Coperion and Coperion K-Tron at K 2022

Stuttgart, July 2022 – At K 2022 (October 19–26, 2022, Düsseldorf), Coperion and Coperion K-Tron will showcase a range of innovative new and ongoing developments at their Booth B19 in Hall 14, designed to significantly enhance the efficiency of plastics compounding processes, promote responsible resource management, and simultaneously deliver exceptionally high product quality. Additionally, the company is dedicating a special area to the forward-thinking topic of "Plastics Recycling." Coperion will exhibit an entire production line for recycling polyethylene terephthalate (PET) at their booth within the VDMA’s Circular Economy Forum, a pavilion located on the open-air fairgrounds (CE09). The exhibits will cover bulk solids handling, feeding, extrusion, and pelletizing—demonstrating Coperion’s advanced expertise across various plastics recycling processes, including chemical recycling, multilayer film recycling, and upcycling. Cutting-edge innovations from Coperion, such as the ZS-B MEGAfeed side feeder, which enables plastic film and flake recycling at exceptionally high throughput levels, will take center stage at the Coperion Recycling Pavilion.

Smart Solutions for Greater Efficiency in Traditional Compounding Tasks

One eye-catching feature at the Coperion Booth B19 in Hall 14 will be the high-performance ZSK Mc18 extruder, equipped with a 70 mm screw diameter. With its exceptional specific torque of 18 Nm/cm³, this extruder is perfectly suited for efficiently compounding plastics at very high throughput rates while maintaining relatively low energy consumption. The ZSK extruder is fitted with a ZS-B easy side feeder and a ZS-EG side devolatilization unit. Both the ZS-B and ZS-EG, thanks to their straightforward design, significantly cut down the time required for recipe changes or maintenance tasks—since they can be easily removed from the process section in just a few simple steps. Additionally, a K3-ML-D5-V200 vibratory feeder from Coperion K-Tron will be showcased at the main intake of the ZSK 70 Mc18. Meanwhile, the ZS-B easy side feeder will be paired with a K-ML-SFS-BSP-100 Bulk Solids Pump™ (BSP) feeder.

Another highlight at the Coperion booth will be the STS Mc11 series laboratory extruder, featuring a 25 mm screw diameter. It stands out for its simple design, user-friendly operation, and easy cleaning. With a Do/Di ratio of 1.55 and a specific torque of Md/a3 = 11.3 Nm/cm³, it enables safe scale-up across the entire STS Mc11 series. The STS 25 Mc11 will be showcased alongside a Coperion K-Tron K-ML-SFS-KT20 twin-screw feeder.

Moreover, the new, preconfigured ProRate PLUS feeder line will be available in all three standard sizes: small, medium, and large. This continuous gravimetric feeder from Coperion K-Tron is highly robust, and thanks to its excellent price-to-performance ratio, it offers a cost-effective solution for the reliable feeding of free-flowing bulk materials.

The SP series dual-bearing strand pelletizers have undergone a comprehensive makeover; Coperion’s SP340 model will showcase this advancement at the K booth. Compared to the previous model, the new SP strand pelletizer enables even faster recipe and color changes. The cutting chamber features zero dead space, and thanks to its quick-release function, the cutting unit can be swapped out swiftly and effortlessly. Additionally, the pelletizer’s interior now offers enhanced accessibility and is exceptionally easy to clean.

Another highlight of Coperion’s showcase at K 2022 will be the ZXQ 800 rotary valve. This high-performance valve, designed with exceptionally low gas leakage, was developed by Coperion specifically for powder intake into pneumatic conveying lines operating at pressures up to 3.5 bar. Thanks to its outstanding capacity, it is ideally suited for systems currently being planned for future polyolefin production.

Plastics Recycling: A Second Life for a Valuable Raw Material

As a raw material, plastic can make a valuable contribution to environmental protection and the energy revolution. Central to both is the efficient recycling of plastics. For this reason, plastics recycling is the focus of comprehensive development projects at Coperion. The company will showcase the outcomes of these initiatives at K 2022 in its pavilion located on the open-air exhibition grounds (CE09), as part of the VDMA Circular Economy Forum. There, Coperion will present its integrated process solutions and cutting-edge technologies designed for the cost-effective recycling of various plastics while ensuring the highest standards of product quality. At the heart of the display will be a system centered around a ZSK 58 Mc18 twin-screw extruder, specifically configured for producing high-quality PET from recycled materials.

To efficiently feed bulky flakes and fibers (such as PET and other plastics) into the ZSK twin-screw extruder, Coperion will showcase the SWB-300 Smart Weigh Belt Feeder paired with an S100 single-screw pre-feeder, along with the new ZS-B 70 MEGAfeed side feeder. The SWB is an exceptionally reliable gravimetric feeder from Coperion K-Tron, capable of handling large volumes of bulk materials with diverse flow characteristics while maintaining outstanding accuracy. Additionally, the innovative, newly developed Coperion ZS-B MEGAfeed enables the consistent and high-volume feeding of plastic recyclates—previously deemed difficult to process due to their low bulk density (under 200 kg/m³)—into smaller models of Coperion’s ZSK twin-screw extruders, making it possible to simultaneously recycle and compound these materials effectively.

Melting, intensive devolatilization, and complete homogenization occur in the process section of the ZSK 58 Mc18, after which the material stream is transferred via a gear pump and filter equipped with an automatic screen pack changer to an underwater pelletizer for pellet production. Finally, the pellets are condensed in the SSP (Solid State Polycondensation) reactor and can then be further processed into bottles, fibers, or films. The superior quality of recycled PET produced using this innovative Coperion process has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for direct contact with food (letter of no objection).

Conventional PET recycling technologies require pre-drying and crystallization of flakes and fibers before they can be reprocessed. With Coperion’s advanced technology solution, PET recyclate can be fed directly into the ZSK extruder. Recyclers particularly benefit from the exceptionally high quality of the end product. Thanks to the ZSK extruder’s outstanding devolatilization capabilities, volatile components such as monomers, oligomers, and water are reliably removed. Additionally, Coperion systems for PET recycling offer further advantages, including reduced operational and logistics costs, as well as lower energy consumption.

If the plastic pellets produced emit undesirable odors, these can be reliably eliminated using deodorization equipment from Coperion. To optimize the specifications of such deodorizing systems and precisely determine their operational parameters, Coperion now offers on-site testing with a mobile unit designed to reduce odors in plastic pellets and recyclates directly at customers' production facilities. By applying this solution to freshly produced material under real-world manufacturing conditions, it becomes possible to thoroughly evaluate the potential for odor reduction—and to define system parameters right on location, ensuring the desired product quality is achieved. Coperion will showcase this mobile deodorization unit in its Recycling Pavilion (CE09).

Marina Matta, Team Leader of Process Technology Engineering Plastics at Coperion, said: “Plastics recycling is one of the core topics we’re actively promoting to better support the plastics industry on its journey toward a circular economy. We’re incredibly proud of our newly developed technologies and processes, which deliver first-class product quality while making plastics recycling significantly more efficient. The innovative ZS-B MEGAfeed even makes it possible to recycle certain types of plastic film and flakes in the first place. With our new Recycling Innovation Center, we’ll soon have the ideal environment to continue developing cutting-edge technologies—and to collaborate closely with our customers in optimizing recycling processes. We’re eagerly awaiting the completion of the Recycling Innovation Center, filled with both excitement and high expectations.”