A
twin screw extruder with a material homogenizing unit is the subject of this disclosure. Two extruder screws are located within a housing positioned and configured so that screw turns and screw lands of a first screw mesh with respective screw lands and screw turns of a second screw. A homogenizing zone housing is connected to the dual cylinder housing. Two cell rotors are connected to respective extruder screws and are located within the homogenizing zone housing. A plurality of radially distributed cell walls may be disposed on each cell rotor defining a plurality of open conveyor cells where the cell rotors and cell walls of each rotor are configured to mesh a cell wall with an opposing conveyor cell. The cell walls may be arranged with a slope differing from a slope of the extruder screws. The cell walls may be arranged parallel to or at an angle to an axis of said cell rotors.
A
twin screw extruder according to claim 1 wherein said homogenizing zone housing and said cell rotors are configured as a detachable homogenizing unit and said cell rotors are connected to said extruder screws at an interlocking joint.
According to the invention a homogenizing zone includes housing part which extends the extruder housing. Extension of the extruder screws, referred to herein as cell rotors, are located in the housing part. The
twin screw extruder /cell rotor combinations rotate in opposing directions. The homogenizing zone may be a unit located in between an extruder screw discharge and a molding tool or as an integral extension of the twin screw extruder. A plurality of radial cell walls define open conveyor cells. The cells walls are circumferentially disposed on the cell rotors extend parallel to or at an angle relative to the rotor axis. The cells walls of one rotor engage the conveyor cells of the other rotor in a contactless meshing manner.
