Abstract: As the core unit of the sorting process system for stale waste, air separation equipment performance directly impacts sorting efficiency and resource utilization outcomes. The current application status of air separation equipment was systematically reviewed, and their structural features, operational principles as well as existing challenges were expounded. By constructing simplified theoretical models and other methods, the influence laws of aerodynamic characteristics (such as air velocity, pressure and direction), material properties (such as particle size, density and shape), motion characteristics (such as velocity and incidence angle), and operational variables (such as exposure time to airflow, effective wind-receiving area, angle between material-airflow two-phase flow field, interference effects and material collection efficiency) on the quality of wind separation were revealed. Based on these findings, methods to enhance separation efficiency was proposed, along with optimization strategies for air classification equipment. An innovative dual-driven diverting horizontal air separator was innovatively developed, which could reduce the impurity rate of separated materials to below 5%, achieving a reduction of 59.87% to 89.71% compared to traditional equipment. This advancement significantly improves the resource value and economic benefits of the separated products, and expands their resource utilization channels.

Key words: stale waste, separation, air separation equipment, air separation quality, influencing factors, improvement and optimization