In view of the steadily growing demand for its modular plants for the compounding of plastics, Coperion GmbH, Stuttgart/Germany, has considerably widened not only the scope of application of these systems but also their performance range .
The modular plant for laboratory and development applications, equipped with a ZSK 26 MEGAcompounder, affords plenty of space and flexibility.
Photo: Coperion, Stuttgart/Germany
At present, there are a good 50 such systems in service worldwide. Coperion is the only single-source manufacturer able to offer a complete system from start to finish backed by the collective know-how of two Competence Centers, Compounding & Extrusion as well as Materials Handling: raw material handling, feeding, compounding and pelletizing, drying, conveying and bagging of the finished goods. The advantages for the user: he has only one supplier to deal with and need not concern himself with the mechanical or electrical connections and/or interfaces between the individual system units, which would be the case if the system units were all sourced from different suppliers.
Today, the market especially demands compounding systems with an output capacity of anything between 2,000 and 3,500 kg/h. For such high-capacity applications, depending on the actually required output and the type of product, Coperion offers either a ZSK 70 or a ZSK 92 MEGAcompounder PLUS. A typical example is a complete turnkey plant equipped with a ZSK 92 MEGAcompounder PLUS for the production of glass fibre reinforced polyamide (PA) compounds. It is contained in a steel structure with two overhead working platforms and pre-hopper integrated cranes and comprises the following main modules:
- the pre-hopper module for bulk storage and refilling of material to be fed into the ZSK;
- the feeder module for the various PA grades and the necessary fillers and additives;
- the ZSK module as the compounding extruder, installed at floor level and equipped with a 92 mm diameter screw; and
- the downstream modules such as the pelletizing unit, the cooling unit, the silos for the finished product and the bagging unit.
Prior to delivery, this complete turnkey production line was, like all such systems, completely assembled at the Competence Center Compounding & Extrusion (formerly Werner & Pfleiderer) and tested under production-specific conditions in the presence of the customer. It was with the aid of this example, among others, that Steffen Bader, Business Segment Manager Modular- and Turnkey Plants, explained the particular user benefits of such pre-tested turnkey plants at the Coperion Open House in January 2009. Size and capacity may range from the ZSK 26 MEGAcompounder up to systems with a screw diameter of 133 mm and/or output ratings of up to 5 t/h. The equipment variations possible with modular plants are exemplified not least by the downstream module. Besides the usual strand pelletizer, for example, it is also possible to equip the downstream module with waterring pelletizers or underwater pelletizers with varying drying systems. Further examples of existing modular plants include compounding lines for direct long-fibre thermoplastic (D-LFT) compounding or for the production of special compounds for the insulation of offshore pipes.
Coperion generally understands a modular line to mean a completely equipped compounding line built up from standardized modules. These modules cover all stages of operation and range from the upstream handling of raw materials via feeding systems to the downstream bagging and logistical handling of the finished product. It goes without saying that the modular concept also embraces a uniform and user-friendly control and automation technology for the entire system. The individual units are each contained in a steel structure that can be readily separated – via just a few interfaces – for easy transport. This form of construction offers numerous advantages, e.g.:
- Every modular plant can be thoroughly tested at Coperion's production facility prior to delivery. Trial production runs can also be carried out, thus providing the future operator with sample quantities for opening up of a new market.
- The modular plant can be quickly installed and put into service. The operating personnel can already be trained during the trial production runs at Coperion.
- The modular plant makes no particular demands on the building in which it is installed – except for the required headroom and the load-bearing capacity of the floor.
- The modular plant can be quickly transferred to another location if required.
- Every modular plant is equipped with a uniform, user-friendly control system that unifies all functions under one common user interface.
- A modular plant can be readily installed in an existing production facility, even in a confined space, without unduly affecting the production of the adjacent production lines.
Every modular and turnkey plant is designed and engineered by Coperion exactly in accordance with the actual requirements of the customer. For its choice of the materials handling units, the ZSK equipment and peripherals and the configuration of the screw, Coperion can rely on its vast processing know-how acquired in the fields of materials handling and extrusion. Coperion modular and turnkey plants are in service worldwide.