Purity Scanner Advanced Contaminants within a plastic pellet stream pose a major concern, particularly for products in the automotive, aerospace and medical sectors. Sikora’s Purity Scanner Advanced provides in-line inspection of 100 percent of the pellets in compounding, plastics processing and contract sorting processes. It employs optical cameras to detect discolorations; an X-ray camera can be added to find metallic contamination.
What’s new? Hybrid blow-out. Customers can define impurities as critical – for example, metal contaminants – or non-critical, such as small, light-colored specks. When a critical contaminant is detected in the pellet stream, compressed air blows from multiple nozzles to remove it from the stream. Non-critical defects, which can occur frequently, trigger a smaller blow-out using fewer nozzles, thereby decreasing by-catch — the inadvertent disposal of good pellets.
Benefits Greater field of view. While typical systems employ a maximum of two cameras, Sikora’s scanner can use up to four – three optical and one X-ray – to sort out individual contaminated pellets as small as 25 microns. Use of the scanner decreases rejected parts, and cuts material costs by lowering by-catch of good resin.
Sikora International Corp., Peachtree City, Ga., 770-486-1233, www.sikora.net
David Tillett | Associate Editor
Associate Editor David Tillett writes and edits for Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing, Plastics Recycling and The Journal of Blow Molding. He covers new products, industry news, patents and consumer and business equipment. He has more than 20 years of experience in daily newspaper, online and magazine journalism.
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