Medical waste presents a unique size-reduction challenge. Unlike many conventional industrial waste streams, medical and healthcare waste can include a mixture of textiles, plastics, packaging, glass, sharps, containers and other materials.
The best mill for medical waste depends on what is being processed, the required reduction in volume, the desired particle size and how the material will be handled after size reduction.
For facilities looking to process medical waste in-house or waste processors handling material from multiple healthcare facilities, selecting the right size-reduction equipment is an important part of developing an efficient and effective waste-management system.
What Makes Medical Waste Different?
Medical waste is not a single material. A healthcare waste stream can contain a wide variety of materials with very different physical characteristics.
Depending on the source and type of waste, materials may include:
- Used medical textiles
- Plastics
- Packaging
- Containers
- Vials and ampoules
- Red-bag waste
- Disposable medical products
- Needles and other sharps
- Other healthcare-related waste
This variability means that equipment selection cannot be based solely on the term “medical waste.”
The mill or other size-reduction equipment must be selected based on the specific material stream and processing objective.
For some operations, the primary goal may be volume reduction. For others, the objective may be to reduce material to a specified particle size or prepare it for subsequent treatment, disposal or recovery.
What Is the Best Mill for Medical Waste?
There is no single mill that is best for every medical-waste application.
Three of the most important factors to consider are:
- The characteristics of the waste
- The required finished size
- The purpose of size reduction
For example, a facility primarily interested in reducing the volume of bulky healthcare waste may have different equipment requirements than a processor that needs fine particle-size reduction.
Industrial hammer mills and crushers can both be effective in medical-waste applications, but their capabilities and ideal applications differ.
Hammer Mills for Medical Waste
Hammer mills use high-speed impact to reduce material inside a grinding chamber. As material is impacted by rotating hammers, it is progressively reduced until it can pass through the mill’s screen or grate.
Industrial hammer mills can be useful for medical-waste applications where the objective is controlled size reduction and volume reduction.
Schutte Hammermill offers several industrial hammer mill configurations for medical and healthcare waste, including the WA Series Industrial Hammer Mill and RA Series Dual Stage Hammer Mill.
WA Series Industrial Hammer Mill
The WA Series is a versatile industrial hammer mill designed for a broad range of size-reduction applications.
For medical waste, an industrial hammer mill can provide controlled reduction of suitable healthcare waste streams while allowing the equipment configuration to be matched to the material and desired output.
Hammer mills can be particularly useful when the process requires more than simply tearing or breaking apart bulky waste and instead calls for controlled particle-size reduction.
RA Series Dual Stage Hammer Mill
A dual-stage hammer mill uses two stages of size reduction within a single system.
The RA Series is one option for medical-waste applications where greater size reduction is required. Its two-stage configuration can provide additional reduction compared with a single-stage mill, making it appropriate for applications where a finer or more consistent finished product is required.
Industrial Crushers for Medical Waste
An industrial crusher may be a better choice when the primary objective is to reduce large, bulky or difficult-to-process materials rather than produce a fine finished product.
Schutte’s RC Series Industrial Crusher is identified for medical and healthcare waste applications along with its hammer mill equipment.
Industrial crushers are generally suited to applications where robust primary size reduction is the priority.
The choice between a crusher and hammer mill therefore comes down in large part to the material and the desired result.
What Should You Look for in Medical Waste Size Reduction Equipment?
1. Material Compatibility
Start with the actual waste stream.
Is the material primarily plastic? Does it contain textiles? Are glass containers present? Are sharps included? Is the material wet or dry? Are there significant quantities of bulky items?
These characteristics can influence the appropriate equipment design and configuration.
2. Required Particle Size
Determine how small the material actually needs to be.
If the primary objective is volume reduction, a coarse reduction may be sufficient.
If the material needs to meet a specific particle-size specification, a hammer mill or other controlled size-reduction technology may be more appropriate.
Avoid specifying a finer grind than the process actually requires. Producing unnecessarily fine material can increase energy consumption and reduce throughput.
3. Throughput
How much material must the system process?
A small healthcare facility generating relatively limited quantities of waste will have very different capacity requirements from a commercial medical-waste processor handling material from numerous facilities.
Equipment should be sized around the required production rate rather than simply selecting the largest available machine.
4. Hygiene and Cleanability
Medical-waste equipment must also be considered from a sanitation and maintenance perspective.
Schutte notes that its medical-waste systems can be supplied in enclosed configurations and stainless-steel construction to facilitate wash-down and maintenance in medical-industry environments.
The equipment’s accessibility, cleanability and maintenance requirements should be considered during system design.
5. Safety
Medical-waste processing can involve potentially hazardous materials, including sharps and contaminated materials.
The equipment and overall system should therefore be designed around the specific waste stream and operating environment.
Safety considerations should extend beyond the mill itself to include feeding, conveying, discharge, containment, cleaning and maintenance procedures.
6. What Happens After Size Reduction?
The right mill is also determined by what happens next.
Will the reduced material be:
- Sent for additional treatment?
- Transported to another facility?
- Disposed of?
- Separated?
- Recovered?
- Further processed?
Size reduction should be designed as part of the overall process rather than as an isolated piece of equipment.
Can Size Reduction Lower Medical-Waste Disposal Costs?
Yes, reducing the physical volume of medical waste can potentially reduce costs associated with handling, storage and transportation.
Schutte specifically positions its medical-waste size-reduction equipment around volume reduction, noting that reducing bulky waste can lower hauling and downstream processing costs.
The potential economic benefit depends on the waste stream, disposal method, transportation costs and operating conditions.
For high-volume waste processors, even relatively modest reductions in cost per ton can have a significant impact on overall operating expenses.
So, What Is the Best Mill for Medical Waste?
The answer depends on the application.
For controlled particle-size reduction, an industrial hammer mill may be the best solution.
For fine or more extensive size reduction, a dual-stage hammer mill may provide advantages.
For large, bulky waste where primary reduction is the main objective, an industrial crusher may be more appropriate.
And for some applications, the best solution may involve multiple stages of size reduction rather than a single machine.
The most important thing is to select equipment based on the material and the process, not simply the name of the waste stream.
Choosing the Right Size Reduction Partner
Medical-waste processing presents a combination of material-handling, size-reduction, safety and operational challenges. Equipment selection should therefore begin with a clear understanding of the waste stream and the desired result.
Bengal Machine brings together multiple size-reduction technologies and engineering capabilities through its family of industrial equipment brands. Its companies serve recycling, waste management and other demanding industrial applications, with equipment ranging from hammer mills and crushers to other size-reduction technologies.
For medical and healthcare waste, the right solution may be a hammer mill, industrial crusher, multi-stage system or combination of technologies.
The best equipment is the equipment engineered around your material, your throughput requirements and your processing goals.
