Extrusion
K 2004 News Preview: Extrusion
At K 2004, at least a half-dozen European machine builders will show new direct-drive extruders running gearless—or nearly gearless—drives with substantially higher rpm and output rates than conventional extruders of the same size.
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Extrusion Coaters: Stop That Edge Weave
In extrusion coating, edge stability depends on uniform melt temperature.
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Beyond Decking: Wood Composites Branch Out
Extruded decking still drives the embryonic wood-filled plastics market. But injection and compression molded wood composites are coming on strong, and extruded profiles are moving toward more complex millwork shapes.
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PPS Role Shapes Up in Thermoforming
Thermoformers may find new opportunities in higher-performance applications with the arrival of thin-gauge PPS sheet from Penn Fibre Plastics (PFP). Highly crystalline PPS has until now resisted extrusion at less than 0.25-in. thickness due to its poor melt strength and the resulting sheet’s tendency toward brittleness.
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Belt Polishing of Clear PP Film Proves Itself in Production
An unusual cast-film process that drops a melt curtain of polypropylene between a flexible steel polishing belt and a chill roll has now proven successful in high-volume commercial production.
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Recycled PET/PE Alloys Show Promise In Monofilament, Pallets, Pipe
Alloys of polyethylene and recycled PET were the highlight of the annual SPE Global Plastics Environmental Conference (GPEC) in Detroit in February.
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They've Been Working on the Railroad
Composite RR ties could finally be on their way to becoming the next big thing in plastic lumber. They are attracting interest from makers of marine pilings, another category of structural wood replacements.
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What to Do When the Bubble Won't Behave
Bubble instability in blown-film extrusion creates problems from fluctuating film gauge and width to scratches and tears.
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Reborn HPM Launches New Injection & Extrusion Machinery
Much has changed in a year for HPM Corp., the 125-year-old Ohio manufacturer of injection, extrusion, and die-casting equipment.
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Automatic Gauge Control: Comparing the Options
Until recently, blown-film processors looking for auto-gauge control had a choice of one segmented-die system, one IBC-based system, and several segmented air rings. Now there are at least nine auto-dies, including two for high-stalk bubbles, and lots of air-ring variations. All claim to improve gauge uniformity, but there are differences.
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