“This expansion was a key part of our push for sustainability with respect to tungsten carbide,” said D Greg Stroud, president, American National Carbide, ANC. “By minimising the presence of tungsten carbide in the waste stream and increasing recycling of this material, we are helping to offset any future effects of its consumption. It’s better for the industry and the environment.”
The proprietary recycling process developed by ANC produces no emissions or waste products and is able to convert 100% of the scrap carbide back into usable raw material without any loss of integrity or quality in the material.
ANC says that it also offers a recycling programme to its customers. Carbide manufacturers can have carbide scrap processed and returned to them as a usable raw material, and carbide users can redeem their scrap for credit or cash. "This new programme gives our customers a way of helping the environment, as well as reducing the effect of the volatility in the tungsten market," Stroud explains. "The net result is that they get raw material or finished products for a lower price, because they are obtaining value from their scrap."
ANC also has a comprehensive reclamation process, allowing it to convert tungsten carbide scrap into usable raw material. The company buys a wide variety of "hard scrap," including carbide inserts, drilling compacts and buttons, carbide end mills and drills, wear parts, saw tips, coal mining tips, road construction tips, nozzles, PDC inserts, carbide grit, blanks, ball mill and attritor mill media, overspray from plasma spray operations, and other solid carbide scrap. It also purchases "soft scrap," such as grinding sludge (wet or dry), turnings and grindings, presintered and unsintered carbide parts, grade powder, and powder scrap.
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