Biopolymers
NPE 2000 News Wrap-Up: Compounding
Compounding news at NPE included a wealth of new batch and continuous machines to mix in high loadings of wood flour, glass fiber, carbon black, and more exotic fillers.
Read MoreNPE 2000 News Wrap-Up: Extrusion
At this year’s NPE, new processes to put wood flour into plastic were virtually everywhere—several even start with undried flour.
Read MoreNPE Newsfinder: Extrusion
NPE will show higher outputs of practically everything, as advances in grooved feeds, servo drives, screw torque, mixing screws, dies, and downstream cooling, cutting, and handling make everything run faster.
Read MoreWood Tubes Close-Up
Hollow tubing with a high loading of wood fiber is one of the newest products—and one of the trickiest—in the booming ´óÏó´«Ã½ of wood-filled thermoplastic extrusion.
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Family Lumber Business Turns To Plastics
Five years ago, Quality Wood Treating in Prairie Du Chien, Wis., was a 30-year-old family lumber ´óÏó´«Ã½ and one of the largest wood pressure-treaters in the country.
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NPE News Wrap-Up: Compounding
For nano-, long-glass, and wood composites, exhibitors presented new systems with four screws, tandem twin-screws, and twin-plus-single-screw combinations
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Plastics a Carpenter Could Love
Jim Rock has tried to put sawdust into plastics off and on for 20 years, long before wood composites became fashionable.
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Biodegradable Polyesters: Packaging Goes Green
The U.S. is catching up with Europe and Asia in exploring the potential of biodegradable polyesters in flexible and rigid packaging. Because of their cost, these resins often find use in blends with other degradable materials.
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Twin-Screws & Kneaders Pack More Muscle
This K show demonstrated the continuing evolution toward higher torque, screw speed, and throughput rates in twin-screw compounders. There were also new developments for reducing wear when processing filled compounds and new processes available for license to compound wood and paper fibers with plastics. There were even some improvements in backflushing screen changers.
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Foaming Expands Possibilities for Wood-Fiber Composites
Over a dozen processors already foam wood-fiber composites and an equal number are experimenting with it. Foaming with wood cuts resin cost and weight in half and brings design advantages. But it also requires particular know-how in materials formulation and extrusion hardware.
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