Mark David Wetzel

On-line Visualization of PS/PP Melting Mechanisms in a Co-rotating Twin Screw Extruder

Abstract The melting and deformation mechanisms of polystyrene (PS) and polypropylene (PP) blends were investigated through on-line visualization of the co-rotating twin-screw extrusion process. Two compositions, PP/PS (80:20) and PS/PP (80: 20) were chosen as the model systems for this study. A sliding barrel technique was used to realize the on-line visualization using a glass window in the barrel. The axial temperature and pressure profiles along the screw channel were measured using the same sliding technique. It was found that in the PP/PS (80:20) blend, in which PP was the major phase, there was a combined melting of PS and PP, whereas in the PS/PP (80:20) blend, in which PS was the major phase, there was initial melting of PS alone and then combined melting of PS and PP. In the partially filled region, heat conduction from the hot barrel was the major source for heating polymer pellets under the conditions studied here; while in the fully filled region, viscous energy dissipation (VED) generated most of the heat for melting of polymer pellets. The pressure profiles along the extrusion channel gave us insight into the melting process for the two blends. It was found that if there was some molten polymer in the fully filled region, the overall melting process was accelerated due to heating from viscous dissipation.

Device Level Integration to form a Parallel Microfluidic Reactor System

This work demonstrates the integration of multiple microreactors operating in parallel with microvalves, micro-pressure sensors, and electronic circuitry to form a miniature reactor system. This system is equivalent to conventional laboratory reactor systems for catalyst testing but in one tenth of the space.

A new scale-up approach for dispersive mixing in twin-screw compounding

Scale-up rules in polymer processing are critical in ensuring consistency in product quality and properties when transitioning from low volume laboratory mixing processes to high volume industrial compounding. The scale-up approach investigated in this study evaluates the processes with respect to dispersive mixing. Demand of polymer composites with solid additives, such as carbon microfibers and nanotubes, has become increasingly popular. Dispersive mixing breaks down particles that agglomerate, which is paramount in processing composites because solid additives tend to collect and clump. The amount of stress imparted on the material governs the degree of dispersive mixing. A methodology has been developed to characterize the Residence Stress Distribution (RSD) within a twin-screw extruder in real time through the use of polymeric stress beads. Through this technique, certain mixing scale-up rules can be analyzed. The following research investigated two different scale-up rules. The industry standard for...

MODELING FOR CONTROL OF REACTIVE EXTRUSION PROCESSES

Abstract A modeling and control framework for effective control of end-use product characteristics of reactive extrusion processes is proposed. We discuss for an example process the development of two important components of the modeling scheme: an identified model that relates manipulated inputs to process outputs and a first principles process model that relates the inputs to quality variables.