Yizumi’s patented DCIM system, developed in collaboration with Exipnos GmbH and demonstrated last year October at K 2019, offers an efficient, flexible and time-saving solution for compounding different raw materials into a homogeneous melt directly at the injection moulding machine.
Combining injection moulding, multi-material gravimetric dosing - with an optional slide feed station for introducing glass fibres and minerals- and compounding, it can significantly reduce the CO₂ emissions associated with production.
The DCIM add-on module is being touted as a ‘circular solution’ and was introduced as part of Yizumi’s Green Technology line. The system is said to be ideal for processing biopolymers, bio-based and bio-degradable materials and was demonstrated at K integrated with a standard Yizumi UN160A5 moulding machine moulding a biodegradable cup.
The compound delivery system is designed as a portable, segmented single-screw extruder which feeds compounded materials directly into the throat of a standard injection moulding machine plasticising unit. After use, it can be simply wheeled away from the machine. The system is brand agnostic, which means it can be used both with Yizumi machines as well as machines from other brands and connected to any existing system as a retrofit module.
The system is equipped with a controller featuring all standardized interfaces.
The extruder screw with an L/D ratio of 32/1, is made up of interchangeable segments to provide optimum mixing performance of the raw materials and additives that are continuously dosed during the process. Four sizes of CDS are available, providing a maximum throughput range from 20kg / hour - 350kg /hour.
The total energy for this process is approximately 500Wh per kg, saving 264kg of CO₂ per tonne of compounded material, says STV Machinery, the UK suppliers of Yizumi machines. They added that the system offers additional benefits such as eliminating the need to dry the compounded material again, up to 30% improvement in plasticising performance and the ability to process recycled materials without intermediate steps for the preparation of the material.
In addition, the DCIM unit is interfaced to the Yizumi moulding machine controller which means recipes from formulations can be stored and recovered with the mould process data. This makes programming relatively simple.