TECHNOLOGY | QUALITY CONTROL


has developed a dedicated evaluation software tool called DiffX Viewer. The viewer enables users to assess and clearly identify both the proportion and the classification of detected gels and black spots in the material stream, said Eker. In July this year, ColVisTec and the Institute for Plastics and Circular Economy (IKK) in Leibniz, Germany, launched the ReSpektIn project, a bilateral development effort supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The 2.5-year project aims to develop new methods for smarter and more precise process monitoring in plastics recycling, said Eker. “At the centre of the project is the use of UV/Vis,


Above: Partners in the ReSpektIn project, pictured from left to right: Fuat Eker and Alice Pancaldi from ColVisTec, Felix Mehrens and Niklas Rode from Leibniz University of Hannover, Institute for Plastic and Circular Economy (IKK)


shape, discoloration, and black specks. Inspec.tech supplies inline vision systems for pellet inspection, as well as for plastic sheet and film. Inline systems provide instantaneous, real-time feedback, said David Citron, North America Regional Manager at Inspec.tech, in a presentation at AMI’s Polymers in Cables event in Cleveland, Ohio, in June. The vision system’s patented design captures images of each pellet as the pellet curtain falls past the camera. The system can be set up to trigger an alarm at the beginning of a trend towards out of specification – a shift in size, an increase in standard deviation of size, or a change in shape, for example – so that the operator can take action and make a quick correction. A diverter valve and an air-nozzle option are available for sorting out pellets that are out of specification.


Gel detection ColVisTec offers inline, in-melt process monitoring for compounding and extrusion processes using its fibre optic probes. The latest from the company is GelDetect, a prototype for the real-time detection of gels directly in the polymer melt. Fuat Eker, Director of Sales, Marketing and Customisation at ColVisTec, said that the prototype was successful in an initial field test. Gel detection is based on an optical method in transmission configuration, applied directly in the polymer melt stream using the company’s proven fiber-optic probes. The system can quantify the disturbance level and issue instant warnings, said Eker.


In addition to developing the associated measurement software for GelDetect, ColVisTec 20 COMPOUNDING WORLD | August 2026


NIR, and Raman inline spectrometers, all operating directly in the polymer melt. Based on the real-time data captured by these systems, an AI-supported corrective solution is to be generated, making recycling processes safer, more robust, and more controllable,” he explained. The technological foundation for this is GiANT, ColVisTec’s combina- tion of spectroscopy methods, which was originally developed for the pharmaceutical industry but has also been implemented in various areas. Eker said that the system is flexible and depending on the specific application, combinations such as UV/Vis + NIR, UV/Vis + Raman, or NIR + Raman have been used. “With ReSpektIn, however, all three inline


spectrometers will now be used together for the first time in a polymer application, with the objec- tive of enabling automated control in recycling,” said Eker. “The three inline spectrometers will be integrated into the melt stream via their respective fibre-optic probes, installed either in the extruder die and/or downstream of the melt filter.” The real-time data captured by the system are


particularly valuable in recycling, where the properties of the processed material often vary significantly and in several dimensions, Eker said. “Relevant parameters include colour, ageing/ yellowing, residual moisture in the melt, residual additive content, pigment concentration, contami- nation by foreign polymers, determination of polymer fractions, and the influence of process parameters such as speed and throughput. It is precisely in this highly dynamic environment that the strength of combined inline spectroscopy becomes most visible: each of the three systems provides different real-time information on mate- rial- and process-related challenges. Together, they create the data basis for a downstream evaluation unit that can derive the necessary corrections directly with the help of AI elements.” Eker said: “ColVisTec and IKK aim to make an


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