KruiseKontrol premiere – new Moretto technology at Plast ‘09

Leading Italian auxiliary equipment supplier Moretto is bringing innovations and cutting-edge technologies to Plast ’09, this year’s most important European-wide plastics and rubber exhibition.

These include: in the transport sector, KK - KruiseKontrol, an exclusive system for conveying plastics granulate at constant speed; in the drying sector, the evolution of the Dry Air mini dryer; in the blending sector, the latest DGM gravimet-ric blender.

These innovations are part of a larger project that brings touch screens to various product lines, including X Dryer, Dry Air, KK – KruiseKontrol, Gravix, Quad, Flowmatik, MPK, Dolphin, and BCS – Bar Code System. In this way, the interface between the operator and the machine is further improved with a simple, clear and intuitive system.

The KK - KruiseKontrol provides an innovative way of controlling the granule transportation to the processing machine, avoiding problems that could compro-mise the characteristics of the finished product.

Vacuum transport is not as simple as it may seem. Different types of granule be-have in completely different ways, depending on their bulk density, fragility, powder content, granule shape, additive content, how far the granules have to travel and so on. All these differences have been taken into account in the development of KruiseKontrol, so that it can optimize transport parameters.

The user indicates the type of material to be transported and the number of the machine to be fed, and KruiseKontrol creates the most suitable set of transport parameters. It is capable of controlling the velocity best suited to each material, without damaging it and avoiding the formation of powder along the pipeline. There are none of the normal initial and final peaks in the velocity profile, while velocity during the middle transport phase is increased, yielding an overall in-crease in productivity (see graphic). The system also avoids the damaging of the granules running in the pipes.

Transport velocity can be different for every cycle, but the set velocity is maintained whatever the conditions, the length and the height of the pipeline. The result is the total elimination of powder formation, less wear on the pipes and the complete elimination of the “angel hair” phenomenon – the formation of what looks like long strands on the inside of the pipe. Only one vacuum generator is needed for several zones of the system.

The new system has no rival for processing engineering plastics, in particular for optical disc production. What is more, it is extremely simple to use. The control system has a dynamic structure: parameters are set as default value and it is sufficient to match the material to the machines to obtain a dedicated conveying system with constant velocity. Touch-screen control makes this operation very simple.

Evolution of the Dry Air mini dryer and developments in the X Technology range Dehumidification is Moretto’s core business. It has developed several technologies, but the Dry Air mini dryer has been particularly successful. The Dry Air is a dehumidifying dryer with twin self-regenerating towers, for small operations, suitable for the production of small technical products such as small camera lenses, phone components and the like. It makes use of zeolite (molecular sieve) technology. It uses compressed air directly from the factory network, without pre-drying. Its “anti-stress” function monitors the temperature of the return air, reducing the flow of delivery air when this temperature gets too high, in order to protect the material from thermal stress. The Dry Air project includes five mod-els, each with its own hopper. Machines are very compact and, thanks to their reduced dimensions, can be installed directly on the injection moulding machine.

Latest versions of the Dry Air mini dryer incorporate a touch-screen panel that enables the use of Moretto’s X Dryer programming system that requires the user to enter only two parameters – the material to be treated and the hourly throughput. Everything else – calculation of air throughput, process temperature, residence time - is automatic. As a result, the dryers are more functional and efficient than ever.

Launched at K2004, presented in an Anniversary Edition at K2007, and with unit sales now numbering more than 4200, the latest innovations in Dry Air to be un-veiled at PLAST ’09 should ensure its further success.

Moretto has no fewer than seven series of gravimetric dosing machines – the 100, 200, 400, 600, 800, 900 and 1000 – with 132 models for outputs ranging from 10 to 5000 kg/h and the capability to dose up to 12 materials. The DGM is a gravimetric batch blender equipped with features exclusive to Moretto: double eyelid valve, free-weighing hopper and Rotopulse micro doser, which together enable the machine to guarantee high precision of ± 0.001%. It is equipped with a powerful microprocessor and very sophisticated software. Weighing algorithms that work in milliseconds make it immune from vibrations, so that it can be installed directly on the injection moulding machine.

A new line of equipment dedicated to gravimetric dosing will be unveiled at Plast ‘09. DGM is being given a new colour touch-screen and a new name, Gravix. This takes the number of lines with this type of interface to ten. The use of icons to represent the parameters makes it easier for the operator to manage the process than the standard keyboard and display.

All the innovations being introduced at Plast ’09 on MORETTO’s stand can be connected to the MOWIS supervisory system, which enables management of a complete plant, centralizing the management and monitoring activities in a single control station. They also boast the OMS&P certification (Original Moretto Sys-tems & People), the company ethical logo and guarantee of experience and quality.

Plast ’09 will be not only the launch pad of the latest Moretto innovations, but it will be also the best possible showcase for presenting the company’s other products lines.

These include:

- MPK crystallizer, a new technology launched at Fakuma 2008, capable of satisfying even the strictest requirements in the field of plastics crystallization;

- The Flowmatik system coupled with X Dryer technology to form a high technology dehumidifying system, able to guarantee excellent performance and reduce energy consumption. During the exhibition Moretto will show a mezzanine-mounted dehumidification plant with eight hoppers and automatic double dryer.

- the DGM 1000 blender, capable of handling up to 5000 kg/h. Equipped with eight hoppers as standard, this has been designed in the finest detail. A special high-efficiency mixer produces a homogeneous blend. Digital technology and Moretto’s exclusive double eyelid valve together provide a high level of precision that yields a dosing repeatability of ± 0.002%.

- the DPM microdoser, a pulsed microbatch dosing unit that represents a new way of dosing, thanks to the use of the double eyelid valve and Rotopulse, a de-vice that makes it possible to dose quantities of product as small as 0.1 g with a precision of 0.001% and a reaction time of 25 ms.

Quad, a new version of a suction unit that, thanks to the application of a special valve, can be connected to up to four hopper loaders. As in the previous version for two hopper loaders the valve can be applied to all Moretto three-phase suction units in which this kind of management is needed.

Machines from the granulating, cooling and temperature control fields will also be displayed on the stand.

So once again, Moretto will come to Plast looking to meet the toughest demands of the market with machines that represent the perfect coupling of cut-ting-edge technology and productive efficiency, and with a particular eye on energy saving.