Abstract:
The present invention relates to a process for recovering individual polymers, such as nylon and polyolefin, from a nylon-containing source such as a carpet. The process includes the steps of shredding a nylon fiber source such as a carpet wherein the shredding is conducted in the presence of a liquid that wets the carpet, granulating the wet shredded carpet slurry, further diluting the granulated slurry by adding additional water, subsequently refining the fibers and removing substantial amounts of polypropylene fibers from the slurry, preferably using a lamella clarifier, and recovering the nylon fibers by hydrocloning the slurry.