accurately count used recycled aluminumbeverage containers, regardless of their condition. It is hoped that the prototype device, or a derivative of it,could be used by other container redemption companies for increasing efficiencies in their operations, and byextension, the recycling industry as a whole.The findings from this investigation will be of interest to a number of stakeholders including those who operatebeverage container redemption facilities, aluminum recyclers, landfill managers, civil servants charged withenvironmental stewardship, environmental groups, engineers, educators, and members of the general publicwho, after all, pay the deposits on the beverages purchased.