Strictly-Extrusion

Film manufactures are increasingly seeing themselves exposed to rising production costs. Huge increases in raw material prices, higher demands on quality from the end user, shorter delivery times and the compulsion of material saving has left little elbow room.
Leading edge companies have already invested in extrusion automation with some 3rd or 4th generation systems with high levels of automation being specified as a standard for new equipment. However there is a need for many older machines to be upgraded with modern automation systems to bring them up to date. Very efficient measures can be carried out at only a fraction of the cost of a new machine in order
to increase productivity and quality.

Utilization of high performance air rings with integrated profile control not only increases the output of the line by up to 50% but also the film tolerance is improved significantly plus a measurable reduction in scrap. In total the effectiveness of production is improved through, additional production capacity, improved film tolerances, order change times are minimized and raw material savings due to reduced gauge tolerances and shorter setup times…

-click here- for further information (incl. detailed information,examples and case study)

BinMaster: Collaborate on Development of BinLink Remote Wireless Monitoring Solution

BinMaster Level Controls and Digi International (www.binmaster.com) have collaborated on the development of BinMaster’s BinLink Web-based bin, tank and silo monitoring solution.  The solution enables remote wireless inventory management of stored material from any PC with Internet access. This saves customers time and money by eliminating the need for on-site remote bin level measurements. The solution includes BinMaster SmartBob2 and SmartBob-TS1 sensors mounted on the bins and a Digi Connectport™ X gateway running the SmartBob application to provide bin level measurement data that can be accessed easily via the Internet.

“BinMaster’s customers have been seeking an integrated, turnkey solution that allows them to access bin material levels via the Internet whether they are on site, off site or in the corporate office. The Digi gateway provides the critical interface between the SmartBob sensors and the BinLink Internet-based software,” stated Todd Peterson, vice president of sales for BinMaster. With BinLink, users can view inventory data on demand or receive automated alerts to their cell phone, PDA or computer when bin conditions meet user-defined thresholds.

BinMaster is an iDigi Tank Monitoring Solution Partner. Digi ConnectPort X gateways enable centralized data collection and when integrated into the BinLink solution can be used by any type of business that desires remote bin management for one to hundreds of bins for one or many sites. BinMaster’s customers span cement, aggregates, mining, plastics, chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing, food processing, ethanol and biofuels processing.

The Italian company Colines presents the latest innovations on their HANDrollEX® stretch film line at their factory in Azzate (Varese) from February 15 to 26, 2010. More information -click here-

At SPE’s FlexPackCon in Houston, Feb. 22-24, 2010, Hank Schirmer of BBS Corp. will discuss research on barrier films produced with up to 75 layers of various resins, including EVOH and COC.Utilizing a modular die system, the researchers used both downward and upward extrusion to produce variants of traditional barrier films. They substituted up to 75 nano-layers such as PP/EVOH and COC/EVOH for the barrier core.

While the COC/EVOH films suffered from lack of adhesion between the components, they exhibited excellent optical qualities. The PP/EVOH structures were hazier, presumably because of the inherently higher haze of the PP and rheological issues.  The researchers report no enhancement of oxygen barrier, either wet or dry, resulting from the nano-layer structure. They hypothesize the nano-layer technique may have modified the crystallinity and inherent barrier of the component resins, or brittleness may have degraded layer continuity and barrier. The researchers suggest how modifying the resins might improve adhesion.

Among other related papers at FlexPackCon will be “High Barrier, Non-Foil Packaging Materials” by Tom Dunn, Printpack, and “Value Films from Sub-Micron Layers” by Gary Oliver, EDI.  The three-day FlexPackCon program will also include sessions on sustainability and source reduction, recent advances in materials and converting technologies, and the impact of recent regulatory changes on flexible packaging manufacturers.

More information on SPE’s FlexPackCon 2010 and International Polyolefins 2010 Conference is available at http://www.spe-stx.org/PolyolefinsConference.htm, at www.4spe.org, or by calling Lesley Kyle at +1 203-740-5452.

The latest edition of the “EDI Advances” newsletter (Number 19) from Extrusion Dies Industries, LLC (EDI) is released. Chief topics include:

● Hot melt adhesive coating. A full-length technical article reports on two innovations, including a coating die for clear, streak-free pressure sensitive adhesives and a turnkey hot melt coating station. The article starts on the back page (8) and continues inside.

● Polystyrene foam board insulation.  A special die for this application helps manufacturers offset productivity losses incurred as they switch to non-ozone depleting blowing agents. (The deadline for making the switch was three weeks ago—January 1!)

● Super-hard, super-sharp die lip edges. Such edges are critical for achieving the highest levels of quality and precision in film, sheet, and coating.

● Rheology—a lot more than melt index. A look at EDI’s rheological analysis capabilities, including information on why the science of polymer flow is important for extrusion processors.The latest edition of the “EDI Advances” newsletter (Number 19) from Extrusion Dies Industries, LLC (EDI) is released. Chief topics include:

● Hot melt adhesive coating. A full-length technical article reports on two innovations, including a coating die for clear, streak-free pressure sensitive adhesives and a turnkey hot melt coating station. The article starts on the back page (8) and continues inside.

● Polystyrene foam board insulation.  A special die for this application helps manufacturers offset productivity losses incurred as they switch to non-ozone depleting blowing agents. (The deadline for making the switch was three weeks ago—January 1!)

● Super-hard, super-sharp die lip edges. Such edges are critical for achieving the highest levels of quality and precision in film, sheet, and coating.

● Rheology—a lot more than melt index. A look at EDI’s rheological analysis capabilities, including information on why the science of polymer flow is important for extrusion processors.

● EDI news—lots of it. In the six months since the last issue of “EDI Advances,” EDI has added personnel (including a new sales director for the Americas), appointed new agents in Korea and Turkey, brought a modular slot die coating system to China, and begun reworking blown film dies.

Please -cklick here- to download your copy.

● EDI news—lots of it. In the six months since the last issue of “EDI Advances,” EDI has added personnel (including a new sales director for the Americas), appointed new agents in Korea and Turkey, brought a modular slot die coating system to China, and begun reworking blown film dies.

Please -cklick here- to download your copy.

Reportlinker has announced that a new market research report “US extruded plastics industry” is available. This industry study covers historical demand data (1998, 2003 and 2008) plus forecasts for 2013 and 2018 by resin type and market. The study also considers market environment factors, evaluates company market share and profiles industry competitors. Click here for more information.

KraussMaffei Berstorff (www.kraussmaffei.com) is now offering complete systems for continuous production of PU-insulated pipes. The extruded plastic pipe is given an insulating polyurethane layer, followed immediately by the addition of a protective polyethylene sheath. KraussMaffei Berstorff can call on many decades of technology competence and experience in pipe extrusion and in PU processing. This unique know-how enables the company to develop complete production solutions which successfully integrate different plastics processes.

The pipe – made of PE-HD, PE-X, PE-RT or PB according to the application – is produced on a conventional pipe extrusion line. A barrier layer can be

Photo: KraussMaffei

applied. The pipe coming off the line is wound onto large steel drums ready for transfer to the second production system unit for application of the insulation layer. Alternatively, the insulation layer can be added to bought-in pipe. In this second unit, the pipe is unwound from the steel drums, heated if necessary, and fed under tension into a shaping conveyor. A PU mixing head dispenses the polyurethane mix at the inlet throat. The aluminium shaping jaws define the outer diameter of the insulation layer by limiting the foam volume. A film prevents the polyurethane from adhering to the aluminium shaping jaws. Once the PU insulation layer has cured, the pipe leaves the shaping conveyor and a PE outer sheath is applied, using a single-screw extruder with a sheathing die. This outer sheath is cooled, the whole composite pipe is hauled off and wound on a drum. The system allows the integration of anti-diffusion barrier layers and/or wires to monitor leakage.

Insulating properties

The standard version of this production system can be used to produce pipe with an outer diameter between 20 and 110 mm. For pipe diameters from 20 to 63 mm, a complete pipe element usually contains two pipes (outflow and return pipes). The exterior diameter of the pipe element will then be between 75 and 180 mm, depending on the diameter of the pipes and the thickness of the insulating layer.

The mixing performance of the PU mixing head produces an insulation layer with a very low thermal conductivity – between 0.02 and 0.03 W/m*K, depending on the type of foam. This highly efficient insulation makes these pipes the ideal solution whenever a significant temperature differential must be maintained between the medium flowing through the pipes and the ambient temperature. In some cases, the medium being transported is hotter – such as supply lines for combined heat and power or geothermal plants, or hot water pipelines in general. Insulated pipes are also sometimes required for potable water transport if there is a risk of the pipes freezing. In other cases, the medium must be kept cold or cool, for example, in air conditioning or refrigeration systems, or in pipes for transporting liquefied gas. With the current focus on energy savings, strong growth in demand can be expected in all these application areas.

New production system concept from a single-vendor partner

KraussMaffei Berstorff can now quote on complete, precision-planned systems for the production of media pipes and for applying the insulating layer and protective sheathing. By contrast with some other systems on the market, KraussMaffei Berstorff technology is characterized by sharply reduced wear on all system components, high system reliability and a high-quality end-product.

No limits on pipe length

Producing insulated pipe in a continuous process has several advantages compared with discontinuous production. One major advantage is the relatively high level of automation that results in lower labour costs. Furthermore, there are virtually no limits on the length of the pipe being produced. Contributing to this wide freedom is the design of the PU mixing head, which eliminates stoppages for cleaning and changing the mixing head. Longer pipe sections reduce the number of production system restarts and also the number of connections needing to be made when the pipe is laid. This in turn eliminates the risk of thermal bridges and leaks, and makes pipe laying easier and quicker.

A new film extrusion grade of cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) from TOPAS Advanced Polymers, Inc. (www.topas.com) extends the commercial glass transition temperature range down to 33° C. TOPAS 9903D-10 is the company’s latest film extrusion resin which delivers a unique combination of low-temperature shrinkage, sealing, and high stiffness for a range of shrink films and sealant films for the consumer packaging industry.

The new material is used to enhance polyolefin formulations for a range of monolayer and multilayer packaging film applications including shrink film, shrink sleeves and shrink labels for bottles and other consumer packaging, and in improved sealant films for stand-up pouches. In polyolefin blends containing 5% to 50% of the new COC, low-temperature shrinkage and stiffness were improved significantly, resulting in better downstream processing. In multilayer sealant films, the new material provides excellent low-temperature sealing and high stiffness for stand-up pouches.

TOPAS 9903D-10 boosts the performance of ultra linear-low-density PE which is typically used in applications that require low-temperature shrinkage. Higher stiffness is a key benefit, resulting in improved web handling and printing operations. Shrinkage is also enhanced, but unlike most stiff polymers, shrink force is actually reduced by the COC resin so packages are less likely to distort or crush when wrapped.

TOPAS 9903D-10 COC resin has a melt flow index of 0.9 which is similar to that of LLDPE grades that are used for shrink films. The material’s tensile modulus of 100,000 psi increases when the film is oriented. TOPAS COCs are amorphous polymers that offer high transparency, outstanding moisture barrier, high rigidity and strength, excellent biocompatibility, and good electrical insulation properties. This unique combination of properties has led to TOPAS COC applications in such areas as medical devices, food and pharmaceutical packaging, optics, and electronics.

Sabic Innovative Plastics (www.sabic-ip.com) has added two new extrusion lines for the production of PC sheets at its film and sheet facility in Gujarat (India).The booming building and construction industry in India generates a strong demand for PC sheets. The LEXAN products are mainly used for industrial roofing and metro rail seating.