The mechanical pulverization method is the simplest, most commonly used, and the most economical method of recycling Teflon. It is the use of mechanical force to chemically change the waste material to obtain a relatively small particle size. Mechanical pulverization has no special requirements for Teflon waste, and only requires relatively pure waste. The residual Teflon remaining material in the production, the unqualified products in the production process, and the grinding debris of the finished product during the machining process can be recycled by mechanical pulverization.
There are many methods for mechanical comminution. It can be pulverized after direct cleaning; it can also be pulverized after irradiation or freezing. The latter two methods can reduce the particle size of Teflon, but the cost is also increased. The machinery used is also diverse, such as mechanical cutting machines, high-energy ball mills, jet mills, etc. With these pulverizers, it is generally possible to pulverize the waste into fine powder of 60 to 160 μm, and the cut size is normally distributed. Because Teflon is a tough material, it consumes more energy than other materials.
The general production process is as follows: Teflon waste → washing → drying → crushing → pre-sintering → fine grinding → classification → polytetrafluoroethylene recycled fine powder.