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Terephthalate (PET)
• Processing Guidelines
• Troubleshooting Guide
Injection Moulding
Stretch Blow Moulding
• Recommended Tests
& Equipment
INDEX
PROCESSING GUIDELINES
Drying
Drying Conditions
Dryer Startup
Dryer Specification
Injection Moulding
Resin Inlet Temperature
Barrel Temperature
Nozzle Temperature
Manifold Hot Runner Temperature
Injection Speed
Stretch Blow Moulding
TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE
Injection Moulding
1) Short Shots
2) Sink Marks
3) Flash
4) Water Marks
5) Black Specs / Contamination
6) Flow Lines
7) Heat Splay
8) PET Inclusion
9) Concentricity
10) Crystalline Gate
11) Long Gate
12) Air Bubbles
13) Stress Pattern
14) Stringing
15) Cloudy Preforms
16) Hollow Gates
17) Discolored Preforms
18) Line Over Finish
19) Burnt Gates
20) Oval Finish
21) Gas Burns
22) High Acetaldehyde
Intrinsic Viscosity
Acetaldehyde Analysis
Colour Measurement
Moisture Analysis
Headload Testing
Burst Testing
PROCESSING GUIDELINES
THE processing guidelines set out below cover the two major processes involved
in the conversion of PET resin into preforms and containers, namely:
1. INJECTION MOLDING
2. STRETCH BLOW MOLDING.
DRYING :
Drying Conditions:
This is the first and most crucial step in converting PET resin into preform/
container/sheet. If the drying equipment is not adequate or is not functioning
efficiently then it is highly unlikely that you will produce an acceptable product.
The dried resin should have a moisture content not more than 50 PPM.
Recommended Drying Temperature: 160 - 180 °C Recommended Drying Time 5
- 6 hours.
Dryer Start-Up :
The time / temperature profile recommended when first starting the dryer or
starting from a major shut down is as below.
This is the process by which the resin is converted from dried pellets to preforms.
Recommended temperature :
265 - 280 °C
Nozzle Temperature :
Recommended temperature:
270 - 280 °C
Injection Speed :
As required to fill the cavity with minimum shear and dependent on the gate size.
STRETCH BLOW MOLDING PROCESS:
The most commonly available stretch blow molding machines are the:
Single stage stretch blow molder ( preform & bottle made on the same machine).
They are AOKI, NISSEI, UNILOY, etc.
Two stage stretch blow molder (reheating and blowing of preforms made on
Injection molder).
They are SIDEL, KRUPP, SIPA, etc.
The processing conditions depend on the type of process used and the most
common parameters
to be controlled are:
o Preform Temperature.
o Re-heating oven profile and over all oven percentage.
o Oven sheilds o Bottle blowing speed, bottles/hour.
o Stretch rod speed o Air delay time o Pre-blow pressure.
o High blow time.
o High blow pressure.
o Blow mold cooling.
Optimizing of the above parameters depend on several factors such as :
o Preform design.
o Preform intrinsic viscosity.
o Preform infrared absorbing characteristics.
o Bottle design.
Troubleshooting Guide
Injection Moulding
3 Problem: FLASH
POSSIBLE CAUSES POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
o Base of bottle blown too cold o Increase heat below the preform
o Over heating of the preform o Reduce heat or below the end cap area
end cap, material wraps around o Increase low blow pressure
the end of the stretch rod. In o Reduce stretch rod pressure
effect another thick/ thin
transition forms
23Problem: CRACKED BASE
26Problem: EXPLOSIONS
POSSIBLE CAUSES
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
o Hot bottles (Refer Hot Bottles)
o Refer Causes
o Folds in the base
o Light base weight
o Excessive post mould growth
o Low I.V.
o Chemical Reaction (Refer stress
Cracking)
o Contamination
o Air bubbles above the gate
o Stress Cracking
o Cracked bases
o Excessive crystallinity
Intrinsic Viscosity
The intrinsic viscosity (I.V.) is a primary parameter that is monitored. The I.V. is a
measure of molecular weight. SABIC measures I.V. by solution viscometry. The
PET is dissolved in 3:2 phenol : 1,2 dichlorobenzene, at 25°C and 0.5%
concentration, and its flow time through a capillary is measured and compared
against the that of the solvent.
The higher the molecular weight of the polymer, the higher the flow time and
hence the I.V. This method requires high consumption of chemicals. However,
I.V. can also be measured by melt viscomtery. In this method, the polymer (resin
or preform) is powdered after cooling in liquid nitrogen, dried, then melted and
extruded through a capillary. The melt viscosity can be calculated from the flow
properties. As the melt flow properties are related to the molecular weight, a
correlation with the I.V. can be made. Consistency of drying is Melt Viscometer
very essential in getting good
Acetaldehyde Analysis
The acetaldehyde (AA) is an important property that needs to be monitored
specially for water packaging applications. The AA level in most commercial
resins is < 1 ppm. Most resin manufacturers today meet this target, and hence
the AA in the resin need not be measured by the down stream converter.
However, the preform AA and the AA in the bottle may be important. The preform
AA is measured by grinding the sample into a powder after cooling in liquid
nitrogen, by headspace gas chromatography (GC). There are critical AA levels
for water.
The bottle head space test is different. A freshly blown bottle is capped with a
septum and stored at 23°C for 24 hours. The AA migrates into the bottle
headspace. The AA concentration is measured by sampling the gas in the bottle
and injecting into a GC. It must be noted that Solution Viscometer Gas
Chromatograph
the AA achieved in the bottle depends on resin and injection moulding conditions.
The equipment needed for AA measurement is a GC with head space assembly.
In addition, a grinder for powdering the resin or
preforms is needed. Liquid nitrogen in addition to the glass vials and septa of the
GC are major consumables. Manufacturers of GC with head space assembly are
Hewlett Packard and Perkin Elmer.
Colour Measurement
The colour of the resin and preform may be measured for consistency.
Moisture Analysis
is The moisture content in PET has to be reduced to < 50 ppm by drying before it
is injection moulding. If the moisture content exceeds this, there is a large drop in
the I.V. in the perform. Injection moulders generally have driers, but to check the
efficiency of the drier, it is worth sampling and analysing the resin after it is dried.
There are several bench top equipment available such as from Karl ischer, TA
Instruments and Arizona Instruments. Moisture Analyzer Burst Strength
Testing This equipment is widely used in the carbonated soft drinks industry by
the fillers, to assess the performance of the bottles in filling and withstanding
pressures of carbonated beverages, which are normally filled to 4 volumes of
gas. The burst pressure requirement is generally in the range of 140 to 170 psi
depending on the bottle size. This unit can apply the test pressure and hold it for
a given time and also measure the free volume expansion, the pressure could
also be applied in a ramped profile.