The Ultimate Plasticating Screw

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Md Plastics Incorporated is an Ohio based corporation with our purpose

being to supply the plastics Industry with innovative plasticating
unit products and services that are designed to increase productivity.
Most plasticating screw barrel and valve manufacturers supply just
components. At our company we create better designs, supply an analysis
of your existing production process, and offer a molding strategy for
your application with the items or systems you purchase from us. Simply
put, we supply the best product with the least amount of hassle in the
industry with straight talk and a scientific approach.

Michael F. Durina
2

Plasticating Screw Technology Overview

The standard Posi~Melt™ screw, patent # 7,652,528 and other patents pending,
has proven over the years to be more versatile than its general purpose “GP”
predecessor that has been used for the last 65 years on injection, extrusion, and
blow molding machines. We have proven that by altering the flight pitch and root
of the screw through the melting section (see fig.1) and making them un-tangential
with each other that we can increase the plastic exposure to the barrel wall by up
to 60% for improved melting and to achieve a high level of homogenization by
disrupting laminar flow prevalent in GP designs. In addition, the output is
increased because the volumetric compression is low while achieving a
high linear depth ratio (the ratio between the feed depth and the
meter depth). The benefits of the Posi~Melt™ are realized in the
standard lengths that are offered by the OEM’s.

Multi-Purpose Posi-Melt Design Reciprocating Screw Injection

The nature of the reciprocating

screw injection molding machine
GP Design means that as the shot capacity
increases for the application, so
does the stroke of the injection unit
and hence the plasticating screw.
The most widely used explanation
of the melting apparatus is the Melt
fig. 1 Model according to Maddock and
others (see fig. 2), where the pellets are fed into the feed pocket of a rotating
screw; a. Solids conveying moves the material downstream compacting the
pellets to form a solids bed, b. Pellets are forced against the heated barrel wall
at the end of the feed section and through the involute tapered transition
section where melting occurs, forming a melt film on the barrel wall, c. The
screw flights wipe the barrel wall clean depositing the molten material into the
channel creating a separate melt channel, d. A separate solids bed and melt
bed co-exist until further downstream where solids bed breakup occurs (see
fig. 3). This melt model holds true for any compression screw injection or
extrusion. When the melt is pumped forward on an injection machine however,
volume is displaced in the barrel chamber which forces the screw to
reciprocate backwards underneath the barrel/machine casting leaving the flight
channel void of pellets.
3

The Problem
This action precipitates a fundamental
problem of a shifting solids bed this
means that the solids channel becomes
de-pressurized and does not support the
melt channel, the longer the stroke the
more severe the problem. When the
screw is moved forward for the next
shot, solid pellets fall into the flight
fig. 2 channel,but they are not compacted
until the screw repeats the process of
solids conveying during the next cycle.
The un-compacted solids bed explains
why there is a momentary pause in the
screw recovery time each cycle. Today’s
fig. 3 Injection machines can have up to five
diameters of stroke to make up the
rated shot capacity, when the stroke
increases the swept volume increases
which means that the residence time of
the polymer will decrease.

The difference in residence time, which is the

time it takes the pellets to advance from
the feed pocket to the molded part,
becomes significantly different meaning a
difference in shear heat and heat history for
each pellet making it more difficult to deal
with solids bed breakup and the final melting
of the solids present in the channel.
The GP compression technology falls short in
melting capacity when the residence time
decreases and or swept volume increases
and in melt temperature homogeneity
(see fig. 4) because of the laminar nature
of the flow in the flight channel where
no disruption or mixing takes place. In
fact, without applying a considerable
amount of back pressure, melt homogeneity
is very poor.
fig. 4
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Understanding the Polymer

Designing a screw for thermoplastic processing should entail having an under-

standing of the properties of the polymer. Compression ratios, feed depths and
section lengths are critical to achieve melt homogeneity for different polymer groups, a
brief explanation of some properties are shown below.
Resin Types
• Thermoplastics can be divided into amorphous and semi-
crystalline plastics.

• Amorphous plastics have a random, irregular molecular

structure without crystalline regions. Some amorphous
plastics are PS, PC, PMMA, ABS, and PVC.

• Semi-crystalline plastics can form highly regular

regions where the molecules form crystals, called Representative of the structure of
amorphous plastics
crystallites. Some semi-crystalline plastics are HDPE,
POM, PA, PET, and PP.

• The crystalline regions in thermoplastics have different

properties than the amorphous regions, such as
density and optical properties.

• When amorphous plastics are heated, they soften

gradually, while crystalline plastics soften more abruptly.

• Amorphous plastics tend to be more sensitive to Shear

and Heat. Representative of the structure of
semi-crystalline plastics
Specific Heat
• The specific heat is the amount of heat
necessary to increase the temperature of a
material by one degree.

• In most cases, the specific heat of

semi-crystalline plastics is higher than
amorphous plastics.

• The amount of heat necessary to raise the

temperature of a material from a base
temperature to a higher temperature is
determined by the enthalpy difference between the
two temperatures.
5

Posi~Melt™ Technology: A Core Change to the Compression Screw

When a screw design is considered for a particular polymeric family, the rule-of-
thumb has been; Amorphous screws process better with low compression
designs, while Semi-Crystalline materials prefer high compression designs. Since
Semi-Crystalline materials have a sharp melting point and are either in the solid
state or melt state, higher compression designs with shallower metering sections
have done a better job of assuring that each pellet is melted. Whereas high
compression designs with shallow metering sections have the tendency to over-
shear and heat Amorphous materials. The industry standard GP screw, is a square
pitch design that has a compression between 2.3-2.7:1 and a 50/25/25 feed,
transition, metering length ratio. The GP geometry does an adequate job at best
with both polymer groups within a narrow process window (see fig. 5). Since
Injection applications entail a broad range of polymer groups, residence times and
swept volumes, a more advanced design is needed to assure a more uniform melt
homogeneity. fig. 5

The Posi~Melt™ geometry is a core

change to the geometry of a compression
screw. We have separated the coordinate
systems (See fig. 1) of the root and the
flight pitch to force the pellets through a
channel that changes pressure and
velocity while exposing 55-60% more
pellets to the heated barrel wall for
increased conductive heat transfer. The
“stepped” root geometry exposes the
polymer to a change in velocity and
extensional strain that enables us to lower
the volumetric compression for low shear
heating while establishing a high “linear depth ratio” between the feed depth and the
metering depth. The lower volumetric compression works well with Amorphous polymers
by lowering the shear between the pellets in the transition zone and the high “linear
depth ratio” assures a shallow meter depth for efficient melting of the Semi-
crystalline polymers. The Posi~Melt™ screw has won acclaim from resin suppliers,
OEM’s and our customers/fabricators on both ends of the crystalline spectrum from
LCP to rigid PVC and the improved melt quality broadens the process window for
custom molding shops that process a variety of materials. The multi-purpose
Posi~Melt™ geometry delivers a more thoroughly melted polymer with a higher level of
melt homogeneity producing higher quality over a broader spectrum of residence
time and swept volumes.
6

"XLA” Distributive/Dispersive Mixing Design

Since every plasticating screw design has melt quality homogeneity limitations when the
requirement for output increases, we have designed a family of advanced screws that
incorporate the core Posi~Melt™ technology to meet the most demanding applications.
If a high level of melt homogeneity is achieved, the polymer will flow more consistently
into the mold assuring more evenly filled cavities with less part weight variance void of
common defects such as warping, short shots, color variance and weak weld lines.

To reach a high level of homogenization the polymer must be melted first, then
distributed or dispersed. When the swept volume is greater than three diameters and/
or the residence time is under ninety seconds most OEM’s default to longer L/Ds
because of the diminished melting capacity. We have proven that our technology can
deliver a quality melt under these conditions by first exposing the polymer to the core
Posi~Melt™ technology for melting purposes then adding our proprietary mixing
technology for additional melting and distribution using conventional length 20:1 L/D
designs.

Posi~Melt™ “XLA”
To add a higher level of homogenization to the melt pool we developed a very
effective distributive/dispersive mixer that works by forcing the polymer to
change direction numerous times over a short axial distance and by adding extensional
strain to the polymer by forcing the material to cross over a shallower land multiple
times for added shear. A positive pumping angle and major flight OD
wiping action assures a low pressure drop for high throughput yet pressurizes the
channels for positive displacement for melt cleaning purposes. The design is very
versatile, rows can be added, the number of slots determined and the clearance
between the barrel ID and the Mixing Land can be changed to suit the polymer
family. The mixer is used for virtually all resin groups when precise color matching
is needed or the residence time and swept volume dictate.
7

To compete with the best parallel barrier designs in the world for output,
we designed our own High Output Posi-Melt screw that utilizes a unique barrier
section that is similar to the Mallifer concept only that our barrier starts on the
trailing edge of the primary flight and catches up to the same flight downstream on the
leading edge. Forcing the polymer over a barrier land increases the likeli-
hood that each pellet will be thoroughly melted. The “MB~XLA™” design shown below
is used in applications where there is a need for High Output, the residence time
is < 90 seconds and or the swept volume is > two diameters or where there is a need
for exact color matching.

Posi~Melt™ “ MB~XLA™ ” Barrier with Mixing Design

Our proprietary “MB” barrier forces the polymer between the barrier flight and the
barrel ID for added extensional strain to assure complete melting. We can couple the
“XLA” mixer to the Barrier for processing a variety of resin groups including PP, HDPE,
LDPE, PS, PET, ABS, and other groups delivering the highest outputs
and homogenization available. All Posi-Melt screws are designed to have an adequate
feed depth to promote solids conveying to build pressure for moving the polymer
through the transition and metering zones. Additional care is taken to design-in
the proper leading and trailing edge radii to avoid low velocity sections in the channel

Posi~Melt™ “ MB~XLA™”

and to maximize the pressure. The benefits of our design are color and material
change over times are reduced compared to our competition (Parallel Barrier
designs, see pg. 8 for description)) because these is no need for two separate
channels to achieve thorough melting and good dispersion the channel is 100%
pressurized throughout for positive solids conveying, melting, and pumping.
8

Technology Comparison

Most of the research conducted and math models developed on processing of

thermoplastic materials took place in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s where a frenzy of
newly developed polymers were commercialized. Resin companies funded and
universities tested processing techniques on extrusion equipment in the 60’s and
70’s and Injection Molding processing was tested in the 80’s and 90’s. The math
models developed by such names as Z. Tadmor, I. Klein, Lindt, J.F. Ingen Hausz, B.
Maddock, and others are still used today, and practical testing and analyses of
designs by B. Maddock, G. Kruger, and H.E.H. Meijer are still used as reference
materials. One of the most comprehensive analysis of the performance of Injection
Screws was conducted by C.P.J.M. Verbraak DSM Research and H.E.H. Meijer
Technical University of Eindhoven (Polymer Engineering and Science, Mid-April
1989, Vol. 29, No. 7) and has been used to reinforce our development efforts at
Md Plastics Incorporated. Analysis of the melt model (see fig. 2) led to the development
of the first barrier screw by Geyer/Uniroyal and further parallel barrier design
improvements by Dray/Lawrence, R.Barr, Chung, B.Willert and others.

Parallel Barrier Screw

The purpose of the multi-channel barrier screw is
to deliver a phase separation between the solids bed and melt
bed and maximum use of the contact surface for heat
exchange with the barrel. In addition various mixing sections
Maddock-UCC Mixer
are coupled to compression and barrier screws to facilitate
more exposure to the barrel wall and melt separation for melt homogeneity. The designs
mentioned above come at an expense however, all of them cost more to manufacture and
most of them are resin specific, therefore the staple in the industry is still the GP
compression screw. Increased Helix Angles contribute to Increased Shear

The Posi-Melt™ design is a development that was fig. 6

spawned from the digestion of many of these books and
articles as well as testing and practical experience. We
felt that there was a need to develop a design that
increased the exposure to the barrel wall (fig. 6) while
adding a degree of melt separation (velocity change,
extensional strain) without the manufacturing expense
of the prior art. In our opinion, there has been
no advancement in a design that brings melt quality
value without a significant increase in the
cost to manufacture… Until Now!
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Multi-Purpose Design: Performance Case History

Specifications Before After
Screw L/D OEM Resin Cycle Scrap Production Screw Design/ Cycle Scrap Production Screw Design/
ϕ Type Time
% Yield
Comments Time % Yield
Comments
(sec.) parts/hr. (sec.) parts/hr.

Posi-Melt “XL”, Cycle time

Van OEM Barrier w/mixer, 2-
324 was reduced and
105 18 PP 25 3 279 cavity Mold, goal was to 22 1
Dorn production yield in-
reduce cycle time creased by 16%

OEM Barrier, 8-cavity Posi-Melt Std., Melt

LDPE tool, severe problems temperature was lowered and
71 22 Sumitomo w/ 22.8 3 22.8 <1 1250
1225 with lubricant led to screw cleaning eliminated;
lubricant frequent purging, screw production yield increased by
cleaning and down time 23%
OEM Mixer, 1-cavity, Posi-Melt MB-XL, Melt
Krauss 19 4.5 176 Black specs led to scrap 19 <1 tempera-ture was reduced
80 14 HDPE 187 and black specs eliminated;
Maffei genera-tion, frequent
purging and downtime production yield increased by
6.2%
OEM GP, 4-cavity, Part Posi-Melt Std., Screw
32.2 13.2 imperfections were recovery time was reduced by
18 20 Engel TPU 383 32 3 436 27% and was very
caused by an erratic
screw recov-ery time and consistent; production yield
excessive shear increased by 12.3%
OEM GP, 1-cavity instru- Posi-Melt low comp., Melt
120 PA 52 ment panel, Fiber break- <1 temperature was reduced
20 UBE 64 7 58.0 61
30%GF age on an Automotive and production yield
instrument panel led to increased by 16%
rejects due to part failure
OEM mixer, 1-cavity, Posi-Melt MB-XL,
PP Scrap due to Splay on a Melt temperature was
130 22 Demag 68 30 37 grain surface, 52 3 67 reduced to 410 F., scrap
Co-
temperature of 475 F. reduced to 3%, cycle time
Polymer Goal was to reduce scrap reduced. production yield
and reduce cycle time increased by 81%.
OEM supplied Barrier w/ Posi-Melt Std. design elimi-
50 25 Krauss HDPE 9 3 6597 mixer, 16 cavity mold 7 <1 8146 nated black specs, reduced
Maffei produced black specs., cycle time. Production yield
goal: reduce scrap, increased by 23%
reduce cycle time

Our technology, a core change to the geometry of a compression screw, is the most versatile
technology available in the industry today for delivering a high-quality melt for the lowest
manufacturing cost. We have been successful in processing resins from LCP to PC to Rigid
PVC with diameters from 14mm through 240mm with good application engineering and an
understanding of the melting process.

Whether you are running a custom shop or have dedicated machines with a specific
application, chances are we have provided a solution with the Posi-Melt™ family of
plasticating screw designs that has yielded less rejects, lower cycle times and improved melt
temperature homogeneity for increased profits.