A weather seal includes an elongated micro-cellular foam bulb, and an elongated micro-cellular foam fin element attached to and extending along the length of the foam bulb. The fin element includes a spine having opposed planar surfaces and at least one microcellular foam barb extending outwardly and at a downward angle from each surface and along the length of the spine. As an alternative to barbs, another option is to use a higher durometer foamed thermoplastic elastomer in a hollow circle shape that would push into a retention pocket. A t-slot version that has a foamed bulb and a polypropylene base is another option.

An extrudate cooling tank having cooling water chambers adapted for running passage of extrudate serially therethrough at a preselected regulated variable pressures with water in the chambers being at different temperatures, and a wheel-servo motor combination hingedly connected to the chamber and being movable with respect thereto between a first position with the wheel engaging running extrudate and a second position with the wheel remote from engagement with the extrudate.

A calibration and cooling tank of an extrusion line, which connects to an extrusion tool, wherein a vacuum can be applied to the calibration and cooling tank for calibrating the plastic melt emerging from the extrusion tool, wherein the calibration and cooling tank extends along an extrusion axis. The calibration and cooling tank is modularly structured, wherein at least one module forms a calibration and cooling section and the module has a connection region on both sides to which an additional module can be attached. The connection region includes a flange that extends from the base element of the calibration and cooling tank to the outside.

Apparatus and methods for manufacturing compostable, biodegradable drink straws from polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) material are disclosed herein. Such apparatus may include a hopper that contains raw PHA material, an extruder that receives the raw PHA material from the hopper and produces extruded PHA material, one or more waters baths that cool the extruded PHA material, a puller that pulls a tubular stream of PHA material through the system, and a cutter that is configured to cut the stream of PHA material into finished straws. The finished straws may be soil- and marine-biodegradable, as well as home- and industrial-compostable.

Apparatus and methods for manufacturing compostable, biodegradable drink straws from polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) material are disclosed herein. Such apparatus may include a hopper that contains raw PHA material, an extruder that receives the raw PHA material from the hopper and produces extruded PHA material, one or more waters baths that cool the extruded PHA material, a puller that pulls a tubular stream of PHA material through the system, and a cutter that is configured to cut the stream of PHA material into finished straws. The finished straws may be soil- and marine-biodegradable, as well as home- and industrial-compostable.

A device, and a corresponding method, for supporting and/or guiding a plastics profile in a calibration station and/or other downstream devices, has at least one support unit in the calibration station and/or in at least one of the downstream devices. The support unit has at least one support element, and the support element is disposed on a beam and can be moved in a parallel manner toward or away from the theoretical central axis, the extrusion axis.

An extruder and an LFT extrusion member manufactured thereby, and the extruder uses a long fiber thermoplastic (LFT) as a raw material to produce LFT extrusion members such as LFT sheets, pipes and profiles by a continuous extrusion molding process. The structural improvement of the extruder screw, including the screw body having three different thread groove deep sections, in sequence, a feed section, a compression section and a metering section, so that the LFT extrusion member produced by the extruder has high strength, high stiffness, high dimensional stability, low warpage and resistance to creep.

A modular plastic pipe formation apparatus to extrude plastic pipe is disclosed and includes a plurality of modules each having a transportable container and at least one component of the pipe formation apparatus located therein. The plurality of modules are aligned in a predetermined manner during formation of plastic pipe with the components aligned for pipe extrusion. The apparatus may also include a closed circuit fluid cooling system to provide cooling fluid to some of modules to cool the pipe being formed, the cooling circuit may flows in a counter direction to the direction of pipe forming in the pipe formation apparatus.

The invention relates to a method for producing profiled plastic sections in an extrusion line consisting of multiple tools, wherein a starting material is plasticized and molded in an extruder and then cooled and calibrated in at least one drying calibration unit and at least one calibration tank. The material is then divided into individual profiled sections. The quality of the profiled sections is improved in that a central control unit is provided which is connected to the tools and obtains data from the tools for uniquely identifying the tool and data on the state of the tool and transmits back adjustment data for said tool and other tools.

A calibration device for a calibration, in particular wet calibration of an extrusion device is provided. The calibration device comprises a calibrating element which includes an opening for guiding through a profile produced by means of an extrusion die of the extrusion device and at least one rotatable guide roller which is in contact with the profile when the profile is guided through the opening. The calibration device further comprises at least one separate bearing element insertable into a cutout of the calibrating element, via which the guide roller can rotatably be mounted on the calibrating element.