A lot of different types of businesses do all they can to show how beneficial whatever you buy from them will be. Interestingly enough that's not always the case. Having some research done on different businesses I'm glad to say the results came in and the process of extrusion businesses seemed to be kicking the most products out. The reason these companies are in such high demand is the fact that they are 100 percent American-made with no foreign exports. Polymer is often the most abundant product that goes through this process and it's great because the customer can get custom extrusion services all to match their needs! A big part of these different companies is the process in which the plastic goes through, and is quite interesting for those how-it's-built geeks.
Throughout our history, it wasn't until the past 20 years that the use of
extrusion had become popular and the huge list of products became known, therefore, profits rose. While focusing mainly on plastic extrusion, which is the
manufacturing process
through which plastic is melted, shaped into a
continuous profile, and cut to the desired length, I found out some interesting stuff!
Some
examples of products manufactured by these
companies range from window frames, storm shutters, and piping to adhesive tape and small toy figures. Bet you didn't look at your window today, or play with that small action figure and
thought to yourself "this was extruded"!
While briefly
describing products and some history I think the actual
manufacturing process it goes through is the most
important part. Companies purchase an
abundance of small plastic pellets, which are fed to a heated cavity which will allow it to reach its
melting point.
Colorants and UV inhibitors are added to the plastic whiles it's in this form and certain kind varies from the different extruder. All of this material is then fed into an extruder cavity which is forced through a screw mechanism.
The screw
mechanism is pretty interesting; it forces the
plastic out with a great deal of
pressure from specially designed hydraulics. The plastic is melted by three sets of heaters to cancel out any fear of overburning. But my favorite part to share is the action taken when the extruder cavity reaches 400 degrees.
Sometimes while making these plastic molded parts, friction and
pressure may build up so high that the need for the heater is gone, and the extruder cavity
maintains the same temperature. Cooling fans are added as well to keep from
overheating. A special screen is then put in place and filters any contaminants from the plastic.
The die which is
responsible for giving the
molten plastic its profile is then added. After the die, it must cool in a water-sealed bath, but in some cases for more delicate
products such as plastic sheeting cooling rolls are used to
prevent any collapsing.
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