Knowledge regarding compounds or agents for purging and cleaning of plastic processing equipment

Kurzfassung

A small Dutch company is looking for know-how regarding purging and cleaning compounds for plastic processing equipment. The company is interested in the development of an agent which can be specially used for removing thermoplastic polymer residues with a very high melting point (> 360 C).

Details

Cleaning agents for plastic processing machines are frequently used to reduce changeover times caused by color change or change of materialgrade.
When equipment is not cleaned frequently and properly, remaining materials and degraded resins cause quality problems and decrease of output during production. The company is looking for an agent which can be specially used for removing thermoplastic polymer residues with a very high melting point (> 360 C).

Technical Specifications / Specific technical requirements:
The new compound needs to contain a physical abrasive scrubbing component and a chemical solving component. It needs to safely get into dead spots and hot spots in the machine and break away the layers of carbon buildup — the layers of separated additives and degraded polymers.
The mechanical component may not damage the surface of the screw, barrel or any other metal component. It may not change the tolerances of the plastic processing equipment. The cleaning agent must be specially suitable for removing high performance polymers like PES (polyethersulfone), PPS (polyphenylene), PEEK (polyetheretherketone) and PEI (polyetherimide).