Yes / A study on the translation of a solid-state synthetic reaction from a mechanochemical mixer-mill to a continuous twin-screw extruder is discussed herein. The study highlights some considerations to be made and parameters to be tested in the context of a model fluorination reaction, which is the first organic fluorination to be attempted using extrusion. Upon optimization, which features the first use of grinding auxiliary solids to enable effective synthetic extrusion, the difluorination reaction was successfully translated to the extruder, leading to a 100-fold improvement in Space Time Yield (STY); 29 kg m−3 day−1 in a mixer mill to 3395 kg m−3 day−1 in a twin screw extruder. / D. L. B is grateful to the EPSRC for a First Grant (D. L. B. EP/P002951/1), CRD for a studentship award to J. L. H., Queen’s University Belfast for a Visiting Research Fellowship and the School of Chemistry at Cardiff University for generous support. S. L. J. is grateful to EPSRC for support (EP/L019655/1).

Neste trabalho, compósitos de PET sob a forma de flake e pós-condensado foram preparados com teores diferenciados de fibra de vidro (0, 20, 30 e 40%). Dois tipos de fibra foram utilizados: uma fibra com tratamento superficial a base de amino-silano e outra com tratamento a base de epóxi-silano. Os compósitos foram extrusados em extrusora mono-rosca, utilizando uma rosca de filete duplo com barreira, e em extrusora dupla-rosca interpenetrante co-rotacional. Após extrusão, os compósitos foram injetados a 120 ºC que, após várias temperaturas testadas, foi a temperatura que conferiu maior grau de cristalinidade do artefato final (acima de 30%). Os compósitos foram caracterizados quanto às propriedades mecânicas, térmicas e morfológicas. Os resultados mostraram que com a utilização de uma mono-rosca apropriada ao processamento de PET com fibra de vidro foi possível produzir compósitos com boas propriedades, comparáveis aos obtidos em extrusora dupla-rosca. Em relação aos tipos de PET utilizados, verificou-se que a massa molar da matriz polimérica, maior para o PET pós-condensado, teve uma pequena influência no desempenho das propriedades analisadas. Porém foi observado que os resultados foram indiferentes ao tratamento superficial das fibras testadas. Através da determinação do comprimento das fibras por análise óptica, e dos resultados experimentais do módulo de tração dos compósitos, pode-se constatar que nos compósitos injetados as fibras estão orientadas no sentido longitudinal à deformação. Com a microscopia eletrônica de varredura verificou-se que há sempre uma melhor distribuição e dispersão das fibras, com menores vazios à medida que aumenta o teor de fibras, corroborando os resultados mecânicos, sempre crescentes com o teor incorporado. A cristalinidade obtida nos corpos de prova moldados por injeção com o molde a uma temperatura de 120 ºC, aliada à presença da fibra de vidro, leva a um aumento na temperatura de distorção térmica (HDT). As análises de raios-X mostraram que com o aumento da quantidade da fibra, os picos cristalinos característicos do PET perdem definição, o que está associado à característica amorfa da fibra. / Submitted by Marcelo Teixeira (mvteixeira@ucs.br) on 2014-05-15T17:17:43Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Nilcea Mondadori.pdf: 5475607 bytes, checksum: 3b5580025f75099d47502055cd80fde5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2014-05-15T17:17:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Nilcea Mondadori.pdf: 5475607 bytes, checksum: 3b5580025f75099d47502055cd80fde5 (MD5) / In this work, flake and post-condensed PET composites of different glass fiber contents (0, 20, 30 and 40%) were prepared. Tow kinds of fibers were employed: one fiber having an amino silane-based surface treatment and another one having an epoxi silane-based surface treatment. The composites were extruded in a single-screw extruder with a barrier double-flight screw, and in a co-rotating interpenetrating twin-screw extruder. After extrusion the composites were injected at 120°C, this temperature being chosen after several tests indicating that it could promote the highest possible degree of crystallinity of the final product (higher than 30%). The composites were characterized as for mechanical, thermal and morphological features. Data indicate that by using a single-screw extruder proper to the processing of PET and fiber glass the properties of the obtained composites are fairly good, being comparable to those obtained from a twin-screw extruder. As for the types of PET utilized, it could be found that the molar mass of the polymeric matrix, larger for the post-condensed PET had some influence on the performance of the tested properties. On the other hand it could be observed that the surface treatment of the fibers does not influence the obtained data. Based on the optical analysis of the fiber length and the elastic modulus data it is possible to determine that the fibers of the injected composites are oriented longitudinally to the strain direction. With the aid of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), improvements in the distribution and dispersion of the fibers were always observed, with smaller voids as the fiber content increases, backing higher mechanical data as the incorporated fiber content is increased. Crystallinity resulting from injection-molded test specimens processed at 120°C, together with the presence of the glass fiber leads to a synergism in the heat distortion temperature (HDT). X-rays analyses indicate that at higher fiber content the composites show lower definition of the crystalline peaks, this being associated to the amorphous feature of the fiber.

Neste trabalho, compósitos de PET sob a forma de flake e pós-condensado foram preparados com teores diferenciados de fibra de vidro (0, 20, 30 e 40%). Dois tipos de fibra foram utilizados: uma fibra com tratamento superficial a base de amino-silano e outra com tratamento a base de epóxi-silano. Os compósitos foram extrusados em extrusora mono-rosca, utilizando uma rosca de filete duplo com barreira, e em extrusora dupla-rosca interpenetrante co-rotacional. Após extrusão, os compósitos foram injetados a 120 ºC que, após várias temperaturas testadas, foi a temperatura que conferiu maior grau de cristalinidade do artefato final (acima de 30%). Os compósitos foram caracterizados quanto às propriedades mecânicas, térmicas e morfológicas. Os resultados mostraram que com a utilização de uma mono-rosca apropriada ao processamento de PET com fibra de vidro foi possível produzir compósitos com boas propriedades, comparáveis aos obtidos em extrusora dupla-rosca. Em relação aos tipos de PET utilizados, verificou-se que a massa molar da matriz polimérica, maior para o PET pós-condensado, teve uma pequena influência no desempenho das propriedades analisadas. Porém foi observado que os resultados foram indiferentes ao tratamento superficial das fibras testadas. Através da determinação do comprimento das fibras por análise óptica, e dos resultados experimentais do módulo de tração dos compósitos, pode-se constatar que nos compósitos injetados as fibras estão orientadas no sentido longitudinal à deformação. Com a microscopia eletrônica de varredura verificou-se que há sempre uma melhor distribuição e dispersão das fibras, com menores vazios à medida que aumenta o teor de fibras, corroborando os resultados mecânicos, sempre crescentes com o teor incorporado. A cristalinidade obtida nos corpos de prova moldados por injeção com o molde a uma temperatura de 120 ºC, aliada à presença da fibra de vidro, leva a um aumento na temperatura de distorção térmica (HDT). As análises de raios-X mostraram que com o aumento da quantidade da fibra, os picos cristalinos característicos do PET perdem definição, o que está associado à característica amorfa da fibra. / In this work, flake and post-condensed PET composites of different glass fiber contents (0, 20, 30 and 40%) were prepared. Tow kinds of fibers were employed: one fiber having an amino silane-based surface treatment and another one having an epoxi silane-based surface treatment. The composites were extruded in a single-screw extruder with a barrier double-flight screw, and in a co-rotating interpenetrating twin-screw extruder. After extrusion the composites were injected at 120°C, this temperature being chosen after several tests indicating that it could promote the highest possible degree of crystallinity of the final product (higher than 30%). The composites were characterized as for mechanical, thermal and morphological features. Data indicate that by using a single-screw extruder proper to the processing of PET and fiber glass the properties of the obtained composites are fairly good, being comparable to those obtained from a twin-screw extruder. As for the types of PET utilized, it could be found that the molar mass of the polymeric matrix, larger for the post-condensed PET had some influence on the performance of the tested properties. On the other hand it could be observed that the surface treatment of the fibers does not influence the obtained data. Based on the optical analysis of the fiber length and the elastic modulus data it is possible to determine that the fibers of the injected composites are oriented longitudinally to the strain direction. With the aid of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), improvements in the distribution and dispersion of the fibers were always observed, with smaller voids as the fiber content increases, backing higher mechanical data as the incorporated fiber content is increased. Crystallinity resulting from injection-molded test specimens processed at 120°C, together with the presence of the glass fiber leads to a synergism in the heat distortion temperature (HDT). X-rays analyses indicate that at higher fiber content the composites show lower definition of the crystalline peaks, this being associated to the amorphous feature of the fiber.

Aujourd’hui le développement de nouveaux matériaux polymères ayant de bonnes propriétés repose de plus en plus sur des procédés de mélange ou de compoundage de polymères au lieu de recourir à la synthèse de nouvelles molécules. L’action du mélange peut fortement influer sur la morphologie des matériaux polymères multi-constituants. Les extrudeuses bi-vis (TSE) sont souvent utilisées comme mélangeurs/réacteurs pour des procédés de mélange, de compoundage et d’extrusion réactive. Cependant, l’étude sur la qualité du mélange dans les TSE demeure un grand défi en raison de la complexité géométrique et du caractère transitoire de l’écoulement. Cette thèse a pour objet de développer un nouvel instrument en line pour mesurer en temps réel la distribution des temps de séjour (DTS) qui caractérise la performance du mélange axial et la capacité de convoyage de différents types d’éléments de vis basées sur l’analyse de l’écoulement transitoire et l’évaluation systématique de la théorie de mélange dans les TSE. Le mélange distributif des polymères fondus est caractérisé par la génération de l’aire des interfaces, un paramètre difficile à mesurer expérimentalement. Alors on fait appel à des simulations numériques de type CFD / The development of new materials with improved properties seems to rely nowadays more on blending and compounding than on the synthesis of chemically new polymers. Mixing may have a great effect on the morphology and structure of multi-component polymer materials. Twin-screw extruders (TSE) are widely used as mixers/reactors for blending, compounding, and reactive processing. This work aimed at developing a new instrument to measure in real time the residence time distribution (RTD) which characterizes the axial mixing and transport abilities of different screw elements based on the analysis of the transient flow pattern and systematic evaluation of mixing theory in TSE. Distributive mixing of polymer melts is characterized by the generation of interfacial area, which is experimentally much more difficult to measure. This 3D numerical simulation based on CFD is adopted

Aujourd’hui le développement de nouveaux matériaux polymères ayant de bonnes propriétés repose de plus en plus sur des procédés de mélange ou de compoundage de polymères au lieu de recourir à la synthèse de nouvelles molécules. L’action du mélange peut fortement influer sur la morphologie des matériaux polymères multi-constituants. Les extrudeuses bi-vis (TSE) sont souvent utilisées comme mélangeurs/réacteurs pour des procédés de mélange, de compoundage et d’extrusion réactive. Cependant, l’étude sur la qualité du mélange dans les TSE demeure un grand défi en raison de la complexité géométrique et du caractère transitoire de l’écoulement. Cette thèse a pour objet de développer un nouvel instrument en line pour mesurer en temps réel la distribution des temps de séjour (DTS) qui caractérise la performance du mélange axial et la capacité de convoyage de différents types d’éléments de vis basées sur l’analyse de l’écoulement transitoire et l’évaluation systématique de la théorie de mélange dans les TSE. Le mélange distributif des polymères fondus est caractérisé par la génération de l’aire des interfaces, un paramètre difficile à mesurer expérimentalement. Alors on fait appel à des simulations numériques de type CFD / The development of new materials with improved properties seems to rely nowadays more on blending and compounding than on the synthesis of chemically new polymers. Mixing may have a great effect on the morphology and structure of multi-component polymer materials. Twin-screw extruders (TSE) are widely used as mixers/reactors for blending, compounding, and reactive processing. This work aimed at developing a new instrument to measure in real time the residence time distribution (RTD) which characterizes the axial mixing and transport abilities of different screw elements based on the analysis of the transient flow pattern and systematic evaluation of mixing theory in TSE. Distributive mixing of polymer melts is characterized by the generation of interfacial area, which is experimentally much more difficult to measure. This 3D numerical simulation based on CFD is adopted

Submitted by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-23T13:47:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DissRB.pdf: 6420019 bytes, checksum: 9a9303246e3fd99e5635cc0d40d684d5 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-23T13:47:48Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissRB.pdf: 6420019 bytes, checksum: 9a9303246e3fd99e5635cc0d40d684d5 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-23T13:47:53Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissRB.pdf: 6420019 bytes, checksum: 9a9303246e3fd99e5635cc0d40d684d5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-23T13:48:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DissRB.pdf: 6420019 bytes, checksum: 9a9303246e3fd99e5635cc0d40d684d5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-08 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / The present study investigated the utilization efficiency of an intermeshing co-rotating twin-screw extruder (ICTSE) in the devulcanization of natural rubber compounds (NR), evaluating the physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics of these materials in each project step. Three accelerated compounds with different sulfur concentrations were submitted to torque rheometry and vulcanized according these results aiming the achievement of elastomers with different crosslinks densities. The influences on the characteristics of the devulcanized material caused by the variation of the extruder barrel temperature, screw rotation, thermoplastics addition and material stiffness were evaluated. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), soluble fraction extraction and crosslink density were performed, evaluating the devulcanized compound. Horikx's theory was also used as an indicator of selective crosslink cleavage, defining the compounds to be revulcanized for comparison with the virgin pure material. The revulcanization was carried out with the mixture of the devulcanized compound with the pure, in the proportions of 30/70 w/w, respectively, and in the devulcanized compound singularly, with addition of complementary vulcanization system in both cases. The mechanical, dynamic-mechanical and crosslink density properties of the revulcanized compounds were characterized and evaluated in relation to the properties of the pure compounds. The increase in the concentration of uncrosslinked BN chains and the concentration of sulfur compounds in the extruded samples was observed by thermal tests and spectrocopy, together with the verification of a high level of devulcanization percentage, according to Flory-Rehner, evidencing the regeneration of the natural rubber existent. Also, satisfactory mechanical properties were found in the revulcanized compounds, especially when using auxiliary thermoplastics, revealing the great potential of ERDCI processing for the reuse of discarded BN compounds. / O presente estudo avaliou a eficiência de utilização de uma extrusora com rosca dupla co-rotacional e interpenetrante (ERDCI) na desvulcanização de compostos de borracha natural (BN), avaliando as características físicas, químicas e mecânicas destes materiais em cada fase do projeto. Três compostos acelerados com diferentes concentrações de enxofre foram submetidos a reometria de torque, e vulcanizados de acordo com a curva reométrica, para obtenção de elastômeros com diferentes densidades de ligações cruzadas. Foram avaliadas as influências nas características do material desvulcanizado, causadas pela variação da temperatura do barril da extrusora, velocidade de rotação das roscas, adição de termoplásticos e módulo elástico do material. Análises de termogravimetria (TGA), calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC), espectroscopia no infravermelho (FTIR), fração solúvel (FS) e densidade de ligações cruzadas foram realizadas, avaliandose o composto desvulcanizado. A teoria de Horikx também foi utilizada como indicativa da seletividade de ruptura de ligações cruzadas, definindo os compostos a serem revulcanizados para comparação com o material virgem. A revulcanização foi realizada com a mistura de 30 %(m/m) do composto desvulcanizado e 70 %(m/m) do puro, e também com 100 % do composto desvulcanizado, e adição de sistema de vulcanização complementar. Caracterizou-se os compostos revulcanizados quanto às suas propriedades mecânicas, dinâmico-mecânicas e densidade de ligações cruzadas. Através dos ensaios TGA, DSC, FTIR e a verificação de alto nível de percentual de desvulcanização pela teoria de Flory- Rehner, foi observado o aumento da concentração de cadeias de BN não reticuladas e da concentração de compostos de enxofre nas amostras extrudadas, evidenciando a regeneração da BN presente nos compostos. Também foram encontradas propriedades mecânicas satisfatórias nos compostos revulcanizados, principalmente quando utilizados termoplásticos auxiliares, revelando o grande potencial do processamento por ERDCI para a reutilização de compostos de BN descartados.

Originaire de l'Inde, le neem (Azadirachta indica Juss.) est un arbre présent dans les zones tropicales sèches et subtropicales d'Asie, d'Amérique et d'Afrique. Au Sénégal, il produit en moyenne 50 kg par an d'un fruit sous forme de drupe ellipsoïdale, qui contient en général une graine, d'un poids moyen de 270 ± 30 à 91 % de matière sèche. La variabilité des caractéristiques des graines (45 à 48 % de coques fibreuses : cellulose 52 à 54 %, hémicelluloses 24 à 28 %, lignine 7 à 9 % ; 52 à 55 % d'amandes : lipides 45 à 58 %, protéines 20 à 23 %j) et des huiles extraites (acides palmitiques : 17 à 19 %, stéarique : 14,5 à 17,5 %, oléique : 42 à 48,5 %, linoléique : 16,5 à 20 % ; stérols totaux : 3 à 5 g/kg) est analysée pour 5 régions du Sénégal. L'extraction de l'azadirachtine, principal principe actif phytosanitaire de la graine, par différents solvants (méthanol, éthanol, eau) révèle une teneur de 2 g par kg de graine, localisée essentiellement dans l'amande (3,9 g/kg). Les conditions d'expression de l'huile de graine de neem sont étudiées en presse mono-vis OMEGA 20 et en extrudeur bi-vis CLEXTRAL BC 21. Dans les meilleures conditions, 65 et 68 % de l'huile sont exprimées, 7 à 10 % de l'azadirachtine sont entraînées avec l'huile, et le tourteau contient 14 % de lipides, 14 % de protéines et près de 2 g/kg d'azadirachtine. Le fractionnement acqueux, sous cisaillement intense des graines, conduit à l'extraction de 55 % des lipides, 50 % des protéines et 80 % de l'azadirachtine, séparés sous forme d'une émulsion stable, de composition : eau 70 %, huile 25 %, protéines 4 %, azadirachtine 6 g/kg, et d'une phase aqueuse. L'étude de la mise en œuvre du procédé d'extraction et de séparation, en extrudeur bi-vis CLEXTRAL BC 21 puis BC 45, permet de produire en continu 0,3 kg d'émulsion stable par kg de graine traitée (20 kg/h) avec un ratio eau/graine de 2 et une température de 60°C. Le tourteau ne contient plus que 0,6 g/kg d'azadirachtine, et l'émulsion stable qui en contient 5 g/kg peut être directement mise en œuvre dans les formulations d'insecticide totalement biosourcés. / Originally from India, neem (Azadirachta indica Juss.) is a tree found in the dry tropics and subtropics of Asia, America and Africa. In Senegal, it produces an average of 50 kg per year of a fruit as a drupe ellipsoid, which generally contains a seed, with an average weight of 270 ± 30 to 91% dry matter. The variability of seeds (45 to 48% of capsular cellulose 52-54%, 24-28% hemicellulose, lignin 7-9% 52-55% almonds: 45 to 58% lipids, proteins 20 to 23% j) and extracted oils (palmitic acid: 17 to 19%, stearic: 14.5 to 17.5%, oleic acid: 42 to 48.5%, linoleic: 16.5 to 20% total sterols: 3 5 g / kg) was analyzed for five regions of Senegal. Extraction of azadirachtin, the main active ingredient of the plant seed by different solvents (methanol, ethanol, water) shows a content of 2 g per kg of seed, mainly localized in the kernel (3.9 g / kg ). The expression conditions of neem seed oil were studied in single-screw press OMEGA 20 and twin-screw CLEXTRAL BC 21. Under optimum conditions, 65 and 68% of the oil is expressed, from 7 to 10% of azadirachtin are entrained with the oil and meal contains 14% fat, 14% protein and about 2 g / kg azadirachtin. Watery splitting under intense shear seeds, led to the extraction of 55% lipids, 50% protein and 80% of azadirachtin, separated as a stable emulsion, composition: water 70% oil 25%, 4% protein, 6 g azadirachtin / kg, and an aqueous phase. The study of the implementation of the method of extraction and separation, twin-screw extruder and then CLEXTRAL BC 21 BC 45, produces continuous stable emulsion 0.3 kg per kg of treated seed (20 kg / h) with a ratio water / seed of 2 and a temperature of 60 ° C. The cake contains only 0.6 g / kg of azadirachtin, and stable emulsion which contains 5 g / kg can be directly implemented in the formulations of insecticide biosourced completely.

Yes / Polymer extrusion, in which a polymer is melted and conveyed to a mould or die, forms the basis of most polymer processing techniques. Extruders frequently run at non-optimised conditions and can account for 15-20% of overall process energy losses. In times of increasing energy efficiency such losses are a major concern for the industry. Product quality, which depends on the homogeneity and stability of the melt flow which in turn depends on melt temperature and screw speed, is also an issue of concern of processors. Gear pumps can be used to improve the stability of the production line, but the cost is usually high. Likewise it is possible to introduce energy meters but they also add to the capital cost of the machine. Advanced control incorporating soft sensing capabilities offers opportunities to this industry to improve both quality and energy efficiency. Due to strong correlations between the critical variables, such as the melt temperature and melt pressure, traditional decentralized PID (Proportional-Integral-Derivative) control is incapable of handling such processes if stricter product specifications are imposed or the material is changed from one batch to another. In this paper, new real-time energy monitoring methods have been introduced without the need to install power meters or develop data-driven models. The effects of process settings on energy efficiency and melt quality are then studied based on developed monitoring methods. Process variables include barrel heating temperature, water cooling temperature, and screw speed. Finally, a fuzzy logic controller is developed for a single screw extruder to achieve high melt quality. The resultant performance of the developed controller has shown it to be a satisfactory alternative to the expensive gear pump. Energy efficiency of the extruder can further be achieved by optimising the temperature settings. Experimental results from open-loop control and fuzzy control on a Killion 25 mm single screw extruder are presented to confirm the efficacy of the proposed approach. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

La biomasse représente l’une des principales alternatives à l’utilisation du pétrole dans la plasturgie. Grâce à leurs propriétés fonctionnelles, les caséinates sont une matière première prometteuse pour la fabrication de films plastiques pour des applications dans l’emballage biodégradable et hydrosoluble. La transformation du caséinate de sodium par les techniques habituellement utilisées dans la plasturgie a été démontrée. Des extrudats de caséinate plastifié au glycérol ont été obtenus au moyen d’une extrudeuse bi-vis corotative. La caractérisation physico-chimique du matériau obtenu a confirmé la thermostabilité de cette protéine et a montré la dépendance du comportement du matériau vis-à-vis de l’humidité ambiante. Pour une variation du taux d’Humidité Relative, de 40 à 90% et une augmentation de la concentration du glycérol, plastifiant hygroscopique, le matériau passe d’un état vitreux (rigide) à un état caoutchouteux (mou). Des films fins ont été ensuite réalisés, à partir des extrudats thermoplastiques, par extrusion gonflage. La perméabilité à la vapeur d’eau des films de caséinate de sodium a été étudiée et a montré que ces matériaux sont de mauvaises barrières à l’humidité. La deuxième partie a été consacré à l’étude de mélanges caséinate de sodium/caséinate de calcium d’un côté et caséinate de sodium/PBAT de l’autre. Le mélange des deux caséinates a permis d’augmenter la tenue mécanique du mélange, à partir de 50% de caséinate de calcium, et de retarder le transfert hydrique à travers le film. Dans le même sens, l’ajout du PBAT, a augmenté jusqu’à deux fois plus, le module d’Young des mélanges mais a baissé la résistance au transfert d’humidité du film à cause de l’incompatibilité des deux polymères / Biomass is one of the main alternatives to the use of oil in plastics field. Due to their various functional properties, caseinates are considered as an interesting raw material for making biodegradable and water-soluble packaging. The transformation of sodium caseinate by the processes used for synthetic plastics industry has been demonstrated. A corotating twin-screw extruder was used to get glycerol plasticized caseinate pellets. The physicochemical properties of the obtained material have confirmed the thermal stability of this protein and demonstrated the influence of surrounding moisture on material behavior. With the Relative Humidity varying from 40 to 90% and increasing the glycerol content, an hydrous plasticizer, the mechanical properties of sodium caseinate based materials changed from those of glassy (rigid) to rubbery (soft) plastics. The pellets were then taken over to make film using a blown-film extruder. The water vapour permeability of blown film was studied and showed that sodium caseinate based films are a poor moisture barrier. The second part dealt with the sodium caseinate blend. Sodium caseinate/calcium caseinate and sodium caseinate/PBAT blends was performed. Adding calcium caseinate, started from 50%, improved the mechanical properties and delayed hydrous transfer through the film. Concerning the sodium caseinate/PBAT blends, adding PBAT increased until twice more the material’s Young modulus but decreased the moisture transfer resistance because of the incompatibility between the two polymers

Blends of poly butylene terephthalate (PBT) and polycarbonate (PC) form a very important class of commercial blends in numerous applications requiring materials with good chemical resistance, impact resistance even at low temperatures, and aesthetic and flow characteristics. PC and PBT are usually blended in a twin screw extruder (TSE). Product melt volume flow rate (MVR) is a property used to monitor product quality while blending the PC/PBT in a twin screw extruder. It is usually measured off line in a quality control laboratory using extrusion plastometer on samples collected discretely during the compounding operation. Typically a target value representing the desired value of the quality characteristics for an in-control process, along with upper and lower control limits are specified. As long as the MVR measurement is within the control limits, the sample is approved and the whole compounded blend is assumed to meet the specification. Otherwise, the blend is rejected. Because of infrequent discrete sampling, corrective actions are usually applied with delay, thus resulting in wasted material. It is important that the produced PC/PBT blend pellets have consistent properties. Variability and fault usually arise from three sources: human errors, feed material variability, and machine operation (i.e. steady state variation). Among these, the latter two are the major ones affecting product quality. The resulting variation in resin properties contributes to increased waste products, larger production cost and dissatisfied customers. Motivated by this, the objective of this project was to study the compounding operation of PC/PBT blend in a twin screw extruder and to develop a feasible methodology that can be applied on-line for monitoring properties of blends on industrial compounding operations employing available extruder input and output variables such as screw speed, material flow rate, die pressure and torque. To achieve this objective, a physics-based model for a twin screw extruder along with a MVR model were developed, examined and adapted for this study, and verified through designed experiments. This dynamic model for a TSE captures the important dynamics, and relates measurable process variables (screw speed, torque, feed rates, pressure etc.) to ones that are not being measured (material holdups and compositions at the partially and filled section along a TSE barrel). This model also provides product quality sensors or inferential estimation techniques for prediction of viscosity and accordingly MVR. The usefulness of the model for inferential MVR sensing and fault diagnosis was demonstrated on experiments performed on a 58 mm co-rotating twin-screw extruder for an industrial compounding operation at a SABIC Innovative Plastics plant involving polycarbonate – poly butylene terephthalate blends. The results showed that the model has the capability of identifying faults (i.e., process deviation from the nominal conditions) in polymer compounding operations with the twin screw extruder. For instance, the die pressure exhibited a change as a function of changes in raw materials and feed composition of PC and PBT. In the presence of deviations from nominal conditions, the die pressure parameters are updated. These die pressure model parameters were identified and updated using the recursive parameter estimation method. The recursive identification of the die pressure parameters was able to capture very well the effects of changes in raw material and/or composition on the die pressure. In addition, the developed MVR model showed a good ability in monitoring product MVR on-line and inferentially from output process variables such as die pressure which enables quick quality control to maintain products within specification limits and to minimize waste production.