Counter-rotating twin screw extruder is widely applied in profile extrusion and compounding. Its mechanism has been studied extensively. Positive displacement is used to model polymer-melt flow and predict pumping capacity, while numerical methods have recently been applied to model polymer flow.
Here, we present extensive analysis and calculations of screw-pumping characteristics in intermeshing, counter-rotating twin screw extruders and compare them with experiments. We used the flow-analysis-network method—which is based on hydrodynamic lubrication theory—to model pumping characteristics. The flow path through the compounding extruder consists of two regions, one between the screw and the barrel, and the other between the screws.
In summary, we considered the effects of screw-flight thickness and channel depth, as well as non-Newtonian fluid behavior, in our simulations of screw characteristics for intermeshing, counter-rotating twin screw extruder. We achieved improved prediction by considering screw-flight shearing, which was experimentally verified. This model will next be included in our global model for extruders.