Surging in screw extruders

Output uniformity is one of the main factors limiting the maximum output obtainable from a single screw plasticating extruder, and is adversely affected by surging. Several causes of surging have been identified, perhaps the most important being instabilities in the melting process. These are caused by periodic break-up of the bed of compacted solid polymer formed in the screw channel. Solid bed break-up is shown, both experimentally and theoretically, to be associated with rapid acceleration of the bed in the downstream direction parallel to the screw flight. A novel method of measuring solid bed velocity and hence acceleration is described. The theoretical model of the melting process is shown to be capable of predicting this acceleration reliably, and therefore the tendency for a particular combination of screw design, material and operating conditions to cause surging.