Systems and methods for collecting, transporting and repurposing or destroying unused pharmaceuticals

Abstract

Systems and methods implementing the systems including a facility including a plurality of collection apparatuses distributed in the facility for ease of collection and transportation. The system also includes transportation subsystems for shipping filled inner containers to a processing subsystem and for transporting a fuel material or a land fillable material to incineration or landfill subsystems. The systems may also include a monitoring subsystem for monitoring the deployed collection apparatuses, inner containers, the fuel material and the land fillable material.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A system comprising:
 a collection subsystem including at least one collection apparatus located in a facility the generates used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials including over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals, prescription pharmaceuticals and controlled pharmaceuticals, where each apparatus includes a lockable outer container having a lockable opening and a unidirectional depositing member and a transportable inner container for receiving the used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials through the unidirectional depositing member,   a repurposing subsystem including processing units, optionally pretreating units, and optionally post-treating units for processing the used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials to produce a burnable fuel material or a plurality of burnable fuel materials or a landfill material or a plurality of landfill materials, and   a transportation subsystem including common carriers, contract carriers, medical waste pick-up service companies, hazardous waste pick-up service companies, or mixtures and combinations thereof for transporting the transportable inner containers from the collection subsystem to the repurposing subsystem.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the collection subsystem includes a plurality of collection apparatuses. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a disposal subsystem including a landfill facility, a cement facility, an incineration facility, an industrial facility that burns the burnable fuel materials, or other facility that burns the burnable fuel materials.   
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a monitoring subsystem including a camera for monitoring use of and access to the collection apparatus.   
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a tracking system for tracking the inner container, where the inner container including a tracking device.   
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a monitoring system including a camera for monitoring use of and access to the collecting apparatus and   a tracking system for tracking the inner container, where the inner container including a tracking device.   
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the repurposing and/or disposal subsystem includes:
 an addition subsystem adapted to add components to the collected pharmaceutical material to alter a composition of the collected pharmaceutical material to tailor the pharmaceutical material into a fuel material or a landfill material.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the repurposing and/or disposal subsystem includes:
 an addition subsystem adapted to add components to the collected pharmaceutical material to alter a composition of the collected pharmaceutical material to tailor the pharmaceutical material into a fuel material or a landfill material, and   a sizing subsystem for reducing a particle size of the collected pharmaceutical material or the augmented pharmaceutical material to form a particulate burnable fuel.   
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the repurposing and/or disposal subsystem includes:
 an addition subsystem adapted to add components to the collected pharmaceutical material to alter a composition of the collected pharmaceutical material to tailor the pharmaceutical material into a fuel material or a landfill material,   a sizing subsystem adapted to reduce a particle size of the collected pharmaceutical material or the augmented pharmaceutical material to form a particulate burnable fuel and/or a particulate landfill material, and   a shaping subsystem adapted to shape the for the particulate burnable fuel and/or the particulate landfill material into a shaped particulate burnable fuel and/or a shaped particulate landfill material.   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the source pharmaceutical material comprise from about 50 wt. % to about 100 wt. % of unused pharmaceuticals including over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals, prescription pharmaceuticals and controlled pharmaceuticals, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of pulp materials, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of fiber materials, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of fabric materials, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % polymer materials, and from about 10 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of metal materials, where components may sum to an amount greater than 100 wt. %, making the component makeup relative instead of absolute. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the augmented pharmaceutical material includes 100 wt % of the source pharmaceutical material and from to about 0 wt. % of binding agents, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of conventional fuels, and from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of ash materials, where the augmenting materials are added to the source pharmaceutical material to adjust the makeup of the materials to better formulation the materials for used as a fuel or a landfill material. 
     
     
         12 . A method for collecting and processing a source pharmaceutical material comprising the steps of:
 placing one collection apparatus or a plurality of collections apparatuses in a facility that generates used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials including over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals, prescription pharmaceuticals and controlled pharmaceuticals, where each apparatus includes a lockable outer container having a lockable opening and a unidirectional depositing member and a transportable inner container for receiving the used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials through the unidirectional depositing member,   collecting the used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials in the inner container,   unlocking the outer container and removing the inner container,   transporting the inner container to a repurposing subsystem via a transportation service selected from the group consisting of common carriers, contract carriers, medical waste pick-up service companies, hazardous waste pick-up service companies, or mixtures and combinations thereof, and   repurposing the used, unused, and/or waste pharmaceutical containing materials into a burnable fuel or a landfill material.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising the step:
 disposing of the burnable fuel material in a landfill facility, a cement facility, an incineration facility, an industrial facility that burns the burnable fuel material, or other facility that burns the burnable fuel material.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising the step:
 disposing of the landfill material in a landfill.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising the step:
 sealing the inner container, and   tracking the inner container.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising the step:
 monitoring the collection apparatus or apparatuses.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the monitoring occurs after opening the unidirectional member or locking or unlocking the lockable outer container. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising the step:
 after transporting, sizing the source pharmaceutical material to reduce the particle size of the source pharmaceutical material to form a particulate pharmaceutical material.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising the step:
 after transporting, sizing the source pharmaceutical material to reduce the particle size of the source pharmaceutical material to form a particulate pharmaceutical material and   shaping the particulate pharmaceutical material into a shaped particulate pharmaceutical material.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , further comprising the step:
 combusting the fuel in an incinerator or cement kiln.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , further comprising the step:
 combusting the particulate pharmaceutical material in an incinerator or cement kiln.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 19 , further comprising the step:
 combusting the shaped particulate pharmaceutical material in an incinerator or cement kiln.   
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising the step:
 after transporting, adding augmenting material to form an augmented pharmaceutical material, where the augmented pharmaceutical material includes 100 wt % of the source pharmaceutical material and from to about 0 wt. % of binding agents, from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of conventional fuels, and from about 50 wt. % to about 0 wt. % of ash materials, where the augmenting materials are added to the source pharmaceutical material to adjust the makeup of the materials to better formulation the materials for used as a fuel or a landfill material.