Put away the pliers – world’s first artificial intelligence material sorting invention tackling the UK vape waste problem

A total of 13.5 million vapes were purchased each week in the UK last year leading to more than one million single-use, pod and big puff vapes a day being thrown away or incorrectly recycled. This equates to 15,600 tonnes of vape waste annually and the real danger of the lithium batteries inside disposable vapes starting fires and posing a significant threat to the environment by releasing substances like lead and mercury into our soil, rivers and streams.

While more people are now recycling these products in store this is being constantly outstripped by rising vape sales. 

However, the ever-growing vape waste problem is now looking significantly healthier thanks to a game-changing AI-powered machine that revolutionises how vapes are recycled. The first of its kind invention not only massively speeds up and dramatically lowers the cost of vape recycling but also helps create energy for the future from discarded vapes.

Traditionally, vapes have been manually dismantled, usually with pliers, during the recycling process at great expense and at a slow pace – now, for the first time in the recycling industry, AI technology from VP Recycling automatically sorts and separates materials, such as plastics, metals and lithium batteries. The technology allows processing of up to 1 tonne of vapes per hour, around 28,000 vapes, in comparison to a maximum of 200 vapes per hour, per person currently.

The fully automated AI vape recycling facility, which was a year in development, is machine led which also lowers wage costs. It works via imaging technology which recognises each type of vape by size, colour etc. to create a definitive vape library which makes sorting instantaneous.

As well as speeding up vape disposal, the thorough AI sorting process is also unlocking the potential to recover valuable materials from discarded vapes which can be turned into reusable energy. For example, it is estimated that lithium in disposable vapes could power 10,000 electric vehicles per year.

Mark Ennis, Sales Director at VP Recycling explains the benefits of AI in recycling: “Most recyclers are still paying for vapes to be taken apart by hand with a pair of pliers which is slow, expensive, dirty and dangerous as well as risking damage to the components parts themselves. Fully automated AI recycling is the exact opposite, 100 times faster, 50% cheaper, clean, and faultless. There are no labour costs and the batteries we recover are undamaged and can either be sent back to manufacturers for reuse in new vapes or recycled to create energy for the future.”

Even with stricter regulations on vape liquid amounts and the growth of the illicit vape trade, which already accounts for nearly one-third of all vapes in circulation, the need for an efficient and reliable recycling solution is more urgent than ever.

Mark Ennis, explains. “Pliers were patented over 150 years ago and are still being used at great cost to the recycling world when AI can do it much quicker and safely at a fraction of the price. AI doesn’t need a break, to go to the toilet, home time, holidays etc, as a result we are quicker and don’t have the overheads so the savings can be passed onto the customer. 

Vape waste is only going to increase with public demand, and we are ready to tackle the situation head on. Of course, some companies will ‘ostrich’ and keep their heads in the sand while the problem mounts up, but we are committed to change and the challenge that it brings.”