The following news items were gathered by Plastics News senior reporter Bill Bregar at NPE 1997, held June 16-20 in Chicago.
Buss offers machine for small production
Buss America Inc. introduced its small-production Buss Kneader compounding extruder.
Model MKS-70 features a new design, called expanded volume intake, that Buss said economically feeds large amounts of low-bulk-density fillers such as carbon black, calcium carbonate and talc into the process section of the compounder.
The oversize screw and barrel accept the fluffy fillers without the need for dual side-feeder streams often seen on two-screw compounding extruders.
The new design replaces standard screws and barrels in the process section of the MKS Kneaders. The amount of free volume in the Kneader can be increased by 40 percent, and output rates can be 30 percent more, according to Anthony Futia, business manager for Buss America in Bloomingdale, Ill.
Tel. (630) 307-9900, fax (630) 307-9905.
Boston Matthews debuts small press
Small-injection-press maker Boston Matthews Machinery Ltd. of Worcester, England, operated a new machine at NPE.
The BM-35 B Model, making its North American debut, has 381/2 tons of clamping force and a Barber-Colman Maco 4000 controller.
Boston Matthews' U.S. offices are in Springboro, Ohio, and Norwood, N.J.
Tel. (513) 746-9677, fax (513) 746-9688.
Brabender extruder made for laboratory
C.W. Brabender Instruments Inc. showed a new line of intermeshing, co-rotating extruders with a screw diameter of 25 millimeters.
The twin-screw DSE25 extruder is designed for use in the laboratory.
Brabender of South Hackensack, N.J., said the barrel can be supplied with four or six segments with a range of length-to-diameter ratios of 16-to-1 up to 48-to-1.
The extruder can be used for dispersion compounding, devolatizing, reactive processing and handling engineering composites. Features include excellent feeding of low-viscosity materials, targeted shearing effects, creating a variable shear by interchanging mixing and kneading elements.
Tel. (201) 343-8425, fax (201) 343-0608.
Berlyn/Clay shows Challenger extruders
Berlyn/Clay Group Inc. of Gloucester, Mass., showed its new Challenger extruders.
Features including low-pressure, air-flow cooling and continuous filtering with a closed-loop temperature-control system. Berlyn also introduced an underwater pelletizer with a rigid cutter and a coextruder that resists being tipped over.
Berlyn makes extruders for sheet, medical tubing and profiles; compounding equipment such as strand lines and pelletizers; and recycling equipment.
Tel. (888) 398-7833, fax (508) 856-9256.