IonPhasE Oy purchased a turnkey antistatic compounding plant

Coperion GmbH, German supplier of compounding systems from Stuttgart, built a complete turnkey plant for dissipative polymer (IDP) raw material conveying, feeding and processing, as well as handling and packaging of finished material, following the order from a Finnish producer. IDP plastics are a good fit for diverse applications with increased antistatic requirements.

IDP as a critical factor for antistatic plastics' success

IonPhasE Oy from Finland is a top producer of static dissipative polymer additives, colloquially referred to as permanent anti-static additives. These products serve to control static electricity in polymers. The demand for this exists in various industries such as electrical, chemical, automotive, or production of consumer goods, the latter including vacuum cleaners, air conditioners, switches and other housings.

Every critical element for the major process steps in Coperion turnkey compounding plants is designed and manufactured in-house

The complete plant, from raw material feeding to end product packaging

Every critical element for the major process steps in the turnkey compounding plant has been designed and manufactured in-house by Coperion. Process steps and plant units were customized to ensure they interact in the best possible way. The plant comprises both raw material handling/drying and finished product feeding/packaging equipment.

The feeding station enjoys 11 integrated high-precision Coperion K-Tron feeders for uninterrupted dispense of meticulously formulated raw materials into the extruder. IDP polymers are compounded in a robust and compact ZSK 45 Mc18 twin-screw extruder, fit with a ZS-B side feeder and a ZS-EG twin-screw side devolatilization unit.

The very central element of the plant is the compact, high-performance ZSK 45 Mc18 extruder for IDP processing

The process section of the ZSK extruder plasticizes the base polymers gently and makes them react with multiple additives. UG underwater granulator with optimized flow enables gentle product handling and increased throughput. Downstream equipment dries the product and packages it using a semi-automated bagging system.

Besides the production equipment itself, the turnkey project comprised its supply, installation and commissioning. A dedicated international team of both local employees and experts from various Coperion locations supervised the solution IonPhasE received. Local norms had to be complied with, and particular requirements met. Coperion service team has been an integral part of the project during the system installation and commissioning so as to ensure that servicing and maintenance will go smoothly once handed over to IonPhasE Oy. This happened in late 2016 with success.