Pelletisers | machinery
Flexibility is key for pelletising
The pelletising system may be the final step in the compounding process but it plays a key role in deter- mining product quality and process efficiency. As a consequence, equipment manufacturers are continually looking to integrate new features and technologies that will give their customers an edge in the compounding industry. Prime among compounders’ demands is flexibility in operation, according to Michael Eloo, Managing Director of Gala Kunststoff- und Kautschuk- maschinen GmbH, a Maag subsidiary, which means the ability to make fast and simple product, pellet size and form changes. “Ideally the compounder wants one machine for many materials, providing a good looking product within the customer’s specification,” he says. “As pelletising is the last member in a complex chain of machinery working together, we continue to look at the whole product flow and optimise the components along the product line in order to achieve maximum flexibility, while taking into consideration the specific objectives a customer wants to achieve,” Eloo says. “From our point of view, pelletising is still the heart of the machine because this is the step where the product finally becomes a visible form of the plastic. At this point the produced pellets need to meet all of the required specifications. Overall there is a need for a holistic approach to downstream equipment following the extruder/compounder. This addresses issues of cleanability, accessibility and the ability to exchange tools in operation. However, such flexibility cannot
www.compoundingworld.com
Compounders are increasingly looking for versatile pelletising
systems to handle smaller production lots, faster product changes and
variations in pellet size and form. Mark Holmes reports
affect the efficiency of the machine.” While pelletisers can handle an increasingly wide
variety of products, Eloo says there is still a place for specialised systems designed to meet specific pelletis- ing requirements. Gala’s EBG belt conveyor pelletising system, for example, is designed for processing highly filled (>60%) and/or friable compounds. The company says the system is fully adjustable, allowing it to be precisely tailored to individual applications. In the EBG system, polymer strands are not extruded into a water bath but onto a plastic or steel conveyor belt, which draws the fragile strands to the pelletising unit. This controlled drawing of the strands while still in a molten state prevents breakage and enables them to be directly fed into the pelletiser, where they are cut into uniform pellets. Depending on the application, the strands may be cooled with air, water or both.
Main image: shorter
production runs and increased product
variation is driving demand for more versatile
pelletising hardware
January 2017 | COMPOUNDING WORLD 37
s
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90