At CHINAPLAS 2023, the German Pavilion gathers 103 exhibitors at Hall 10, presenting the products and services under the “Made in Germany” brand. The showcase includes machinery solutions mainly, such as injection molding machines, blow molding machines, thermoforming machines, extrusion lines, recycling equipment, etc. Numerous semi-finished products, raw materials, and reinforced plastics are also displayed.

Eco-friendly film production takes center stage of Brückner’s presence

Brückner Maschinenbau (Booth: 10Q21) highlights its solutions for an eco-friendly and sustainable BO film production. The company also sticks to further increasing efficiency in production, which means saving raw materials and energy as well as achieving “zero waste”.

For a film stretching line, line speed and line width are the key parameters of efficient and high output with lower energy consumption.

At the company booth, Brückner presents production of BOPP packaging film with a new line concept that has an annual output above the current benchmark of 60,000 to 70,000 tons per year. This also refers to a two-digit lower energy consumption based on 1 kg of film. 

New line types for BOPA packaging film with up to 80% more output, based on an increase in production speed from 220 m/min to 350 m/min and line widening from 6.6 m to 7.4 m, are also presented.

Brückner has adopted various new technologies for more sustainability in film production, for example, intelligent stretching oven management that ensures an energy saving of around 1.6 million kWh per year, and aerodynamic zone separation that increases the proportion of A-grade film on the winder as well as reduces production waste.

Mono-material solutions are gaining wider application in packaging thanks to good sortability and high recycling material quality. Besides BOPP and BOPET, new opportunity is opening up with BOPE.

Several developments for PP mono-material packaging have been successfully launched recently. Trials on the Brückner laboratory line has also demonstrated that post-consumer recycled PET can be added to virgin material in a proportion of above 50% without any losses in quality.

Brückner’s line concepts for the production of BOPE film also perform the flexibility to produce BOPP films. Film producers can choose lines between a working width of 6.6 m and an output of 3 t/h, or a working width of 8.7 m and an output of 5 t/h.

Highly efficient film stretching line of Brückner. (Booth: 10Q21)

Special film lines are sought after especially for the e-mobility and new energy sectors. Brückner’s patented simultaneous LISIM stretching process is suitable for efficient production of a wide variety of specialty films with high properties.

For battery separator film and capacitor film, the company has further increased the line width to over 6 m from 5.5 m, and the associated increase in output is over 20%. The company’s special BOPET thick film lines are suitable for producing high performance solar backsheet used in photovoltaic panels.

Gneuss highlights new series of OMNI Recycling Machines

MRS Extrusion Technology of Gneuss (Booth: 10H31) has proven as an alternative for the reprocessing of contaminated materials like polyester, polystyrene, polypropylene or polyethylene. At CHINAPLAS 2023, the company presents the new series of OMNI Recycling Machines.

The OMNImax Recycling Machine can process industrial and post-consumer waste from all kinds of polymers and in all forms and shapes. It includes a 3C Rotary Feeder, a MRSjump extruder, a RSFgenius fully automatic melt filtration system, and an online viscometer VIS.

The newly developed 3C Rotary Feeder makes it possible to use low bulk density materials without any external processing steps. A conveyor belt feeds shredded reclaim material into the hopper, where a fast-rotating disc with knives cuts, compacts and pre-conditions the material. The knives add energy into the material and start the heating and degassing process before the material is automatically fed into the MRSjump extruder.

Gneuss OMNImax Recycling Machine with MRSjump Extrusion System, Rotary Filtration System and 3C Rotary Feeder. (Booth: 10H31)

The MRS extruder is based on conventional single screw technology but is equipped with a multiple screw section for devolatilization. It enables efficient and gentle decontamination of PET while achieving the requirements for direct food contact standards.

The new MRSjump has a longer, modified version of the Multi Rotation Section. The longer Multi Rotation Section, coupled with a powerful vacuum system operating at 1 mbar, can be used to boost the viscosity of rPET and to hold it at a stable level despite the variations in the input material. Therefore, there is no need for any liquid phase or solid state polymerization.

In combination with Gneuss’ Rotary Filtration Technology, a high melt purity is guaranteed. Quality assurance can be provided with an online viscometer VIS for measuring melt viscosity.

Meanwhile, the OMNIboost Recycling Machine with an polyreactor JUMP processes PET waste directly into high-quality products. The integrated JUMP can lift the IV value of a PET melt up to 0.95 dl/g.

In the JUMP, the polymer passes over several slow turning elements which create a polymer film. The reactor vessel is kept under vacuum. By regulating the residence time in the reactor, the vacuum, the fill level, and the speed of rotation of the agitating devices, the polycondensation reaction can be altered to achieve the required product properties.

The JUMP is a robust and reliable liquid state polycondensation (LSP) system and a compact, quick and efficient alternative to conventional solid state polycondensation (SSP) systems. It enables direct reintroduction of the polymer into the production process without the need to remelt the PET.

MAAG’s gear pump, filter, pelletizer on display

Taking the new developments in the Chinese market into account, MAAG Group (Booth: 10F11) focuses on presenting the latest gear pump, filter, and pelletizer of its diversified product portfolio at the German pavilion.

The MAAG Group extrex gear pumps GA, designed for common thermoplastic extrusion applications, offer a high overall efficiency and hence minimum abrasion due to leading gear and bearing technology. They convince with low pulsation pump action in cases of high differential pressure.

The extrex gear pumps feature an optimized geometry that, in many cases, eliminates the need for an upstream protective filter, saving space and reducing the energy required for heating and drive power. In particular, the extrex recycling pump is newly developed for reliable extrusion in the recycling process.

MAAG’s extrex gear pumps feature an optimized geometry. (Booth: 10F11)

MAAG ETTLINGER ERF 350 is a high-performance melt filter for the filtration of heavily contaminated polymer feedstock. If features self-cleaning with a rotating and perforated drum through which there is a continuous flow of melt from the outside to the inside.

A scraper removes the contaminants that are held back on the surface and feeds them to the discharge system. This enables the filter to be used fully automatically over long periods without having to replace the screen. The advantages include reliable melt filtration, ultra-low melt losses and good mixing and homogenizing of the melts.

For pelletizer, the company’s BAOLI-3 strand pelletizer is outfitted with German-made core components and is designed for use with both hard and soft pelletizing materials.

The most noteworthy highlights of the pelletizer are its compact design that features flexible height adjustment and left-side/right-side control capabilities, as well as reduced noise generation during operation. Furthermore, it offers easy access for cleaning so that maintenance, material changes, and color changes are easy.

Read more: Cutting-edge technologies and solutions shine at the German Pavilion (2)