Systems for manufacturing bulked continuous carpet filament from polymer, where the systems are configured for: (1) melting polymer (e.g., derived from post-consumer PET bottles) to create a first single stream of polymer melt; (2) separating the first single stream of polymer melt into multiple streams of polymer melt; (3) exposing the multiple streams of polymer melt to a pressure of between about 0 millibars and about 5 millibars; (4) allowing the multiple streams of polymer melt to fall into a receiving section of a melt processing unit; (5) recombining the multiple streams of polymer melt into a second single stream of polymer melt; and (6) providing the second single stream of polymer melt to one or more spinning machines that are configured to form the second single stream of polymer melt into bulked continuous carpet filament.

The present disclosure relates to a facility for forming one of a graphene-polymer resin composite and a carbon material-polymer resin composite. According to the facility of the present disclosure, in a process of forming the composite, gas and water vapor contained in graphene, a carbon material, and a polymer resin are effectively removed resulting in an increase in coupling force between the polymer resin and one of the graphene and the carbon material, and the graphene and the carbon material is uniformly dispersed inside the polymer resin resulting in no degradation of physical properties of the composite, and also, the polymer resin may be prevented from carbonizing and solidifying because there is no stagnant section while molten liquid of the polymer resin and one of the graphene and the carbon material passes through each apparatus in the facility, and thus, physical properties of the composite are maintained constant.

A method of recycling post-consumer plastic waste into mono filament for use in fused filament fabrication, injection molding, or other plastic manufacturing processes. Contaminated curbside plastic waste is sorted and granulated to uniform sized flakes. The plastic regrind is cleaned in a closed-loop wash cycle and dried at 160° F. and −70 dew point to reduce the moisture content to less than 0.03%. The effluent water is purified to be reused in the system. The flake plastic is extruded to a molten state and passes through additional melt filtration. A laser micrometer measures extrudate metrics like diameter and ovality to dynamically control feed and flow rates of the extruder to maintain diameter uniformity within 0.018 mm of target diameter.

The present disclosure relates to a facility for forming one of a graphene-polymer resin composite and a carbon material-polymer resin composite. According to the facility of the present disclosure, in a process of forming the composite, gas and water vapor contained in graphene, a carbon material, and a polymer resin are effectively removed resulting in an increase in coupling force between the polymer resin and one of the graphene and the carbon material, and the graphene and the carbon material is uniformly dispersed inside the polymer resin resulting in no degradation of physical properties of the composite, and also, the polymer resin may be prevented from carbonizing and solidifying because there is no stagnant section while molten liquid of the polymer resin and one of the graphene and the carbon material passes through each apparatus in the facility, and thus, physical properties of the composite are maintained constant.

Systems for manufacturing bulked continuous carpet filament from polymer, where the systems are configured for: (1) melting polymer (e.g., derived from post-consumer PET bottles) to create a first single stream of polymer melt; (2) separating the first single stream of polymer melt into multiple streams of polymer melt; (3) exposing the multiple streams of polymer melt to a pressure of between about 0 millibars and about 5 millibars; (4) allowing the multiple streams of polymer melt to fall into a receiving section of a melt processing unit; (5) recombining the multiple streams of polymer melt into a second single stream of polymer melt; and (6) providing the second single stream of polymer melt to one or more spinning machines that are configured to form the second single stream of polymer melt into bulked continuous carpet filament.

A system comprising: (1) a grinding unit configured to receive and grind recycled PET bottles into a group of polymer flakes comprising up to about ten percent colored polymer flakes and balance substantially clear polymer flakes; (2) a washing unit configured to wash the group of polymer flakes; and (3) an extruder configured to extrude material in a plurality of different extrusion streams. The extruder may be further configured to: (1) receive a concentrate-polymer mixture comprising a mixture of the polymer flakes and a color concentrate; (2) melt the concentrate-polymer mixture to produce a polymer melt; (3) reduce a pressure within the extruder; and (4) pass the polymer melt through the extruder so that the polymer melt is divided into the plurality of extrusion streams. The system may then filter the polymer melt through at least one filter and form the polymer melt into bulked continuous carpet filament.

A system comprising: (1) a grinding unit configured to receive and grind recycled PET bottles into a group of polymer flakes comprising up to about ten percent colored polymer flakes and balance substantially clear polymer flakes; (2) a washing unit configured to wash the group of polymer flakes; and (3) an extruder configured to extrude material in a plurality of different extrusion streams. The extruder may be further configured to: (1) receive a concentrate-polymer mixture comprising a mixture of the polymer flakes and a color concentrate; (2) melt the concentrate-polymer mixture to produce a polymer melt; (3) reduce a pressure within the extruder; and (4) pass the polymer melt through the extruder so that the polymer melt is divided into the plurality of extrusion streams. The system may then filter the polymer melt through at least one filter and form the polymer melt into bulked continuous carpet filament.

A multiple screw extruder (50) combines application of vacuum to a vacuum vent (62) positioned between material feed locations (70, 72) of the extruder and use of specially configured extruder screws (58) to extract gases, primarily air, out of the extruder to densify the materials introduced into it and to extract unwanted fluid from material introduced for mixture with molten polymeric material flowing through the extruder. The multiple screw extruder is operationally versatile in that it is capable of carrying out the material densification and fluid extraction processes either separately or simultaneously. Implementation of the disclosed vacuum feed technology provides an increase in rate of extrudate throughput as compared with that achievable by implementation of atmospheric venting (16) in a conventionally configured extruder (10a, 10b).

A multiple screw extruder (50) combines application of vacuum to a vacuum vent (62) positioned between material feed locations (70, 72) of the extruder and use of specially configured extruder screws (58) to extract gases, primarily air, out of the extruder to densify the materials introduced into it and to extract unwanted fluid from material introduced for mixture with molten polymeric material flowing through the extruder. The multiple screw extruder is operationally versatile in that it is capable of carrying out the material densification and fluid extraction processes either separately or simultaneously. Implementation of the disclosed vacuum feed technology provides an increase in rate of extrudate throughput as compared with that achievable by implementation of atmospheric venting (16) in a conventionally configured extruder (10a, 10b).

Method for producing a thermoplastic molding compound (F) in an extruder, which has at least one screw having an outside diameter (D), wherein a thermoplastic component (TP) containing at least one thermoplastic polymer, a component (C) containing a graft polymer based in particular on butadiene and/or acrylate, and optionally a component (Z) containing additives are heated to a temperature of 200° C. to 280° C., melted and mixed by supplying thermal energy in a melting section (S) and/or in at least one mixing section (M) such that the thermoplastic molding compound (F) is formed, and the thermoplastic molding compound is subsequently degassed in a degassing zone (E) of the extruder, wherein an absolute pressure (P1) of less than 2 bar is set in this zone, and after the degassing the molding compound (F) is conveyed to a melt pump (SP) by screw elements, wherein the total length of the screw elements of a conveying path (FS) from the degassing opening (O) to the melt pump (SP) is less than five times the outside diameter (D) of the at least one screw.