Chill-roll casting

Sheet can be produced by melt extmsion, but in this case a three-roll stack of quenching roUs is generally used (Fig. 2). More than three roUs may be used where necessary. The roUs may be mounted vertically or horizontally. The web is extmded through a slot die in a thickness close to the desired final thickness. The die is in very close proximity to the first chill roU or chill-roll nip. The web may be cast horizontally directly onto the upper chill roU of the stack as shown (Fig. 2), or it may be extmded into the first nip directly. The roUs quench the sheet and provide the surface polish desired. In some applications, matte or embossed roUs maybe used to impart special surface characteristics for certain functions. Where the utmost in optical (glazing) quality is desired the trend has been to mount the roU stack horizontally. The hot melt is then extmded vertically down into the first nip. This avoids problems associated with sag of a horizontal hot melt no matter how short the distance between die and quench. 

Film manufacture also requires special considerations in the case of polypropylene in order to ensure small crystal structures and hence high clarity. Chill-roll casting processes may be used and these give films of high clarity and minimal thickness variations at high rates of production. Blown film processes can, however, give superior mechanical properties and in addition equipment costs are lower, and in consequence the process is more economic for lower tonnage production. 

We use the casting process to make polymer films (less than 0.3 mm thick) and sheets (more than 0.3 mm thick) for such diverse end uses as cling wrap, merchandise bags, roofing membranes, landfill liners, and the interior walls of refrigerators. During chill roll casting, molten polymer is extruded as a curtain from a slot die onto a chilled metal roller where it solidifies. The product is transported over a series of rollers to a winder where it is wound up. 

Cast film extrusion of polyolefins has been developed to obtain flexible films with a high level of transparency by freezing the amorphous polymer structure of the melt on a chill roll. Cast films are mono-oriented in extrusion direction. 

One of the requirements of this process is that the melt maintain good contact with the chill roll, ie, air must not pass between the film and the roll. Otherwise, air insulates the plastic and causes it to cool at a rate different from the rest of the plastic and this spoils the appearance of an otherwise satisfactory product. The melt should not emit volatiles, which condense on the chill roll, reduce heat transfer, and mar the film s appearance. The cast film process allows the use of a higher melt temperature than is characteristic of the blown film process. The higher temperature imparts better optical properties. 

Polypropylene (PP) films were first produced by extrusion casting. Polymer is extruded through a slit or tubular die and quenched by cooling on chill rolls or in a water bath. Cast films can be sealed over a wide range of temperatures and do not shrink in a steam autoclave, Polymers with melt flow rates below 5 dg/min are usually used to maintain the stability of the extra date. Higher clarity films are produced using random copolymers. 

Film. The blown film process is most commonly used in the production of PB film from resins with melt indexes from 0.3 io 10 g/10 min at a melt temperature of200-215DC using conventional equipment. Mechanical properties of blown PB film depend on the degree of orientation and other processing parameters. PB film can be sealed ai 100 220 (1. Another technique for the PB film production consists of film casting from the melt on polished chilled rolls and co-extrusion or lamination with other films. 

A schematic diagram of a commercial-scale thermal gelation polymer precipitation process is shown in Figure 3.16. The hot polymer solution is cast onto a water-cooled chill roll, which cools the solution, causing the polymer to precipitate. The precipitated film is passed through an extraction tank containing methanol, ethanol or isopropanol to remove the solvent. Finally, the membrane is dried, sent to a laser inspection station, trimmed and rolled up. 

Polymer sheets are cooled without stretching by convected cold air (or an inert gas), by immersion into a fluid bath, or by passage over chilled rolls. Flat films are usually stretched and oriented uniaxially and cooled by either of the methods previously mentioned. Films are also cast and cooled on rolls for optimal clarity purposes. 

In many processes based on extrusion the material is subjected to further manipulation after leaving the die—as examples, by stretching or casting on chill rolls in the manufacture of film. In all such cases it is essential that an extrudate withstand the forces applied to it and not tear—in other words, while there should be some strength and elasticity the main requirement is that the molecules of which it is comprised can flow relative to each other (in this sense its viscous behaviour is the most important feature). 

Two examples may be used to illustrate the complexity of problems of this kind. When film is made by extrusion followed by casting on chill rolls there can be a tendency for the extruded web to shrink inwards towards the centre of the rolls—the phenomenon known as neck-in . The edge of film concerned becomes thicker than the rest. It has been found that more elastic melts, capable of keeping a tension in the direction of extrusion, are less liable to exhibit this fault. 

Flat film identifies cast film. Other names used include chill roll film, roll cast film, slot cast film, water quench, water chill film, etc. These cast film lines require dies that yield a wide range of diverse products. Widths may range from less than 6 in. (15 cm) to more than 33 ft... 

Cast film is produced by extruding the melt from a slit die and cooling it either by contact with a chill roll or by quenching in a water bath. The most popular process used to produce the flat film is with the chill rolls. Chill roll lines can be arranged in different layouts to meet different requirements. Example is shown in Figure 5.7. Water chill tank or quench film is also a popular process. 

Film Processing. Film can be extruded in two ways blown (lay flat) film and chill-roll cast film. The tubular film process Is... 

Some measurements were made on an unoriented, commercially extruded, isotactic PPH film (25/xm, Enjay chill roll cast) and on an oriented commercial PPH monofilament [150/xm, Amtech Inc., Odenton, U.S.A., 90% residual elongation at break, stabilized with 0.24 wt % octa-decyl 3-(3, 5 -di-ter -butyl-4 -hydroxyphenyl)propionate]. The unprocessed PPH powder also was pressed into film ( 70 /on). All samples were Soxhlet-extracted with acetone (48 hr) and vacuum dried before use. The stabilizer in the commercial fiber was not removed by this treatment, although additives were extracted rapidly from low orientation samples (5). 

Films can be produced using chill roll casting. Injection blow molding and stretch blow molding are used to produce bottles. PET is also used in extrusion coating, and PET sheet is often thermoformed. 

Cold Cast or Chill Roll Cast Process... 

Cast film is generally produced by downward extrusion of the melt onto chilled chrome rollers, which are highly polished to impart good surface characteristics to the film, as shown in Fig. 7.4. The extrudate contacts the first chill roll tangentially, and then typically travels in an S-pattern around two or more chill rolls. The first chill roll typically operates at a temperature of at least 40°C (104°F), with subsequent rolls operating at successively lower temperatures to cool the film enough that it can be trimmed and wound. An air knife is typically used to pin the plastic against the first chill roll. The film dimensions are controlled primarily by the die dimensions, extrusion rate, and take-off speed. Film produced in this manner is... 

For some operations, the chill roll method does not provide rapid enough cooling. In that case, a water-filled quench tank may be used for cooling and solidifying the plastic, as shown in Fig. 7.5. After solidification, the film is dried, trimmed, and rolled up. Drying may be accomplished by evaporation alone, or air jets, heated rolls, or radiant heat maybe used. The film characteristics are controlled by the die dimensions, extrusion rate, melt temperature, drawdown, and water temperature. This method used to be widely used for polyethylene and polypropylene, but is now much less common, since chill roll casting can provide better control over optical properties and thickness. 

The most common die configuration for production of cast film and sheet is a coat-hanger die (Fig. 7.7), named because of its resemblance to a common coat hanger. T-shaped dies are also used. The die opening is wider and thicker than the finished film. As the film is drawn down between the die and the chill roll, it contracts in width and thins, due to tension on the film being produced and polymer relaxation effects. 

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