PREPARATION OR PRETREATMENT OF THE MATERIAL TO BE SHAPED; MAKING GRANULES OR PREFORMS; RECOVERY OF PLASTICS OR OTHER CONSTITUENTS OF WASTE MATERIAL CONTAINING PLASTICS

Description

B29B encompasses preparation, pretreatment, and conditioning operations on plastic materials prior to shaping or molding processes, including mixing, blending, heating, and drying of virgin or recycled polymers. The class also covers granulation, pelletization, and formation of preforms—intermediate products used in subsequent shaping operations. Additionally, B29B includes recovery and separation technologies for extracting plastics and other valuable constituents from waste streams, such as sorting, cleaning, and processing of post-consumer or post-industrial plastic waste. This classification bridges upstream material processing and downstream shaping technologies covered in other B29 subclasses, excluding the actual shaping/molding operations themselves.