ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of conventional polymer processing operations. An appreciation of the equipment and dynamics of processing operations is needed in order to relate rheological properties of materials to handling and forming operations. A balance must be gained between the rheological properties and conditions under which polymers are processed and formed in order to achieve desired end-performance properties of the finished article. Often the limitations of specific process equipment or conditions over which they are operated are ignored in product design. This oversight more often than not leads to the failure of a new product in the marketplace. In other words, a polymer may meet all the performance requirements required in the final formed article and even exceed customer expectations, but if it cannot be processed in an efficient and economic fashion, not a single pound will be sold. By gaining an appreciation of large-scale processing equipment, an appreciation for the apparent processing rheology can be achieved. This knowledge helps to establish both theoretical and analytical approaches to relating performance to controlled or laboratory scale rheological characterization studies, which ultimately guide the product design specialist in the molecular design of the product. Covered in this chapter are the operations of mixing, extrusion, calendering, and molding operations. Most of these discussions will center around the author’s experiences with elastomers and rubbers.
