K2022 NEWS Wittmann Group plays it smart


With an emphasis firmly on sustainability in keeping with the overall theme at K2022, Wittmann Battenfeld partnered with Wago to demonstrate on its stand how the continuous current generated by solar cells can be used directly for driving injection moulding lines using a machine from its EcoPower series. After the event, Rainer


Left: An Ecopower 180/750+ was shown fitted with solar panels in a DC power concept


IMAGE: WITTMANN


Weingraber, Managing Director of Wittmann Battenfeld, said: “K2022 was a complete success. The response of the public to our exhibits was excellent. Special interest was shown in our trade fair highlight, an EcoPower driven by direct current from solar energy, and in the options for processing alternative materials.” A three-component machine was also on display to highlight the advantages of combining several processes. Visitors were able to watch a reusable coffee-to-go cup being manufactured with a servo-hydraulic SmartPower 400/750H/210S/525L Combimould equipped with a servo- hydraulic rotary unit. The main aggregate, the 750H, designed as a Cellmould unit, had additional


equipment such as the compressor, gas flow regulator and gas injector, fully integrated. The company also demonstrated an


EcoPower 110/350, equipped with the new B8X control system and designed as an Insider cell with a parts removal robot, a conveyor belt, and other upstream and downstream auxiliaries. Using a MacroPower 1100/12800


fitted with an energy-saving, speed- controlled servo motor and a constant displacement pump, a door panel was manufactured using a single-cavity mould. The door panel consisted of an extremely light natural fibre material onto which a map pocket made of Borcycle EE1300SY, a mineral- reinforced PP for car interior


applications with 30% PCR content from Borealis, was over-moulded. Wittmann Battenfeld displayed its expertise in thin-wall injection moulding with the production of a cup using injection compression moulding (ICM) technology


whereby the melt was injected into a partially open mould. The technology was demonstrated on an EcoPower Xpress 160/1100+, the machine’s high-speed making it ideal for IMC technology. Silicone processing is one of the company’s core competencies, and among its exhibits at K was a microscale LSR application producing a micro loudspeaker membrane made of thermoplastic and LSR manufactured on a MicroPower 15/10H/10H Combimould. This membrane, made of PA6 and a self-adhesive LSR material, was produced inside a single-cavity mould by way of a 2C injection moulding process. � www.wittmann-group.com


Milliken and Purecycle cut carbon footprint


Additives producer Milliken and recycling technology company PureCy- cle updated on progress with their collaborative work in PP recycling and carbon footprint reduction. PureCycle is commercialising a


patented solvent-based PP purification process, which was developed and li- censed by Procter & Gamble. It is claimed to separate colorants, odour and other contaminants from PP waste feedstock to convert it into a virgin-like resin.


18 Milliken announced a new PP


concentrate based on PureCycle’s recy- cled PP that it says offers a carbon foot- print (GHG) approximately 35% lower than that of virgin PP. The new concen- trate is formulated using Milliken’s Millad NX 8000 ECO clarifier; the company said an added benefit is that the certified energy savings


realised by using resin produced with this clarifier allows brand owners to display the UL Environmen- tal Claim Validation label on injection moulded parts.


INJECTION WORLD | November/December 2022 PureCycle has opened its first plant,


in Ironton, Ohio, and plans to install two lines at a new plant it is building in Augusta, Georgia. It also has a joint venture with Mitsui in Japan and with SK Geo Centric in South Korea. Dustin Olson, CEO of PureCycle,


said at the show that the company is making progress in work with the US FDA to gain food-contact approval for its rPP products but that feedstock and product testing will take some time. “A good base has been laid with the FDA,” he said. � www.milliken.com � www.purecycle.com


www.injectionworld.com


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