Systems and methods are provided for fabrication of short-fiber composites. One embodiment is a method for forming a short-fiber composite. The method includes forming a bed of randomly oriented dry fibers on a base, drawing resin into the bed in response to pressure to form a mixture of randomly oriented fibers impregnated with thermoset resin, perturbing the mixture while preserving fiber length at the mixture and degassing the mixture, and extruding the mixture to form a preform.

A method for processing polycondensates, wherein the material in the form of granules or recyclate is processed to form a melt, the method including the following steps: a) feeding the material into a vacuum lock where the material is held below atmospheric pressure; b) conveying the material from the vacuum lock into a first extruder having a filling region and a feed zone that are held below atmospheric pressure, wherein the material is at least partially melted in the first extruder; c) conveying the melted material from the first extruder into a second, twin-screw extruder with two screws that turn in the opposite direction. The second extruder has at least one degassing zone and a metering zone that follows in the conveying direction. The melted material is degassed in the degassing zone and the melted material is pressurized in the metering zone and is output out of the second extruder.

A bone-regeneration material that contains calcium phosphate particles in a biodegradable fiber containing PLGA by using electrospinning. A PLGA resin is heated in a kneader to soften until the viscosity of the resin becomes 10.sup.2 to 10.sup.7 Pa.Math.s. A powder of calcium phosphate fine particles is added and mixed with the softened PLGA resin, while the blade of the kneader rotates. The mixture is kneaded by applying thermal and mechanical energy to the mixture through the continuous rotation of the blade of the kneader in the heated state, and aggregations of the calcium phosphate fine particles are disintegrated to prepare a composite in which the calcium phosphate fine particles are dispersed in the PLGA resin. The composite is dissolved in a solvent to prepare a spinning solution. Electrospinning is performed on the spinning solution to manufacture biodegradable fibers having therein the calcium phosphate fine particles substantially uniformly dispersed.

A method for producing a thermoplastic moulding compound by means of an extruder (10), which comprises at least one feed zone (20), at least one mixing section (30), at least one venting section (40) and at least one discharge zone (50), wherein in the at least one feed zone (20) a water-containing first component and a second component are supplied, in the at least one mixing section (30) the thermoplastic moulding compound is mixed and contained water is evaporated, in the at least one venting section (40) water vapour is removed from the moulding compound and in the at least one discharge zone (50) the moulding compound is discharged. At least one of the mixing housings (31, 32) is kept at a temperature that is equal to or lower than the temperature of the moulding compound within the mixing section (30).

According to the present invention, devolatilization of a synthetic resin formed from a polymer or synthetic rubber can be improved and the synthetic resin can be foamed at a low temperature by injecting a devolatilization agent through a devolatilization agent injection nozzle provided in a downstream end segment cylinder of a cylinder assembly. In a vented twin-screw kneading extrusion apparatus and extrusion method according to the present invention, a devolatilization agent, which is injected through a downstream end devolatilization agent injection nozzle provided on a downstream end segment cylinder constituted by a segment cylinder positioned on a downstream end of a cylinder assembly, is dispersed in molten resin in the downstream end segment cylinder and kneaded by a downstream end kneading portion such that the molten resin is foamed by the devolatilization agent and then extruded.

Crosslinkable polymeric compositions comprising an ethylene-based polymer, an organic peroxide, and an amine-functionalized interpolymer. Such crosslinkable polymeric compositions and their crosslinked forms can be employed as polymeric layers in wire and cable applications, such as insulation in power cables.

A method for producing a resin composition is provided. The method includes melting and kneading a thermoplastic resin having a transition temperature of less than 200 C. and a powder with a twin-screw kneading extruder. The powder is an inorganic filler having an apparent density of 0.1 to 1.5 g/ml. The resin is supplied from a supply port to the extruder, and the powder is supplied from a gravimetric feeder to the extruder through a screw type side feeder. A transport capacity of the side feeder is 2 times or more an effective volume of the powder per unit time. In the extruder, melting and kneading are performed under conditions in which resin pressure in a first kneading zone is 1 MPa or more, and resin pressure in a second kneading zone is less than 3 MPa, and gas is removed from a vent port.

A method for producing a resin composition is provided. The method includes melting and kneading a thermoplastic resin having a transition temperature of less than 200 C. and a powder with a twin-screw kneading extruder. The powder is an inorganic filler having an apparent density of 0.1 to 1.5 g/ml. The resin is supplied from a supply port to the extruder, and the powder is supplied from a gravimetric feeder to the extruder through a screw type side feeder. A transport capacity of the side feeder is 2 times or more an effective volume of the powder per unit time. In the extruder, melting and kneading are performed under conditions in which resin pressure in a first kneading zone is 1 MPa or more, and resin pressure in a second kneading zone is less than 3 MPa, and gas is removed from a vent port.

A process for producing a rubber mixture in a mixing apparatus having at least one mixing chamber (4, 4) in which rotors (5) are disposed, wherein a plant control system by means of which process parameters (especially the speed of the rotors (5), the suction output of a suction device (13, 14, 15) and the mixing time) are controlled by open- and closed-loop control is provided, wherein at least one rubber is mixed in the mixing chamber with at least one filler, especially silica, preferably with addition of at least one coupling agent, especially a silane, and wherein the gas mixture present in and above the mixing chamber is sucked out by means of the suction device, wherein volatile organic compounds, especially alcoholic gases, present in the gas mixture sucked in are detected continuously, wherein, in the event of exceedance of a concentration of organic compounds in the gas mixture sucked in that has been defined as the control limit, the concentration measured is employed as control variable in the plant control system for closed-loop control of at least one of the process parameters, and wherein, in the event of exceedance of a concentration of organic compounds in the gas mixture sucked in that has been defined as the safety limit, there is a safety shutdown of the mixing apparatus by means of the plant control system.

A container for bone cement includes a first member defining a chamber, which contains a first ingredient. The chamber also includes a second member movably coupled to the first member. The second member includes a mixing device that is movably disposed within the first chamber, and the second member defines a second chamber containing a second ingredient. The container additional includes an opening device that selectively opens the second chamber and allows the second ingredient to enter from the second chamber into the first chamber. The mixing device is movable within the first chamber to promote mixing of the first ingredient and the second ingredient to prepare the bone cement. A corresponding method of preparing bone cement is also disclosed.