Extrusion of polypropylene. Part II: process analysis of the metering zone

This is a study of the extrusion of thermoplastics with special focus on the extrusion of polypropylene. A multidimensional numerical model is presented for computational simulations of the extrusion in the metering zone. The model contains a non-isothermal analysis of the extrusion of non-Newtonian melts in single-screw extruders. The computer code developed is tested against an analytical solution and against literature data for the case of a high density polyethylene. Computer simulations are carried out for the extrusion of two grades of polypropylene at two different screw rotation speeds. Special attention is paid to the evaluation of variables of practical interest, such as residence times and measures of mixing quality.