INLINE MEASUREMENT | PROCESS CONTROL Staying in control inline
Compounding production lines can be fitted with a variety of inline measurement systems that promise simplified control and improved quality. Mark Holmes reports
Capturing inline product measurement and inspec- tion data to provide real-time adjustment and correction of compounding process parameters promises much improved manufacturing outcomes. These include material waste reductions, higher levels of productivity, better quality end-products, and a more streamlined and less costly production process. Systems already exist to take on tasks as varied as monitoring rheology of the melt in the extruder or controlling and adjusting colour, through to inspection and sorting of finished pellets. Leistritz Extrusion Technology, for example, developed its Inline Elongational Rheometer to deliver real time data on both shear and elonga- tional viscosity, allowing the line manager to determine melt quality during the extrusion process and providing detailed insight into melt deformation and flow behaviour. The technology and equipment was developed in cooperation with the Institute for Polymer Extrusion and Compounding at the Johannes
www.compoundingworld.com
Kepler University in Linz, Austria. It takes inline measurements during the extrusion process and delivers real time data on pressure, temperature, melt flow index (MFI) and intrinsic viscosity (IV). The company says such insight allows quality setting in the extrusion process to be adapted without the need to wait for laboratory results, avoiding material waste and time delays. Measurement of both shear and elongational viscosity is possible inline and in a single step, according to Leistritz. While conventional rheom- eters can provide such data it says they result in material loss, since the sample is not returned to the production stream. In addition, it says elonga- tional viscosity is typically measured in the lab rather than on the production line. Leistritz says its inline rheometer can measure
both shear and elongational viscosity in a single step, in real time and inline due to its hyperbolic slotted die. This creates a constant expansion flow, which was not possible previously. This die com-
November 2022 | COMPOUNDING WORLD 57
Main image: This lab-scale cascade recycling
system uses an inline system developed by SKZ and ColVisTec to maintain colour consistency
IMAGE: COLVISTEC/SKZ
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
