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Polymer extrusion, a plastic extrusion machine, is widely used in the plastics sector to produce everything from 100 yards of pipe-tubing to plastic sheets to 1000 Crazy Straws because of its low cost and high availability. When plastic is extruded, the molecules are arranged to increase their strength in a longitudinal direction. The plastic extrusion process is melting plastic, then driving it through a die to form a continuous profile, and finally cutting it to length. This is the method to use if you need a finished product with a uniform cross-section.
Equipment and Materials for Extruding Plastic
The plastic extruder machine, along with the other necessary tools and materials, must be assembled before production can begin. While not overly complex, this equipment makes the entire extrusion process much easier to handle. A hopper, barrel, screw drive, and screw drive motor make up the core parts of an extruder machine.
The primary raw thermoplastic material meant for extrusion is the second most critical part. Extrusion processes often use resin plastic (tiny solid beads) because it easily loads and melts rapidly. High-impact polystyrene (HIPS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and ABS are all common plastics used in extrusion machines.
The die is the last piece of equipment needed for plastic extrusion. In plastic extrusion, dies to enable a uniform flow of the molten plastic, serving as the mold. Custom dies demand more time in the planning stages of production.
Varieties of Plastic Extruders
Single-screw extruders, twin-screw extruders, and ram are the three most common forms of plastic extrusion equipment. Ram extruders (which include a ram or plunger instead of a screw) are beneficial for plastics that don’t melt well with a screw, such as PTFE and UHMW and are less popular than single and multiple screw extruders.
With a single screw extruder, a screw is housed in a closed barrel, where it turns to generate enough friction to melt the plastic being extruded. There are heaters close to the tip of the screw, but they are only there to raise friction and cause the plastic to melt. An alternative to a single screw, barrier screws prevent mixing liquid and solid plastic as the material travels down the barrel.
For plastics that don’t melt as quickly, these screws are the way to go. The friction created when solid plastic comes into contact with liquid draining from other regions causes the plastic to melt more quickly. For extruding multiple materials simultaneously, mixing screws are used. Some use a single screw, while most feature pairs of screws that turn in opposite or complementary directions.
Screw Extruders Are Simpler
Single screw extruders are simpler, cheaper, and more reliable, whereas twin screw extruders provide more even mixing. Machines can be found with gears that intermesh to varying degrees and varieties that revolve in the same or opposing directions. Low-speed extrusion is best accomplished using a corotating twin screw extruder, while extruding profiles call for a counter-rotating extruder. Material can be sent either forwards or backward through the twin extruders.
Common Plastic Extrusion Raw Materials
The bulk of extruded plastics is thermoplastics. However, thermosets can be extruded as well. Within that category, you can find both amorphous and crystalline molecular architectures among the high-performance, engineering-grade, and commodity plastics available.
Conclusion
After high-performance materials, you’ll find engineering plastics, specialized polymers made to contain unique qualities without the hefty price tag. TPE, ABS, nylon, and polycarbonate are just a few examples. Finally, most extrusions are made from commodity plastics, which are more general-purpose materials. Polypropylene, polyethylene, and polyvinyl chloride are the three cheapest polymers.
