Melting and injection device. Engel Austria GmbH, Schwertberg, Austria, has invented a device for heating solid polymer precursors, such as lactams, for reactive processing into polymers like polyamide 6. The device also injects the materials into a mold.
With the invention, Engel seeks to overcome problems with existing technologies, such as high energy consumption and long residence times for the precursors, which can affect their stability.
The invention consists of a melting device within a housing that has a discharge device connected to an opening in the housing; the discharge can be connected to an injection unit. “The invention permits a two-stage process in which the melting and injection operation of reactive components can be implemented in different elements of the installation,” the patent application states.
In existing systems, molten precursors are kept at elevated temperatures and circulated in day tanks. According to the application, the invention only melts the amount needed for subsequent processing, eliminating “unnecessary thermal loading on the reactive components over a longer period of time.”
Patent application 20200039112; published Feb. 6
