Best Method for Recycling Insulated Copper Wire

Cable Stripper vs Granulator How to Choose When recycling insulated copper wire, choosing between a cable stripping machine and a cable granulator depends mainly on wire types, processing goals, capacity, and budget. Different cables vary greatly in structure—such as single-core power cables, multi-core building wires, electronic wires, soft stranded wires, and enamelled wires—and each category responds differently to stripping or granulating.

A cable stripping machine delivers clean bare copper with very high purity, minimal copper loss, and a higher resale value. It works best for thick cables, single-core wires, and materials that can be separated easily. The process is simple and energy-efficient, but it has limitations: fine wires, soft multi-strand cables, mixed wire bundles, and armored cables are difficult or inefficient to strip. Manual sorting is often required, which limits processing capacity.

A cable granulating and separation system is more suitable for mixed wire bundles, electronic wires, fine stranded wires, and materials that cannot be processed one by one. The system crushes the cables and separates copper from plastic through screening, airflow, gravity, and electrostatic separation. It handles a wide range of materials, supports continuous operation, reduces labor costs, and processes large volumes efficiently. The drawbacks include higher initial investment, higher energy and maintenance costs, and the fact that copper granules typically sell for less than bare copper. Environmental requirements—dust control, noise reduction, and in some regions wastewater treatment—must also be considered.

Economically, small-scale operations (a few hundred kilograms to a few tons per month) usually benefit more from stripping machines due to low investment, high copper purity, and high selling price of bare copper. If the majority of cables are thick and easy to strip, profitability is very clear. For medium-scale operations or mixed materials (construction wire, appliance wire, electronic wire combined), a combination of “stripping machine + small granulating line” is often optimal: strip the cables that bring high bare-copper value, and granulate the rest to maximize total recovery. For large-scale plants handling more than ten tons per month, a full granulating line with electrostatic separation offers better efficiency and stable performance, with significantly reduced labor and consistent processing of all types of cables.

Special cables also influence equipment selection: enamelled wires are difficult to strip and typically processed by granulation; steel-armored cables require pre-processing before either method; fine soft wires are far more efficient to granulate rather than strip.

In summary: if the incoming material is easy to strip and capacity is small, stripping machines offer higher value. If materials are mixed and volume is high, a granulating line is the most practical choice. Many mature recycling plants run both systems in parallel to achieve maximum copper value and stable throughput. For more machine information, or to schedule a factory visit (in-person or virtual), feel free to contact our sales team.

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