Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Material para El Tornillo
Material para El Tornillo
RESIN GUIDELINES
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Widely used in sheet, pipe and profile, injection molding and blow molding. ABS exhibits
high impact strength and are quite rigid. ABS absorbs moisture and is almost always run
vented during the extrusion process and dried for injection molding. ABS is easily
processed in most cases.
For extrusion applications, two-stage screw designs generally preferred for sheet and pipe
extrusion, although it can be run off on a single stage when resin is properly dried.
Usually a very simple screw design with Evolution™ Mixer for colorants or other
compounding is more than adequate.
Higher outputs obtained with barrier screws with distributive mixing will produced excellent
results.
General recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Bored thru the feed for screw cooling
Chrome plating .001” thick as an option
Barrel Recommendation:
Typically, ABS is neither abrasive nor corrosive so X102, 666 or equivalent barrel linings
are adequate.
Other Information:
Extrusion:
Maximum output approximately 10 LB/HP/Hr but speed limited due to overheating, i.e.,
approximately 100 RPM maximum on a 3.5” extruder.
Injection Molding:
There are very good screw designs for when injection molding of very high impact resins
are used.
Injection molding of ABS is the principal resin that used for chrome plated plastic parts.
Notes: ABS can be foamed in pipe applications and requires special designs. These need
to be referred to the Design Group for recommendations.
-3-
Acetal Homopolymer (Delrin)
Acetal homopolymers are some of the strongest and stiffest of generally used polymers.
Most applications are replacements for metal parts. Although there are some extrusion
applications, majority of the usage is in injection molding.
Single-stage screw designs are always used. The Evolution™ Mixer can be used for
coloring or compounding applications. Barrier screws have been used with good
temperature control, and good melt quality. Recommended for very critical tolerance
injections or extrusion applications where unmelts and surging cannot be tolerated.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Bored thru the feed for screw cooling
Chrome plating .001” thick as an option
Other Information:
There is a wide range of viscosities available so be sure to get manufacturer name and
resin number.
Acetal Homopolymer resins not particularly temperature sensitive and generally fairly easy
to process.
For extrusion screws, die pressure is important due to generally low viscosity.
Notes:
-4-
Acetal Co-polymer (Celcon)
Acetal copolymers are strong, hard, and highly crystalline polymers that are often used as
metal replacements. They have superior creep resistance, corrosion resistance, and a
low coefficient of friction.
Acetal Co-polymers are used primarily in injection molding, although it also has extrusion
applications in thin films, blowmolding, profiles, and tubing.
Single-stage screws are usually used as there is no drying requirement. Mixing devices
are required only for difficult colorant dispersions or special compounding requirements.
Primary recommendation is a simple single-stage screw. Any type mixer can be used, but
Evolution™ mixer would be preferred.
A barrier-type screw can be used for good temperature control, good melt quality and also
recommended for critical tolerance injection or extrusion applications.
Other Information:
Maximum output approximately 8-9 LB/HP/Hr. Speed may be somewhat limited due to
high melt viscosity and resultant overheating. Requires speeds somewhat similar to rigid
PVC.
Notes:
-5-
Acrylic
(PMMA)
Acrylic resins are used primarily where high light transmittance is desirable. They are
available in general purpose and impact grades. Acrylics absorb moisture, and two-stage
screws are usually used for extrusion applications. However, single stage screws are
used for injection molding applications if the resins are dried. Generally, the acrylic resins
are easily processed.
Conventional screws (single or two stage) work well, although 30:1 L/D is a minimum
length for optical parts. Evolution™ Mixers are recommended for good mixing and
temperature homogeneity. There is no particular advantage to barrier screws for
processing acrylics, although they have been used from time to time. A Evolution™ Mixer
can be used at the tip to homogenize for improved optical properties.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Bored thru the feed for screw cooling
Chrome plating .001” thick as an option
No particular wear or corrosion problems when processing Acrylic., because Acrylics are
seldom used with fillers.
Other Information:
Sheet and profile extrusion are common for acrylic and injection molding is a large
process for this polymer.
Notes:
-6-
Cellulosics
There are three general types of cellulosics that are in common use and are processed
using single screws. These are cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate propionate, and
cellulose acetate butyrate. They are used for a wide variety of extrusion and injection
applications. In general, they are difficult resins to process in extrusion but are easily
injection molded.
The primary extrusion problem with cellulosics is surging, and we have been largely
successful in solving that problem with a barrier-type screw and a spiral UCC mixer. A
simple single-stage design can be used if low outputs are acceptable. In injection molding
where surging is of less importance, conventional screws work satisfactorily. Mixers of
any type can be used for coloring.
General Recommendation:
Cellulosics are seldom used with fillers since their principal attributes clarity, gloss and
transparency.
Other Information:
Cellulosics are sold in various hardnesses much like flexible PVC. The processors will
know them by these hardness codes such as H=Hard, S=Soft, MH=Medium Hard. This
hardness value also indicates the polymer's melt flow characteristics. Be sure and get
these values.
Since cellulosics are so sensitive to surging, it is important in the design to know what the
expected die back pressure might be. If that is not available, be sure and obtain the cross
sectional area of the extruded part.
Notes:
-7-
Fluoropolymers
Fluoropolymers are extremely corrosive in the melt state, and require special screw (and
barrel) materials.
General Recommendation:
Other Information:
Types of Fluoropolymers typically processed are FEP, PFA, PCTFE, and ECTFE.
Bores should only be used when necessary due to the difficulty in drilling Hastelloy.
Notes:
-8-
Ionomer
(Surlyn)
Ionomers process easily and, although conventional single-stage screws are usually used,
spiral UCC mixing screws and barrier-type screws work well. Just about any type mixer
could be used.
Ionomers are seldom colored or compounded with fillers so mixing requirements are pretty
much nil.
Ionomer is comparable to LDPE and hardsurfacing may be required for extended wear life.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored for cooling thru feed section of screw
Other Information:
The major new market for Ionomer is in coextruded film, blowmolding and injection
molding, especially for golf ball skins
Notes:
-9-
Nitrile Resins
(Barex)
Nitrile resins are typically used for food and non-food packaging because of their excellent
barrier properties. Blowmolding and injection-blowmolding are the principal processing
techniques. There is also sheet extrusion for thermoformed packaging.
Single-stage and two-stage screws are used depending on whether venting is necessary.
Mixing pins are recommended when there is a mixing requirement. UCC sections cannot
be used.
4140 HT Steel
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored full length for internal cooling
Chrome plated .002” thick
Other Information:
Since nitriles process similar to rigid vinyl, the screws are very deep flighted.
Consequently, screw speed and horsepower are important. Maximum screw speeds to
avoid overheating should be 60 RPM or less.
Notes:
-10-
Nylon 6, 6/6, 6/9, 6/10, 6/12, 11 & 12
(Polyamide –PA)
Nylons constitute a family of resins all having similar chemical structure. The differences
in structure are essentially described by the numbers such as 6, 6/12, etc. Nylons
generally are characterized by their toughness, chemical resistance, and good frictional
properties. Applications are very broad ranging from wire coating to brush bristles.
Nylons absorb moisture and must be well dried before processing. Despite the moisture
problem, single-stage screws are used almost universally. This is probably due to the
difficulty of venting nylon due to its low melt viscosity.
Nylon is very stable and any kind of mixing device can be used, although mixers are
seldom required.
General:
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
NOTE: Many nylon compounds are now fiber and/or mineral filled. The screws require
root as well as O.D. protection and therefore tool steels are typically used for screw
smaller than 70mm in diameter
Other Information:
Nylons have a high melting point and low melt viscosity. As a result, outputs are low per
RPM and high screw speeds are typical. Output per horsepower, however, is high, i.e., 9-
10 LB/HP/Hr.
Notes:
-11-
Polybutylene
(PB)
The resin processes very much like polypropylene. Except for minor modifications in the
profile, PB can be treated like polypropylene.
Barrier type screws with Evolution™ Mixer will process PB very well.
Screws should be bored in the feed section for improved solids conveying.
Other Information:
Screw wear would be typical for a polyolefin in that hard surfacing is recommended.
Notes:
-12-
Polycarbonate
Polycarbonate has exceptionally high impact strength, rigidity, and dimensional stability.
Since PC is also transparent, it has major usage as a glazing material. Other principal
applications are in blowmolding film and injection molding.
If mixing is required the Evolution™ Mixer should be used. Due again to the high viscosity,
it is very important to have correct screw speed and horsepower.
Other Information:
Glass-filled polycarbonate is widely used and causes extreme screw wear, therefore it is
recommended that the screw channels are fully encapsulated with Stellite 6 and
Colmonoy 56 flight lands. Nitriding can also be used.
If tinted sheet or products are being made, then mixing is absolutely required to insure that
no streaking occurs in the finish product.
Notes:
-13-
Thermoplastic Polyester
(Polybutylene Terephthalate-PBT)
PBT is a crystalline resin that exhibits good tensile strength, toughness, dimensional
stability, and a low coefficient of friction. Principal application is in injection molding with
increasing activity in sheet and film. Due to its sharp melting point and low melt viscosity,
PBT is difficult to process in extrusion applications and melt pump should always be used.
Single-stage barrier screws are typically used, although PBT is hydroscopic and must be
dried. Two-stage screws usually present no design problems.
General Recommendation:
4140 steel based material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored for cooling
Chrome Plating is an option
Other Information:
Valox is sold in many glass-filled grades and caused high screw wear. We recommend
that the most economical protection is to nitride the screw geometry, but for maximum
protection the screw geometry should have full encapsulation with Stellite 6 in the high
wear areas. HVOF tungsten carbide coating has been successful but are very expensive.
Notes:
-14-
Thermoplastic Polyester
(Polyethylene Terephthalate-PET)
PET is a crystalline resin that, when oriented, excels in strength, toughness and clarity.
Principal applications are beverage bottles and oriented cast films. Other areas are paper
coating, oriented strapping, and injection blowmolding.
There are two distinct screw design situations. Beverage bottles require different designs
than other applications.
For Injection Molding of Beverage Bottles, a barrier type screw with an Evolution™ Mixer
produces excellent results
PET must be thoroughly dried before processing, but should not be run on vented screws
due to dramatic IV drop when exposed to atmospheric conditions.
General Recommendation:
Other Information:
Notes:
-15-
Thermoplastic Co-polyester
(PCTA & PETG)
The commercial types of thermoplastic co-polyesters are PCTA and PETG. However,
PETG constitutes most of the volume due to difficulty in processing the PCTA and its price.
PCTA and PETG are considered to be rigid vinyl replacements and are used primarily for
blister packaging and blowmolding.
We have had outstanding success with a single-stage Barrier-type screws for processing
PETG. A Evolution™ mixer can be used for good temperature homogeneity and where
coloring is required.
Eastman (EB062) and Indorama both have several grades of co-polyster resins which are
used for blow-molding applications. These resins can be difficult to process and low shear
barrier type screw with an Evolution™ Mixer must be used.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Bored thru the feed for screw cooling
Chrome plating .001” thick as an option
Other Information:
Both PCTA and PETG are made by Eastman Chemical. PCTA is known as Kodar A-150
and PETG is Kodar 6763. There are also new co-polyesters made by Eastman (EB062)
and Invista that are used in blow molding.
Many screws over the years for processing co-polyesters resins using barrier type screw
technology, especially for PETG. Primarily, the benefits are very high output in extrusion,
and lower melt temperatures in blowmolding.
Notes:
-16-
High Density Polyethylene
(HDPE)
HDPE is a difficult polymer to process in that it is a highly crystalline resin. Because of the
crystalline nature and melting characteristics, HDPE requires greater HP/LB than most resins
despite a relatively low melting point.
Most HDPE can be processed on single stage UCC mixing screws at very good rates but in
today’s technology very seldom recommended. Our optimum design has been a Barrier screw
with a Evolution™ Mixer for improved melt temperature and energy efficiency at improved
throughput rates and lower melt temperatures.
For applications where improved coloring mixing, low gels count, or compounding of additives is
necessary, a dispersionary mixer such as a spiral UCC section should be added to the Barrier
screw. For Barrier screws where blends or regrind are run, the Evolution™ Mixer section works
well.
HDPE presents the most screw O.D. wear of any unfilled polymer. There is no corrosion problem.
General Recommendation:
Other Information:
HDPE has a very wide range of viscosities that affect screw design. The viscosity is indicated by
the melt index. Be sure to obtain this information or the resin MFG and resin number so that
viscosity information can be obtained.
High molecular weight polyethylene is a type of HDPE that requires special screw designs.
Notes:
-17-
Low Density Polyethylene
(LDPE)
LDPE is the highest volume thermoplastic. Over half goes into blown film. Other large
applications are wire coating, injection molding, and paper coating.
LDPE is a less difficult resin to process in that it has medium crystallinity and unusual
melting characteristics. LDPE requires greater HP/LB than most resins but less that
HDPE
LDPE has been processed almost universally on barrier-type screws with UCC mixing
screws in many years. Barrier screws provide lower melt temperatures and better energy
efficiency.
Spiral UCC mixing sections can also be used with the Barrier screw for coloring, low gels,
or compounding of additives. For processing blends or regrind, the Evolution™ Mixer
works well.
Bores are required for LDPE for improve stability and solids conveying.
LDPE in low head pressure applications has a low wear problem. There is no corrosion
problems with LDPE.
General Recommendation
4140 HT steel base material
Colmonoy 56 flight lands.
Colmonoy 83 should be used for premium wear requirements, but an Xaloy 800 or
Wexco 777 bi-metallic lined barrel has to be used with the Colmonoy 83
Other Information:
Die pressure is also important in film applications as it has a significant effect on output.
LDPE resins are often blended with EVA resins which affect screw design and a
dispersionary mixer is recommended.
Notes:
-18-
Linear Low Density Polyethylene
(LLDPE)
LLDPE is a type of low density polyethylene, but the properties are quite different from
conventional LDPE. The primary difference is related to its viscosity as far as screw
design is concerned. The result being a much greater horsepower requirement. Almost
all LLDPE goes into blown film applications.
Best results have been obtained with the barrier-type screw with a Evolution™ Mixing
section. Generally, a UCC mixing section is recommended to reduce gels and provide
mixing when blends of LLDPE and LDPE are used.
General Recommendation
Notes
Notes:
-19-
High Molecular Weight Polyethylene
(HMWPE)
HMWPE is simply HDPE having a higher average molecular weight. Due to HMWPE's
high melt viscosity, it necessitates special screw designs wherein drive power and melt
temperature can be effectively controlled. Applications are growing rapidly in blown film,
sheet, blowmolding, and pipe. Any HDPE having a melt index of less than .2 can be
considered HMWPE.
A low compression Barrier-type screw with an Evolution™ Mixer has performed very well
on HMWPE. UCC sections cannot be used without overheating.
As with most polyolefins, the horsepower requirement is large to it's important to know
screw speed and horsepower before designing the screw.
HMWPE causes high flight wear, but there are typically no corrosion problems.
General Recommendation:
Other Information:
Notes:
-20-
Ethylene Copolymers
Three ethylene copolymers are widely used both as extrusion resins themselves, and as
blending agents to modify HDPE and LDPE. In general, they are very similar to LDPE
except for a lower melting point. All three are manufactured with a range of ethylene to
co-monomer ratios, giving a fairly wide range of processing parameters, i.e., they range
from rubbery, low melting polymers to being very similar to LDPE.
Evolution™ Mixing screws are recommended for all three ethylene copolymers.
These resins process very easily. Due to softness and low melting point, barrier type
screws offer little advantage. Most of the time these material are process on small
extruders and therefore barrier type screw are not usually used.
By themselves, none of the ethylene copolymers are particularly prone to cause high flight
wear. However, when blended with HDPE and LDPE, the wear may be more like HDPE
or LDPE. There is no corrosion problem.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc)
Colmonoy 56 flight lands.
Cored for cooling is recommended for improved solids conveying
Chrome plating is optional
Other Information:
EFA, EVA, and EMA are typically used in blown film, cast film, and extrusion coating.
Notes:
-21-
Polypropylene
(PP)
Polypropylene is a high volume resin with primary applications in film, fibers, sheet, blow
molding, injection molding and strapping.
Polypropylene is a difficult resin to process in that it is difficult to feed and has a higher
melt point than other polyolefins, i.e., LDPE and HDPE. PP has a low specific gravity
of .90 gm/cc whereas HDPE has a specific gravity of .96 gm/cc in the solid form.
Barrier-type screws work very well on PP, although the screw profile is not the standard
barrier-type profile, whereas they will have longer feed section in order to develop better
solids conveying. Bores are recommended in the feed section in order to improve solids
conveying..
Since PP has such a low specific gravity and poor feeding, the expected outputs are
typically 30% to 35% lower that when process in other polyolefins.
The primary characteristic that makes PP difficult to process is because of its low
coefficient of friction which complicates feeding.
PP has similar high flight wear characteristics as the polyethylenes, although not as
severe. There is no corrosion problem.
General Recommendations:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc)
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Colmonoy 83 should be used for premium wear requirements, but an Xaloy 800 or
Wexco 777 bi-metallic lined barrel has to be used with the Colmonoy 83
Other Information:
Notes:
-22-
Polystyrene
(GPS or HIPS)
Polystyrene is sold in two basic types. Crystal or "GP" is unmodified. Crystal is injection
molded (plastic glasses) and extruded (light diffusers). Impact styrene or "HIPS" is rubber
modified crystal which is also primarily injection molded (appliances) and extruded
(refrigerator liners) and packaging applications. In addition, there is a large market in PS
foams (egg cartons), where GP and HIPS are used.
Polystyrene does not absorb moisture but is still run vented in many cases, although
venting is not essential. Regardless, most screw designs for PS are two stage, even if
venting is not required. A decompression design can be used, however, be substituted for
a two-stage design with no difficulty. Barrier screws can be used for PS, but there is no
advantage except stability. PS resins are easily processed in most cases. Refer to
Engineering for PS foam design information.
General Recommendation:
Other Information:
PS outputs can exceed 10 LB/HP/Hr, so rates are very good in most cases.
Notes:
-23-
Polyurethane
(PU)
Polyurethanes are a relatively limited application as far as screw processing. Most PU's
are chemical foams, spray-able coating, or are cast from liquids. Principal applications for
screw processing are tubing, wire coating, and some profiles. Extrudable Polyurethanes
cover a wide range due to the resin's ability to be plasticized. Polyurethans are relatively
difficult to process due to their poor feeding characteristics.
A barrier-type screw design works very well on polyurethanes because of its inherent low
surge capabilities. Surging is the output limit on most PU extrusion applications.
Cooling bores are recommended thru the feed section to improve solids conveying.
There are no wear or corrosion problems with PU as a general rule. However, there are
so many methods used to plasticize Polyurethane that it is best to use chrome plating in
case there is some polymer degradation and a corrosive medium is formed and it also is
beneficial for solids conveying.
General Recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc)
Cored for cooling thru the feed section of the screw
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Chrome plating.
Other Information:
Notes:
-24-
Rigid PVC
(Polyvinyl Chloride-PVC)
Rigid vinyl is essentially unmodified PVC. It has some difficult processing characteristics
such as heat sensitivity and high viscosity that have to be considered. Due to the high
viscosity, it is essential that adequate horsepower is available at low speeds. Maximum
screw speed on rigid vinyl is approximately 50 RPM without polymer degradation.
Rigid vinyl is typically supplied as pellets for single screw extrusion and injection molding,
but for some rare occasion it can be used in a powder form. In almost all cases, powder is
run vented and two-stage screws are required. Usually powder screws have a plastic
screw mixer or a Plasti-Screw section in the first stage. RPVC screws are typically single
stage and range and a special barrier-type screw with a spiral UCC mixer is
recommended. Bores are required full length. Hollow bored removable noses are also
used in most cases so that the tip of the screw can be heated to reduce degradation on
the screw tip. Also the removable nose should have an offset to also help eliminate tip
degradation.
Rigid vinyl degrades during processing to form free chlorides which are very corrosive.
Chrome plating is required in many cases (.002" thickness is preferred). Stainless steel
screws work very well also for small screws to aid in corrosion resistance and high torque
requirements. Nitriding also provides good corrosion protection. Rigid vinyl (unfilled)
presents no wear problem.
General recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc) or
o 17-4 Ph Stainless Steel (this does not require chrome plating)
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored full depth
Removable cored offset nose (made from 17-4 Ph Stainless Steel)
Chrome plating .002” thick for 4140 HT screws
Other Information:
When mineral fillers are used, screw flight wear is greatly increased. Colmonoy 83 flights
are recommended with fillers. Highly filled compounds can result in extreme flight wear.
The biggest single screw application for rigid PVC is profiles with other also a large market
in blowmolding.
Outputs for rigid vinyl are generally on the low side because of the limit on screw speed.
-25-
Flexible Polyvinyl Chloride
(FPVC)
Flexible vinyl is rigid vinyl with various types of plasticizers and lubricants added to reduce the
hardness and melt viscosity. Flexible PVC ranges from very soft, rubbery materials back up to
being almost rigid. This broad range of properties makes it important to get as much information
on a particular resin formulation as possible. Key information is hardness (Shore A of D) and
specific gravity.
Design of screws is pretty much related to hardness. For soft compounds, i.e., < 90 Shore A,
barrier-type screw with a Evolution™ Mixer works very well. Barrier-type screws provide the
highest output on soft compounds. In general, soft PVC is easy to process in pellet form on
single-stage screws. In powder form, vented screws are often required. Bores are not required
but usually supplied for harder compounds, i.e., > 90 Shore A. The materials act more like rigid
vinyl and are often called semi-rigid. Basically, these compounds can be treated the same as
RPVC.
The softer resins are much easier to process in that they are less heat sensitive and have lower
viscosity. As a result, corrosion is a lesser problem and regular chrome plating is adequate. The
harder resins (semi-rigid) have the same requirements as rigid vinyl.
Flexible vinyl (unfilled) presents no wear problem, and 4140 steel with flame hardened flights is
recommended.
General recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc) or
o 17-4 Ph Stainless Steel (this does not require chrome plating)
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored full depth
Removable cored offset nose (made from 17-4 Ph Stainless Steel)
Chrome plating .002” thick for 4140 HT screws
Other Information:
When mineral fillers are used, screw flight wear is greatly increased. Colmonoy 83 flights are
recommended with fillers. Highly filled compounds can result in extreme flight wear.
Principal markets for flexible vinyl is almost entirely extrusion with profiles, wire coating, and sheet
being the main applications.
Outputs are usually very high with flexible vinyl, as horsepower and screw speed seldom limit rate.
Notes:
-26-
Thermoplastic Elastomers
(TPE or TPR)
Thermoplastic elastomers are polymers that have the general properties of rubber but can
be processed as thermoplastics. There are a wide variety of these TPE resins, but they
all process in a similar fashion. For most situations and resin types, they process like
flexible vinyl except for their tendency to feed better.
Barrier-type screws are used most frequently, but single spiral UCC mixing screws can be
used for small screws (2” and smaller) also work well. Generally, mixing does not seem to
be a problem, but almost any type mixer can be used.
TPE typically has no wear or corrosion problems, so 4140 steel with Colmonoy 56 flights
is recommended.
General recommendation:
4140 HT steel base material (28-32 Rc) or
Colmonoy 56 flight lands
Cored for cooling thru feed section of the screw
Chrome plating is optional
Other Information:
It is important to get the resin designation as there is considerable variation in their melt
properties.
Principal applications are in molded footwear, wire coating, insulation, and hose.
Notes:
-27-
Poly-vinylidene Chloride
(PVDC)
"Saran"
PVDC is a vinyl type polymer that has exceptional gas and liquid barrier properties. It is
used almost entirely in food and chemical packaging. Most of the volume is in film and
coextruded sheet.
The screw designs are mostly conventional single-stage screw. Since PVDC is very
easily degraded at temperatures over 400° F, processing is very critical.
Screws are usually bored full length with removable bored noses.
PVDC is very corrosive in the melt condition and requires special screw materials. The
most common material is Duranickel which has been used mostly with Colmonoy 56
hardsurfacing.
An alternate that is less expensive and shows promise of giving reasonable screw life is
4140 steel base material with Colmonoy 56 flights and electroless nickel plating.
General recommendation:
Duranickel or equivalent nickel base material
Cored full depth
Removable offset nose made of Duranickel
Other Information:
Dow Chemical manufacturers "Saran" and is the most common commercial resin in the
United States.
Notes:
-28-
Thermoset Resins
(Phenolics, Alkyd, and Polyester Compounds, Polyimides)
Thermoset resins are processed like thermoplastic resins and most commonly injection
molding, very seldom extruded. But due to the high temperatures of processing, an
irreversible chemical reaction takes place which permanently "cross links" the polymer
chains. The thermoset resin cannot be reprocessed once the cross linking has occurred.
All thermoset screws can be termed general purpose, as little work has been done on high
performance screws. They are always single-stage conventional design except for the
flighted tapered nose. Typically, the L/D's vary from 12:1 to 20:1.
Thermosets do not present high wear unfilled, but since they are almost always highly
filled, high screw wear is prevalent in thermoset processing. Nitrided screws work well,
with tool steel screws being superior to nitrided.
Corrosion is not severe in most thermosets, but with certain catalysts corrosion problems
can exist. Generally, plating is not recommended.
Other Information:
Notes:
-29-
Popular Screw Designs
1. Single Stage - The most basic of all the screw designs, generally consisting of a
feed, transition, and metering section. Other renditions of the single stage is the
feed/transition and the transition/metering.
2. Two-Stage* - The two-stage screw is basically two single-stage screws end to end,
and any combination of single stages.
The main reason for the two-stage design is that after the resin is melted in the first
stage and the melted polymer is pumped into the vent section. In this section the volatiles
can be extracted from the melted polymer, then the second transition and metering
section pump the resin through the die.
*In some applications, it is found that in order to improve the appearance of the
product, volatiles such as gases, moisture or even air, have to be removed from the melt
at a point prior to the discharge end of an extruder or injection molding machine. This is
done by venting and the use of the two-stage screw.
3. Zero Metering - This design is used on injection screws. Its purpose is to generate
less shear heat which in turn translates into cooler melt temperature and it allows for
faster recovery times.
5. Barrier-Type Screws:
The following designs are all variations of Barrier type screws. Uniroyal and Maillefer
developed the first true barrier-type screws. The barrier design works in the following
manner: Most designs have conventional feed and metering sections, the same as the
single-stage screw. The difference is in the transition section where at the end of the
feed section a secondary flight is introduced. This flight continues through the
transition section until it gets to the metering section where it is terminated in one way
or another. This secondary flight is undercut somewhat to that of the main flight, and
as the polymer is conveyed through the main channel it gradually melts and the melted
polymer forms against the barrel surface. The melted polymer then flows over the
barrier flight into the auxiliary channel where it is then conveyed to the metering
section. So actually what the barrier flight does is separate the melted polymer from
the unmelted polymer.
This design uses open-ended melt and solids channels to reduce localized shear melt
hang-up and degradation. A homogenization section is located at the end primary flight to
provide low-shear blending to avoid temperature gradients. Some of these patents are
still active so there are cases where the screw can not be reversed engineered.
Forms the auxiliary channel by having the auxiliary starting from the front side of the
primary flight and at the same lead as the primary flight. At the same time, the back side
of the primary takes off at a slower lead to form the auxiliary channel then returns to the
same lead as the auxiliary flight, which is normally the square lead of the screw.
The basis of this patent is that the auxiliary channel is established by introducing the
auxiliary flight of a lead greater than the lead of the flight in the feed section and that
channel widths of the feed and transition sections are of equal and constant width.
This patent has expired and therefore is public domain and can be made by any one.
"Kim" Design
This barrier-type screw was licensed by B.F. Goodrich. It is very similar to the "Efficient"
design except, instead of the barrier flights lead increasing and then remaining constant
through the transition, in the "Kim" design the lead of auxiliary and primary flights
increases with each turn, keeping the main channel constant with the auxiliary channel
getting wider and closing off at the end of the transition section.
This patent has expired and therefore is public domain and can be made by any one.
This is a barrier screw similar in design as the “Kim” screw and uses a Spiral UCC mixer
on the end. This has been Davis Standard’s primary barrier technology for many years.
The original DSB (Davis Standard Barrier) patent has expired but there have been other
versions that have been patented.
The “Wave” screw technology is a type of barrier mixing section typically located at the
beginning of the metering section of the screw. The root of the screw has an oscillating
deep to shallow channel on either side of a barrier flight. When the channel is deep on
one side of the barrier flight, directly opposite from the deep channel the channel is
shallow. This oscillation happens every 120° or 180° of rotation. And multiple times down
the length of the metering section.
There are two primary designs of “Wave” Screws, there is the “Double Wave” and also the
“Triple Wave”, which is just another version of the same technology. The initial “Double
Wave” patent has expired but there are some of patents have may be still active, if the
maintenance fees have been paid by Taylor Industries as of this writing on 3/29/11.
The Fusion™ Screw is a unique barrier screw technology which combines a barrier
section in the transition of the screw (Dray-Lawrence patent) along with a “wavy” root
metering section. This design allows for high throughput rates, low melt temperature and
excellent power efficiency. This technology has been patented in three different version,
the original Fusion™, which is not patented outside the US, the Fusion™ II Screw which
does have international patent protection and finally the PP Fusion™ Screw which has a
modification for improved solids conveying for processing PP.
WARNING: Before offering to duplicate a customer’s existing screw design, check the
screw thoroughly for any type of marking for patent numbers. If the screw has a patent
number stamped on it, then the screw can not be reversed engineered.
Screw Materials
4140 Heat Treated Steel -Most screws built in the USA are made of this material. Its
base hardness as we receive it is between 28-32 Rc. This material has poor abrasion and
corrosion resistance.
4M95 – Is a carbon steel made by Timken and others which very similar to 4140 HT steel,
but has better through hardness, less internal stresses and therefore stays straighter
during the manufacturing of the screw, and 4% sulfur which makes it easier to machine
and weld. This is a superior material to 4140 HT and typical costs less per pound.
Tool Steel - Normally the CPM-9V grade of tool steel is used in screw manufacturing. It
has much higher torsional strength than any other screw material. After the screw is
completely machined it is air hardened, which is a thru hardening, to around 64 Rc. Tool
steel has a very good abrasion resistance on the entire surface of the screw, but it has
poor corrosion resistance. Another drawback of tool steel is that it is most generally
limited to the smaller screws (2 1/2" diameter (65mm) and under).
Duranickle & Hastelloy -Duranickle and Hastelloy are both excellent materials to use
when corrosion is a problem. The most common resins that require these materials are
fluoropolymers (teflon) and Saran. Most screws are hard surfaced.
Nitralloy 135-M -Nitralloy when nitrided has good abrasion resistance and fair corrosion
resistance. This is primarily used where the screw is processing a polymer which has
abrasive filler.
17-4 PH Stainless Steel – This grade of stainless steel is commonly used for corrosive
applications and also for screws that are 2.5” (65mm) in diameter when torsional strength
is required. 17-4 has a yield strength of 175Kpsi whereas 4140 HT only has a yield
strength of 95-100 Kpsi.
Screw Coatings and Treatments
Flame Harden -This is the most common type of heat treatment used for hardening the
bearing section and mixer outside diameters of carbon based screws. A surface hardness
of 48-52 Rc can be achieved.
Nitriding - Nitriding is a process where Nitrogen gas is inducted into the material, either
4140 or Nitralloy. There is also another method of Nitriding which is known as Ion-
nitriding which is not quite as hard, but is done at a lower heat and therefore causes less
distortion to the screw material.
Chrome Plating - Chrome plating is used mostly for corrosion resistance, although if
applied in suitable thicknesses, it offers abrasion resistance also. Screw are typically
plated .001” thick over the flighted length of the screw. All screws which are designed for
processing PVC must be chrome plated a minimum of .002” thick to ensure corrosion
protection.
Nickel Plating -Nickel plating is excellent for corrosion resistance and can be applied
more evenly than chrome.
Tungsten Carbide - is a surface treatment where a tungsten carbide spray (HVOF) is put
on the screw where very high abrasion occurs. Normal deposit of this spray is.0005"-
.001" thick.