Basic Extrusion

Thomas I. Butler
Blown Film Technology, LLC
[email protected]
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 Extruder Types

 Conventional Extruder
– Single screw with a smooth barrel
 Grooved Feed Extruders
– Single screw with a grooved feed zone
 Twin Screw Extruders
– Co-rotating
– Counter-rotating

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 Requirements for an Extruder

 Convey pellets into screw channel

 Compress solid bed/vent gas
 Melt solid bed
 Mix/blend to produce homogeneous melt
 Produce desired melt temperature
 Produce the pressure required for flow

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 Extruder System

Diameter
Length/Diameter Temperature
Gear Thermocouples
Reducer T T T T
T

p p p p p

Pressure
Drive Transducers
Motor Heating/Cooling
Zones
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 Zone Temperature Control

Thermocouple to PID controller 400

Heater

Blower on
Cooling Fins
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 Pressure Transducer

Push rod Capillary

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 Rupture Disk

Must be operational at
all times.

Common Ratings:
5500 psi
6500 psi
7500 psi
10000 psi

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 Breaker Plate/Screen Pack

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 Barrel Materials of Construction

Screw Chrome Coated 4140 @ 0.75 - 1.5 mils

Large radius >1/2 flight depth

Flight
Barrel Clearance
4140 (0.001 in/in-d)

Bimetallic Liner 1/16 inch Flight tipped w/ 1/16 inch

Xaloy 101 Colmonoy 56 9
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 Screw Nomenclature
L
Feeding Compression Metering
Shank Section (S) Section (C) Section (M)

q F P H
D Screw Diameter L Length

q Helix Angle (17.65o) P Pitch or Lead

F Depth of feed H Depth of Metering

S Length of feed C Length of Compression

M Length of Metering N Screw Speed rpm

W Flight width
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 Screw Design / Barrel Zones
Zone Heat/Cool (5 Zones)

Feed Melt Meter

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 Screw Types

 Metering Screws
 Barrier Screws

 Grooved Barrel Screws

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 Metering Screw

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 Barrier Screw

DSB-II

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 Grooved Feed Housing
Single-piece feed section

High Flow Cooling Channel

One-piece Grooved
Liner Insert
 Feed Section
– One-piece feed section housing
– One-piece groove liner
– Intensively water-cooling over grooves (highly turbulent flow)

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 Vented Barrel Extruder
A vented barrel provides for the removal of volatiles (moisture,
gases, air).
The volatiles are remove through an opening in the barrel
cylinder.
A 2-stage screw is used in vented extruders

Vent For Hygroscopic

Thermoplastics

Vent, dryer, or both

May be used.

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 Mixing Sections
DISTRIBUTIVE DISPERSIVE
 Pineapple Mixer  Union Carbide Mixer

 Saxton Mixer  Helical UCC

 Dulmage Mixer  Cavity Transfer Mixer

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 UCC (Maddock) Mixer

Holds unmelted polymer

U/C clearance critical

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 Twin Screw Extruder

WP (Werner & Pfleiderer)

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 Gear Pump

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