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Product category: Manufacturing Machinery and Plant Equipment
News Release from: Crystal Structures | Subject: Extrusion press
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial Team on 10 February 2004

Extrusion press is custom made for R and
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Crystal Structures has developed a new energy-efficient, compact yet powerful extruder capable of processing a wide range of materials from plastics and rubbers to ceramics and food.

Crystal Structures has developed a new energy-efficient, compact yet powerful extruder capable of processing a wide range of materials from plastics and rubbers, to ceramics, food, confectionary, pharmaceutical silicone rubber products and pet food This versatile piston and cylinder extrusion press is designed and built to customer specifications in mild or stainless steel

The double-hinged barrel is ideal for easy opening, loading and cleaning and is especially useful for small batch or experimental work.

The speed is variable, but accurately controlled for consistent extrusion conditions, and can be programmed via RS232 interface.

Unlike many commercial machines, this machine is self-contained and so compact that it can be moved on castors when necessary and is supplied from a 13A plug.

Speed, position and force are fully instrumented for complete control of extrusion parameters, and the barrel can be heated or chilled if required.

1.Limited was sourcing a ceramic extrusion machine to use in its pilot plant facility at St John's Innovation Centre, Cambridge.

"We had looked at a number of commercial machines but they were all way too big and bulky", says Actuator Group Manager, Mark Swetnam.

"Also the price was prohibitively expensive.

These machines were for production rather than research and development.

By chance I came across Crystal Structures who were advertising a bespoke machine building service.

The machine has been in service for around twelve months now and is in regular use.

We have so little space we have to 'wheel it out' to use it.

Overall, we are very pleased with its performance and simplicity".

In the ordinary production of coloured or blended plastic pellets for feeding injection moulding machines, a screw-driven extruder is effective because the screw causes a lot of mixing and shear.

For some ceramic materials, however, this is undesirable as it also changes the ceramic properties.

Another disadvantage of screw-driven extruders is that a considerable amount of material is wasted around the screw at the end of the extrusion cycle.

A piston and cylinder extruder, by contrast, leaves very little excess material and is much easier to clean.

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