MOHAMMED ALZAYER CHRIS CLAY XINHANG SHEN Mat E 453 December 11 th, 2014 PROCESSING OF PET BOTTLES

Outline Background Amcor Blow Molding Recycling Fluid Mechanics Temperature Molecular Weight Bottle Processing Purification Preforms Bottles Conclusions

Global Company –Australian 1860 as Australian Paper Manufacturers 1986 changed name –90% Food industry –43 countries West EU and NA –180 plants –27,000 employees Ames – 1997 – 175 Employees – 10% of Ames Power – Primarily Preform Background: AMCOR

Background: Blow Molding Blow Molding: Using gas pressure to expand a polymer to a desired shape. History [1] : Developed: 1800s (baby rattles!) 1 st PET bottle: December, 1942 Today [1] : billion plastic bottles/year (US alone) Figure 1: Blue baby rattle [2]

Background: Blow Molding General Process [1] : 1.Melt thermoplastic resin 2.Extrude through die head 3.Form hollow Parison 4.Drop Parison through mold halves 5.Mold halves close around Parison 6.Plastic solidifies inside mold 7.Mold opens to get final component Figure 2: Blow molding [1]

Background: Blow Molding Variations [1] : 1.Injection blow molding 2.Stretch blow molding 3.Extrusion blow molding 4.Reheat and blow molding Bolded: involved in beverage bottle processing

Background: Recycling ‘PCR’: post-consumer recycled Advantages: 1. Less amount of waste in landfills 2. Less carbon footprint than ‘virgin’ 3. Less natural resources needed Disadvantage: Food residue Solution: Heat to sterilize, Use pure PET Figure 3: Pellets [3] flakes [4] PCR

Fluid Mechanics: Temperature PET T melt : ° C [8] Viscosity: Optimize T, just above T melt, low enough for PET to flow (but not too easily) Equation 1: Temperature dependent viscosity [9]

Fluid Mechanics: Molecular Weight PET Typical M w : ~20-40K g/mol [10] Viscosity: The lower the MW the less viscous. PET critical MW is unknown Equation 2: Temperature dependent viscosity [9]

Bottle Processing: Overview Simply known as: Injection Stretch Blow Molding Injection (Preform): Inject hot PET into cavity Stretch (Bottle): Blow preform to get bottle Figure 4: Preform [5] Figure 5: Final product [6]

PET pellets come by railcar Moved into Silos by Suction Dried for 6-10 hours Rate limiting step for the process ~ 0.2 % Moisture Additives Colorant, Plasticizers, Release Agents Bottle Processing: Purification

Bottle Processing: Preform Figure 6: First two steps involved in injection stretch blow molding [7] Injection Stretch Blow Molding: Summarized in 4 steps

Bottle Processing: Bottle Injection Stretch Blow Molding: Summarized in 4 steps Figure 7: The rest of steps involved in injection stretch blow molding [7]

AMCOR Makes PET Preforms/ Bottles Receive PET pellets and dry them Preforms made via injection molding Bottles made from preforms by blow molding Conclusions

[1] Manufacturing: Plastic Molding & Forming. Engineer's Handbook. Web. [2] Blue Baby Rattle Shower Favor Holders. Factorydirectcraft. Web. [3] Recycled HDPE Resins. Envision Plastics. Web. [4] PCR PET Flakes Decontamination. Viscotec. Web. [5] PET Preform Injection Molding Machine: SZ-1600A. Web. [6] Pepsi Introduces New Shape for Bottle After 16 Years. Designboom. Web. [7] Injection Stretch Blow Moulding. Plastipedia. Web. [8] Polyethlene Terephthatate: Melting Point. Web. [9] Mendoza, J. D., Mat E 453 Lecture, Iowa State University. [10] Pearl Engineering PEPLEPET B-103C PET Bottle Grade. MatWeb. References