Comil Performance

The ingredients were first mixed in a Hobart mixer for approximately 30 minutes. A slurry with thick, cement-like handling characteristics was produced. The mixture was then charged through the inlet of the Comil. The "extrusions" exiting the Comil screen would drop by gravity away from the screen when they reached a critical length. The size of the extrusion was dependent on the screen type, impeller selected, impeller speed and formulation.

Upon exiting the Comil, the extrudates are cured and depending on the specifications required, some of them are further size reduced with the Quadro Comil, using larger screens.

Summary

This customer was able to use the versatile Quadro Comil as an extruder and size reducer. Of note, when using the Comil as an extruder, the impeller/screen gap may need to be adjusted as the impeller speeds are significantly lower than standard operating speeds for size reduction. In some cases, to better enable control of the extrudate length, a blade can be mounted outside the screen to cut the extrudate as they exit the screen of the Comil. To date, we have sold a minimum of 2 Comil’s for use as extruders, 1 in the Chemical industry and 1 in the Food industry.