PETpla.net Insider 07+08 / 2012

PRODUCTS PET products 37 PET planet insider Vol. 13 No. 07+08/12 www.petpla.net Masterbatch metering unit Italian company Piovan has announced the launch of Lybra LGR, a new masterbatch metering unit for PET applications. It is configured for continuous weight-loss gravimetric (LG) or volumetric (LV) operation and is claimed to offer a high level of accuracy, advanced control and a straightforward user inter- face. The unit can accommodate up to two independent dosing stations, which can have different capacities and be retrofitted to meet changing production needs. Each dosing station can be configured for individual capacities ranging from 1g/sec, up to 170kg/h. Each dosing station comprises a hopper contain- ing the granules to be dosed and is equipped with a proprietary loss-in-weight control to measure the amount of material car- ried by the dosing screw to the PET main stream. The mixture is then continuously gravity-transferred from the central block to the plasticizing screw of the moulding machine. The dosing auger is available in three different configurations with single, dual or triple helical shaft, for controlling material dosing in low percentages with a high level of accuracy and repeatability. Lybra is equipped with a seven-inch touch screen HMI with intuitive graphical interfaces. Operators can control operation of the whole system, compare preset dosing values with actual values, check instantaneous production values and access all the unit’s functions. Connection to external supervision systems (by Ethernet or USB port) enables settings to be downloaded and exported and also allows remote control. Piovan asserts that Lybra LGR is particularly suitable for frequent colour or production changes. www.piovan.com 28mm neck processing KHS says that its new generation of Innosept Asbofill ABF aseptic linear filling machines offer lower sterile room vol- umes, increased aseptic safety, and the option of processing PET bottles with 28mm neck diameter. Innosept Asbofill ABF technology manages the aseptic cold filling of non-carbonated non-alcoholic beverages using the dry sterilisation method and is suitable for milk, yoghurt and fruit juice beverages, fruit juices, sports drinks, near water beverages, tea and coffee products. The Innosept Asbofill ABF 611 requires a sterile room volume of only 0.9m³, and 1.5m 3 for the ABF 711 variant. Bottles are conveyed through the machine in just one holder. KHS says that this eliminates potential aseptic risks, which can occur with conventional switching from one carousel to another. After sterilisation with H 2 O 2, bottles are transferred to the filling station, which is separated from the sterilisation process by an intermediate wall. Volumetric filling is car- ried out without contact by two-stage free-flow filling valves. Sterilisation, of either screw caps or seals, is also with H2O2. Output capacities are 12,000 0.1-l to 0.75-l bottles/h for ABF 611 and 12,000 0.25-l to 2-l bottles/h for ABF 711. While the decision on neck size – 38mm or 28mm – has to be made at the time of purchase, retro-fitting of a conversion is now possible and the company says that it is seeking to develop a design that will enable fast changeover between formats. It has also announced that it is planning an Innosept Asbofill ESL (Extended Shelf Life) version for non-carbonated non- alcoholic beverages. www.khs.com ETA plus for single-bin dryers German company motan-colortronic has launched a new version of its “intel- ligent” ETA plus technology for single drying bin solu- tions. The company describes it as a sus- tainable control entity for airflow regulation, which has been opti- mised with the inten- tion of minimising energy consumption of large single drying bins with volumes between 3,000 and 13,000l. The system combines the drying organiser function with airflow control. It provides fully automatic adjustment of air volume to the entry temperature of the relevant mate- rial, with throughput monitored in order to provide consist- ent drying results. The only air volume produced is that required for the drying process. When used with a single drying bin, the process tech- nology does not require butterfly valves to control airflow and is claimed to be energy efficient with large-scale plants, offering up to 60% reduction in energy consumption com- pared with conventional dryers. The TFT touchscreen has interactive menu navigation and users are able to select all essential parameters for their chosen material from a pre-loaded database. In-house recipes can be stored in a separate database. The equipment adapts to quantity, envi- ronment and weather conditions. www.motan-colortronic.de