Extrusion International USA 5-2022

98 Extrusion International 5/2022 PELLETIZING Energy-Saving Solution for Pelletizing of rPET/PET When it comes to pelletizing of PET, an energy-saving process as well as a certain degree of crystallization is very important. When a customer approached ECONwith this request, the technological leader and trusted development partner started to design an underwater pelletizer especially adapted to those requirements. The result is the ECON PET-Edition, which has been optimized for PET/rPET. W ith the help of the ECON pat- ented Thermal Insulation Tech- nology, a safe start-up process is ob- tained. By preventing heat transfer from the die plate unit into the pro- cess water, not only is the freezing of die holes prevented, but a consider- able amount of energy is saved. In addition, special attention has been paid to an appropriate insulation of the water tank and the piping in or- der to achieve an end temperature of the pellets of at least 140°C. De- pending on the customer's require- ments, ECON provides a tailor-made solution to ensure the required pel- let end temperature. Not only the pelletizeris engineered to operate with minimum energy consumption, but the downstream equipment ECS (ECON Crystallization System for PET) as well. This uses the intrinsic heat of the pellets for crystallization and is therefore one of the most ef cient methods of crystallizing PET. The sys- tem is designed to keep the PET pel- lets at a constant temperature and to achieve a degree of crystallization of 30 to 40%. In the crystallization chan - nel, the pellets are conveyed further by gentle vibration and mixed to prevent sticking during crystalliza- tion. The high degree of crystalliza- tion enables a faster pre-drying of the pellets before further processing (e.g. injection molding), which saves a considerable amount of time. Low acetaldehyde content In the food sector, a low acetal- dehyde content of recycled PET is required in order to meet the legal guidelines. "Our goal in the develop- ment of the ECON PET-Edition was to achieve a significantly improved value in comparison to conven- tional pelletizing systems," explains Dominik Neumann, team leader of the R&D department. Together with the customer, we worked intensively on an efficient solution. By reducing the pressure build-up at the die plate by 40 %, a lower acetaldehyde con - tent of 30 to 40 % was achieved di - rectly after pelletizing. Previous tests have shown that a lower energy in- put can be expected during dehydra - tion, since the reduced acetaldehyde content represents a different start- ing position. The ECON PET-Edition is a very en- ergy-efficient solution for pelletizing rPET/PET and thus contributes to the circular economy. "When it comes to PET recycling, the kW/t of recycled material has a signi cant impact on the pro tability of the production line. This means that using the ECON Technology results in a signi cant competitive advantage”, says Ger - hard Hemetsberger (Head of Sales). ECON always focuses on a tailor- made solution, based on the individ- ual requirements of their customers. K 2022: LIVE Demonstration At K 2022, the PET-Edition will be displayed in a fully automated ver- sion during a live demonstration. Another highlight is the new EWFP (ECON Water Filtration Professional). The filter achieves a grade of filtra - tion up to 55 µm and allows a fully automatic and maintenance-free op- eration. Besides the running equip- ment, the pyrolysis furnace EPOS (specially developed for extruder screws) will be exhibited. ECON GmbH Biergasse 9, 4616 Weißkirchen, Austria www.econ.eu K 2022: Hall 9, Stand C30 ECON PET-Edition (fully automated version)