JP3400674B2 - Kneader, gate device thereof, and material kneading method using kneader having gate device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a kneading machine for kneading a polymer resin material such as plastic or rubber, a gate device for the kneading machine, and a method for kneading materials by the kneading machine having the gate device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as a gate device for a twin-screw continuous kneader, Japanese Patent Publication No. 6-43060 and Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 7-561.
The one shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 85 has been conventionally adopted, and this gate device is configured so that a rotor rotatably inserted in a kneading chamber in a chamber of a kneading machine can be moved toward and away from a rotor in a radial direction thereof. A pair of upper and lower gates inserted in the above is moved by a drive mechanism.

In this case, when the gate is moved up and down by the drive mechanism, the gap between the circular arc edge of the gate and the circular cross section formed midway in the axial direction of the rotor changes, whereby the material to be kneaded flowing in the kneading chamber. The flow rate of the material, that is, the degree of kneading can be adjusted. Further, conventionally, a vent hole is provided on the downstream side of the gate device in the chamber (the second-stage kneading chamber), and a vacuum vent or an atmospheric pressure vent is performed from this vent hole to deaerate volatile components in the kneading chamber. While kneading while mixing.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned conventional gate device, since a pair of upper and lower gates are inserted into the chamber so as to be able to move toward and away from each other in the radial direction of the rotor, thermal expansion of the gate and sliding of the gate with respect to the chamber. Considering dynamic resistance,
Some physical clearance is physically required between the chamber and the gate.

For this reason, particularly during vacuum venting, the outside air outside the chamber is sucked into the kneading chamber through the gap between the chamber and the gate, and the oxygen contained in the outside air sucks the material to be kneaded (especially polyethylene). ) May oxidize, resulting in off-spec products in the final product pellets. Even during normal operation without vacuum venting, the outside air outside the chamber may be sucked from the gap due to the negative pressure effect in the kneading chamber due to the change in the flow rate of the material to be kneaded and the rotation of the rotor. The same inconvenience as described above may occur.

On the other hand, as a means for avoiding the above-mentioned inconvenience, it is conceivable that a rubber packing is attached to the outer peripheral side surface of the gate (bonding surface to the chamber) and all gaps between the chamber and the chamber are filled with the rubber packing for sealing.
This increases the sliding resistance of the gate and requires a large-scale drive mechanism, and the rubber packing wears quickly, resulting in an increase in maintenance cost.

In view of such circumstances, the present invention makes it possible to suppress or prevent outside air from entering through the gap between the chamber and the gate without increasing the driving output of the gate or requiring a unique sealing mechanism. The purpose is to easily prevent deterioration of product quality due to oxidation of a material to be kneaded.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention takes the following technical means. That is,
In the device of the present invention, a rotor is rotatably provided in a kneading chamber in the chamber, and a gate device of the kneading machine in which a gate that can approach and separate in the radial direction from the rotor in the kneading chamber is inserted into the chamber. The airtight cover for sealing the gap between the chamber and the gate from outside air outside the chamber is provided on the outside surface of the chamber (claim 1).

In this case, since the airtight cover seals the gap between the chamber and the gate from the outside air outside the chamber, the gap between the chamber and the gate is kept from the outside air while maintaining the conventional clearance. Can be easily sealed. Therefore, it is possible to easily prevent the material to be kneaded from being oxidized due to the outside air entering through the gap between the chamber and the gate, while keeping the easiness of driving the gate almost unchanged.

In the above apparatus of the present invention, a non-oxidizing gas supply pipe that does not oxidize the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber may be connected to the airtight cover (claim 2). In this case, since the non-oxidizing gas is further supplied from the supply pipe to the inside of the airtight cover where the inflow of the outside air is regulated by the airtight cover, it is possible to more reliably prevent the outside air containing oxygen from entering the kneading chamber. Can be prevented.

In the apparatus of the present invention, the rotor is rotatably provided in the kneading chamber in the chamber, and the gate in the kneading chamber is inserted into the chamber so as to approach and separate from the rotor in the radial direction. A gate device of a kneading machine is provided with a gas supply passage for supplying a non-oxidizing gas which does not oxidize a material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber into the gap between the chamber and the gate (claim) Item 3).

In this case, since the non-oxidizing gas from the gas supply passage is supplied to the gap between the chamber and the gate, the non-oxidizing gas blown out from the gap seals the gap. Therefore, also in the case of the gate device, outside air containing oxygen is effectively prevented from entering through the gap while maintaining the conventional clearance between the chamber and the gate.

The gas supply passage can be provided on either the gate side (see FIGS. 8 to 11) or the chamber side (see FIG. 12). In order to uniformly supply the non-oxidizing gas over the entire space, it is preferable to form a circumferential groove that circulates along the gap on the outer peripheral side surface of the chamber or the inner peripheral side surface of the gate. When such a circumferential groove is adopted, the gas supply passage is formed by circling the outer peripheral side surface of the gate that constitutes the joint surface with the chamber, and the circumferential groove and the outside of the chamber. It is preferable that the internal passage is formed inside the gate so as to communicate with the outer surface of the gate exposed to the outside (claim 4).

The reason is that it is easier to form the peripheral groove on the outer peripheral side surface of the gate than to form the peripheral groove on the inner peripheral side surface of the chamber. When connecting a guide shaft that supports the gate to the outside exposed to the outside of the chamber so that the gate can be retracted and retracted, the inside of the guide shaft is connected to the inside passage of the gate at the connection portion with the gate. It is preferable to form a shaft passage extending along the axial direction of the guide shaft so as to communicate with the guide shaft (claim 5).

With this configuration, the guide shaft can also serve as a non-oxidizing gas supply pipe for the gate.
It is not necessary to separately provide the supply pipe, and there is an advantage that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, in the case where both the airtight cover and the gas supply passage are provided, it is sufficient to seal only the guide shaft that penetrates the airtight cover, which also reduces the manufacturing cost.

The above-described gate device of the present invention includes a chamber having a kneading chamber therein, a rotor rotatably inserted into the kneading chamber for kneading and melting a material to be kneaded, and a diameter of the rotor. The present invention can be applied to an ordinary kneading machine equipped with a gate device having a gate inserted into the chamber so as to be able to move toward and away from each other in the direction (claim 6).

In the kneader having the above-mentioned gate device, the material to be kneaded is passed between the gate and the rotor while sealing the gap between the chamber and the gate from outside air outside the chamber, The material to be kneaded is kneaded (claim 7). In the kneader having the above-mentioned gate device, the material to be kneaded is supplied to the gate while the non-oxidizing gas that does not oxidize the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber is supplied to the gap between the chamber and the gate. And between the rotor and
The material to be kneaded is kneaded (claim 8).

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 7 show a first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a two-rotor twin-screw continuous kneader among various kneaders. As shown in FIG. 7, the twin-screw continuous kneader 1 used in this embodiment includes a chamber 2 as an apparatus main body,
In this chamber 2, two continuous kneading chambers 3 each having a substantially cylindrical shape in the longitudinal direction are formed so as to communicate with each other so as to form an eyeglass hole shape in cross section.

The material to be kneaded is fed into each kneading chamber 3 of the chamber 2 from one end side (upstream side, right side in FIG. 7) of the chamber 2 to the other end side (downstream side, left side in FIG. 7). On the other hand, a pair of left and right rotors 4 and 4 for kneading and melting the same material are rotatably inserted in parallel with each other.
Both axial ends of the rotors 4, 4 are rotatably supported by bearings (bearings) 5, 6, 7 provided on both upstream and downstream sides of the chamber 2.

A drive device 8 for the rotor 4 is connected to the downstream end of the chamber 2. The drive device 8 includes a casing 9 connected in tandem at the downstream end of the chamber 2.
And a pair of front and rear bearings 5 and 6 that rotatably support the drive shaft portions 10 of the rotors 4 and 4 inserted in the casing 9, and a drive fixed to an intermediate portion in the axial direction of the drive shaft portions 10. The gear 11 is provided.

The drive shaft portion 10 of one rotor 4 of the pair of rotors 4 and 4 projects further upstream of the casing 9, and the projecting end portion is connected to a motor 12 with a reduction gear. The drive gears 11 of the rotors 4 and 4 are directly meshed with each other. Therefore, when one rotor 4 is rotationally driven by the motor 12, the other rotor 4 is rotated in a direction different from that.

On the upper surface side of the upstream end of the chamber 2, a supply port 1 for supplying powdery material to be kneaded into the kneading chamber 3.
3 is provided, and a hopper (not shown) is connected to the supply port 13. A vent hole 14 for degassing the gas generated during the kneading from the kneading chamber 3 or for post-adding an additive such as an inorganic filler is formed in the middle portion of the chamber 2.

Further, a discharge port 15 for discharging the melted and kneaded material to the outside of the chamber 2 is provided on the lower surface side of the downstream end of the chamber 2, and this discharge port is provided in the present embodiment. The lower discharge type 15 is open downward in the radial direction of the rotor 4. Further, in the middle portion of the chamber 2 in the material conveyance direction, a pair of upper and lower gates 24, 25 are made to approach or separate from the circular cross section 4A formed at the axial center of the rotor 4 from the radial outside or the material to be kneaded. A gate device 17 for adjusting the flow rate of the gate device 17 is provided, and the kneading chamber 3 in the chamber 2 is divided into two kneading stages 3A and 3B arranged in tandem on the upstream side and the downstream side of the gate device 17. .

Among these, on the outer peripheral surface of the rotor 4 which is inserted into the first stage 3A on the upstream side of the gate device 17, powdery materials to be kneaded from the supply port 13 are forwardly transferred in order from the upstream side. A first feed section 18 including a screw blade for feeding and a kneading section 19 for kneading and melting the powdery material to be kneaded by applying a strong shearing force are formed.

The kneading section 19 has a feed blade section 19A which is twisted in a direction to push the material to be kneaded to the downstream side by the rotation of the rotor 4, and a return blade which is twisted in a direction to push the material to be kneaded in the upstream side by the same rotation. It consists of wings 19B. On the other hand, the outer peripheral surface of the rotor 4 inserted in the second stage 3B on the downstream side of the gate device 17 is composed of screw blades for forcibly conveying the material melted in the kneading section 19 to the discharge port 15 side. The second feed section 20 is provided,
No kneading section is provided on the downstream side. In addition, when forming the second kneading section on the downstream side of the second feed section 20,
In some cases, only the second kneading section may be formed without forming the second feed section 20.

A gear pump (not shown) is connected to the lower side of the discharge port 15 via a connecting pipe 21, and a pelletizer (granulating device) or other final processing device is connected to the discharge side of the gear pump. To be done. Thus, the biaxial continuous kneading machine 1, the gear pump and the granulating device constitute a continuous kneading and granulating system of the polymer resin material. Rotor 4
Has a downstream end protruding through the chamber 2 via a Viscoseal 23, and the protruding portion is rotatable toward the chamber 2 side by the downstream bearing 7 provided on the downstream side wall of the chamber 2. Supported by. For this reason,
The kneaded material that has reached the discharge port 15 from the kneading chamber 3 is returned to the upstream side by the reverse feed action of the reverse screw portion in the viscoseal 23, which seals the kneaded material in the rotary sliding portion of the rotor 4. Has been secured.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the gate device 1
Reference numeral 7 denotes the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 inserted into gate holes 26 formed in the upper wall portion and the lower wall portion of the chamber 2 so as to communicate from the outside of the chamber 2 to the inside of the kneading chamber 3.
And a drive mechanism 27 for vertically moving the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 in different directions. The upper gate 24 is slidably inserted into the upper gate hole 26 so that the lower end of the upper gate 24 projects into the kneading chamber 3. The lower end of the upper gate 24 has a circular cross section 4A of the left and right rotors 4. Two arc concave portions 28 are formed to face each other. On the other hand, the lower gate 25 is slidably inserted into the lower gate hole 26 so that the upper edge thereof projects into the kneading chamber 3, and the upper edge of the lower gate 25 also has a circular cross section of the left and right rotors 4. Two arc recesses 28 are formed to face the portion 4A.

A meshing claw 29 that meshes with each other when these gates 24 and 25 come close to each other is formed at the joint portion so that the molten resin short-passes from the joint portion between both gates 24 and 25. Is being prevented. Further, a key 30 for preventing rattling with respect to the chamber 2 is fixed to the central portions of both gates 24 and 25,
The key 30 is fitted in a vertical key groove (not shown) formed in the surface of the chamber 2 on the gate hole 26 side.

The drive mechanism 27 of this embodiment is used in the chamber 2
A fixed beam 31 erected above, a longitudinal drive screw shaft 32 rotatably and immovably provided in the center of the fixed beam 31, and the drive screw shaft 32 is driven to rotate. Drive motor 33 and gearbox 3
4 and a pair of upper and lower moving beams 37 and 38 screwed with reverse screw portions 35 and 36 formed at the upper and lower ends of the drive screw shaft 32, and the moving beams 37 and 38 respectively. , 3 to connect to the guide shaft 3
9, 40, 41.

The fixed beam 31 is installed between the upper ends of four fixed rods 42 standing on the upper surface of the chamber 2 and fixed to the chamber 2 with a certain vertical distance. The gate device 1 is provided on the upper surface of the fixed beam 31.
A retaining ring 43 for suspending 7 with a wire or the like is fixed. At the center of the upper surface of the fixed beam 31, the gear box 34 having a reduction mechanism including a worm mechanism is provided, and at one end (the right end in FIG. 3) of the upper surface of the fixed beam 31, an output shaft 44 is provided. The drive motor 33 inserted in the box 34 is provided. Further, the other end of the upper surface of the fixed beam 31 (the left end in FIG. 3) has the output shaft 4 penetrating the other end of the gearbox 34.
A potentiometer 45 connected to the protruding end of No. 4 is provided.

The gear box 34 is composed of a vertical cylindrical portion 46 fixed to the center of the fixed beam 31 and a horizontal cylindrical portion 47 integrated so as to intersect the side surface of the vertical cylindrical portion 46 at a right angle. A worm wheel 48 fixed to the central portion of the drive screw shaft 32 is housed in the tubular portion 46, and the output shaft 44 meshing with the worm wheel 48 is inserted in the lateral tubular portion 47.

The drive screw shaft 32 has reverse screw portions 35 and 36, which are twisted in opposite directions, at its upper end portion and lower end portion. Of these, the upper reverse screw portion 35 is screwed into the first screw cylinder 49 provided in the central portion of the upper moving beam 37 above the fixed beam 31, and the lower reverse screw portion 3 is provided.
6 is screwed into a second screw cylinder 50 provided in the center of the lower moving beam 38 arranged between the fixed beam 31 and the chamber 2.

An upper end portion of a vertical first guide shaft 39 is fixed to the left and right ends of the upper moving beam 37 so as to penetrate from below. The first guide shaft 39 slidably penetrates through the fixed beam 31 at an intermediate portion thereof, and is connected to an upper surface of the upper gate 24 at a lower end portion thereof. On the other hand, the upper end of the second guide shaft 40 is fixed to the left and right ends of the lower moving beam 38 so as to penetrate from the bottom. The second guide shaft 40 slidably penetrates the left and right side walls of the chamber 2 at an intermediate portion thereof, and penetrates from an upper end to an end portion of a lower beam 51 arranged on the lower surface side of the chamber 2 at a lower end portion thereof. And is fixed.

Further, from the central portion of the lower beam 51,
A pair of left and right third guide shafts 41 arranged at left and right positions corresponding to the first guide shaft 39 are fixed by penetrating from above.
Is connected to the lower surface of the lower gate 25. Therefore, the drive motor 33 causes the gearbox 34
When the drive screw shaft 32 is rotated through the internal worm mechanism, the upper moving beam 37 and the lower moving beam 38 move up and down in opposite directions, and these moving beams 37, 38 move to the respective guide shafts 39, 40, The upper and lower gates 24 and 25 respectively connected via 41 also move up and down in opposite directions.

As shown in FIG. 1, the upper and lower gates 2
Heat medium passages 52 for controlling the temperatures of the gates 24 and 25 are formed in the horizontal direction 4 and 25, and the first and third guide shafts 39 connected to the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 are formed. , 41, a shaft passage 53 communicating with the heat medium passage 52 is formed along the axial direction.
Further, at the entrance of the shaft passage 53, the passage 5
A heat medium pump 54 for supplying a heat medium to 3 is connected.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first guide shaft 3
The lower end of 9 is fitted into a fitting recess 55 formed on the upper surface of the upper gate 24, and by this fitting, the shaft passage 53
Are communicated with the heat medium passage 52. A fixing flange 56 is welded to the lower end of the first guide shaft 39, and the fixing flange 56 is attached to the upper surface of the upper gate 24 by a bolt 57.
It has been concluded.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper end of the third guide shaft 41 is fitted into a fitting recess 58 formed on the lower surface of the lower gate 25, and the fitting causes the shaft passage 53 to pass through the heat medium passage. 52. A fixing flange 59 is welded to the upper end of the third guide shaft 41, and the fixing flange 59 is fastened to the lower surface of the lower gate 25 with a bolt 60.

The first and third guide shafts 39,
In order to prevent the heat medium from leaking from the joint between the gate 41 and the gates 24 and 25, the seal plate 61 is provided between the bottom surfaces of the fitting recesses 55 and 58 and the end surfaces of the guide shafts 39 and 41.
, And an O-ring 62 is provided on the inner peripheral side of the fixed flanges 56, 59. In this embodiment, airtight covers 63 are provided on the upper surface side and the lower surface side of the chamber 2 to prevent outside air from entering through the gap e between the chamber 2 and the upper and lower gates 24 and 25. This airtight cover 6
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, 3 does not directly seal a gap e between the chamber 2 and the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 with a seal member such as packing, but rather the gap e.
Is covered from the outside of the chamber 2 and sealed from the outside air.

In this case, the gap e is defined by the gate 24,
In consideration of thermal expansion of 25 and sliding resistance with respect to the chamber 2, it includes a clearance that is unavoidably provided due to physical need, and also includes a clearance that is positively designed to have a size larger than the clearance. As shown in FIG. 4, the airtight cover 63 of the present embodiment is composed of a pair of cover main bodies 64 which are divided into two parts in the front and rear. Each of the cover main bodies 64 has a length in the left-right direction (left-right direction in FIG. 4) that is substantially the same as the length of the gate hole 26 of the chamber 2, and a length in the front-back direction (up-down direction in FIG. 4) that is approximately half that of the gate hole 26. It is formed in a shallow box shape with a slight dent inside.

Each cover body 64 is provided with a joining flange 65 at one end edge in the front-rear direction, and a mounting flange 6 at the opening edge.
6 and the joint flanges 65 are joined together to form the airtight sheet 6
By tightening the bolt 68 through the gate hole 2,
6 is assembled to the airtight cover 63 having a size substantially corresponding to the plane sectional shape of 6. Further, the airtight cover 63 assembled in this way has its mounting flange 66.
Are fastened to the upper surface and the lower surface of the chamber 2 via the airtight sheet 69, and are fixed to both the upper surface side and the lower surface side of the chamber 2.

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the first or third guide shaft 39,
A seal mechanism 71 through which 41 is inserted is provided. The seal mechanism 71 is provided with the semicircular boss portion 7 of each cover body 64.
2, the seal cylinder 73 housed in 2, and the seal cylinder 73.
The gland packing 74 housed inside, and the gland packing 74 with the gland packing 74 pressed down from above
At the same time, the pressing ring 75 is fastened to the cover body 64 side together.

Therefore, the first or third guide shaft 3
9, 41 are inside the seal cylinder 73 of the seal mechanism 71,
The gland packing 74 is inserted so as to be vertically movable while being sealed. When kneading the material to be kneaded by the biaxial continuous kneading machine 1 having the above configuration, first, the powdery material to be kneaded (which may include an inorganic filler) is supplied to the supply port 13.
When it is charged from the above, the material is fed to the downstream side in the first feed section 18 in the first stage 3A and receives a large shearing force when passing through the tip section of the kneading section 19 and melts by self-heating. .

Thereafter, the melted and kneaded material reaches the second feed section 20 of the second stage 3B while adjusting the degree of kneading (temperature) by the gate device 17, and the same feed section 2 is supplied.
It is transported to the discharge port 15 side by the screw action of 0,
The gas is discharged from the discharge port 15 to the outside of the chamber 2. At this time, in the present embodiment, the airtight cover 63 is attached to the chamber 2
The gap e between the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 is sealed from the outside air, and since the outside air does not enter the kneading chamber 3 of the chamber 2, the material to be kneaded is oxidized by oxygen contained in the outside air. It is possible to prevent the deterioration of quality due to this.

Further, as described above, since the airtight cover 63 seals the gap e between the chamber 2 and the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 from the outside air outside the chamber 2, the chamber 2 and the upper and lower gates 24. , 25, while maintaining the conventional clearance, the gap e between them can be easily sealed from the outside air. Therefore, the upper and lower gates 24,
Without increasing the driving resistance of the gate device 17
It is possible to effectively hermetically seal the joint portion of the chamber 2 to the chamber 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the first embodiment, a gas pump 7 for pumping a non-oxidizing gas that does not oxidize the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber 3 even if the material is mixed.
It is also possible to connect the supply pipe 77 of No. 6 to the airtight cover 63. In this case, in addition to restricting the inflow of outside air by the airtight cover 63, the airtight cover 63 is supplied from the supply pipe 77.
Since the non-oxidizing gas is supplied to the inside of the kneading chamber, it is possible to more reliably prevent the outside air containing oxygen from entering the kneading chamber 3.

As the non-oxidizing gas, it is possible to use nitrogen gas, which has been conventionally used as a filling gas for the kneading chamber 3, or an inert gas. 8 to 10 show a second embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment, as a sealing means for the upper and lower gates 24 and 25 with respect to the chamber 2, instead of the airtight cover 63, a non-oxidizing gas that does not oxidize the material to be mixed in the kneading chamber 3 even if the material is oxidized is not supplied to the chamber 2. And the upper and lower gates 24,
The gas supply passage 78 for supplying to the gap e between the 25 is adopted.

The upper gate 24 and the lower gate 25 have the same basic structure of the gas supply passage 78 itself only by being turned upside down. Therefore, in FIGS. 8 to 10 (the same applies to FIGS. 11 and 12). Only the top gate 24 is illustrated.
The gas supply passage 78 of this embodiment is provided with a peripheral groove 79 formed around the outer peripheral side surface of the gate that constitutes the joint surface with the chamber 2, and the upper groove 24 exposed to the outside of the peripheral groove 79 and the chamber 2. Upper surface (lower surface for lower gate 25) 2
4A, and an internal passage 80 formed inside the upper gate 24 so as to communicate with the 4A.
Is the front and rear side surfaces 24B and the left and right side surfaces 24C of the upper gate 24.
And are engraved on the surface of the gate 24 so as to circulate all around.

On the other hand, the internal passage 80 has a pair of left and right vertical passages 81 extending downward from the upper surface of the upper gate 24 to the same level as the circumferential groove 79, and a left and right direction so as to communicate with the lower ends of the vertical passages 81. And a lateral passage 82 extending in the front-rear direction (gate thickness direction) from the midway portion of the lateral passage 82.
It is composed of a pair of left and right front and rear passages 83 that branch off. Of these, the left and right outlets of the lateral passage 82 communicate with the circumferential groove 79 on the left and right side surfaces 24C of the upper gate 24, and the front and rear passages 83
Both front and rear outlets communicate with a circumferential groove 79 on the front and rear side surfaces 24B of the upper gate 24.

A non-oxidizing gas supply pipe 84 is hermetically connected to the inlet of the vertical passage 81 opening on the upper surface of the upper gate 24. The non-oxidizing gas supply pipe 84 is connected to the gas pump 76 for pumping the non-oxidizing gas. To be done. Then, when the non-oxidizing gas pumped from the gas pump 76 is supplied to the inside of the upper gate 24 through the supply pipe 84, the non-oxidizing gas reaches the circumferential groove 79 via the internal passage 80, and the circumferential groove 79 is reached. Groove 79
Is uniformly supplied to the clearance e between the chamber 2 and the upper gate 24 over the entire circumference, and the clearance e is gas-sealed by the non-oxidizing gas blown from the clearance e.

Therefore, also in the case of the gate device 17 of the second embodiment, outside air containing oxygen enters through the gap e while maintaining the conventional clearance between the chamber 2 and the upper gate 24. Is effectively prevented. FIG. 11 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which both the airtight cover 63 of the first embodiment and the gas supply passage 78 of the second embodiment are provided.

Further, in this embodiment, the first guide shaft 39 that supports the upper gate 24 so that it can be retracted is connected to the upper surface 24A of the upper gate 24 exposed to the outside of the chamber 2, and the guide shaft 39 A shaft passage 85 extending along the axial direction of the guide shaft 39 is formed inside so as to communicate with the vertical passage 81 of the internal passage 80 of the gate 24 at the connection portion with the upper gate 24.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, the first guide shaft 39 can also be used as a supply pipe for the non-oxidizing gas to the upper gate 24, and it is not necessary to separately provide the supply pipe, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. be able to. Further, as the gas supply shaft passage 85, the heat medium supply shaft passage 53 described in the first embodiment can be used as it is.

If the upper gate 24, to which not only the guide shaft 39 but also the non-oxidizing gas supply pipe is connected to the upper surface, is to be sealed with the airtight cover 63, the guide shaft 3
It is necessary to provide the seal mechanism 71 not only in the penetrating portion of the feed tube 9 but also in the penetrating portion of the supply pipe. There is an advantage that it is enough.

FIG. 12 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the gas supply passage 78 for the non-oxidizing gas is provided not on the upper gate 24 side but on the chamber 2 side. . That is, the internal passage 80 of the gas supply passage 78 is formed in both left and right wall portions of the chamber 2.
The peripheral groove 79 is formed on the side surface of the gate hole 26 side.

Therefore, also in this embodiment, the non-oxidizing gas is evenly supplied over the entire circumference to the gap e between the circumferential groove 79 on the chamber 2 side and the upper gate 24, and the non-oxidizing gas blown from the non-oxidizing gas blows out. The gap e is gas-sealed. However, it is easier to form the peripheral groove 79 on the outer peripheral side surface of the gate than to form the peripheral groove 79 on the side surface (inner peripheral side surface) of the chamber 2 on the gate hole side. Is more advantageous in the second embodiment.

It should be noted that in FIGS.
However, the circumferential groove 79 may be formed in a plurality of upper and lower stages. Although the respective embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are illustrative and not restrictive. The technical scope of the present invention is determined by the appended claims, and all embodiments that come within the meaning thereof are included in the scope of the present invention.

That is, in the present embodiment, the gate device 17 having the pair of upper and lower gates 24 and 25 has been described as an example. However, in the present invention, the chamber 2 is configured so that at least one gate is movable in the radial direction of the rotor 4. It suffices if the gate device is inserted into the gate, and for example, it can be adopted in a gate device having a pair of left and right gates that move in the horizontal direction as shown in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-155550.

Further, in the illustrated example, the case where the gate device 17 of the present invention is adopted in the biaxial continuous kneading machine 1 in which both ends of the rotor 4 are supported is shown. It can be applied not only to twin-rotor type but also to single-screw kneaders and multi-screw kneaders, as well as to kneading extruders in which an extrusion die is directly connected to the downstream end.

[0059]

As described above, according to the present invention,
While keeping the clearance between the chamber and the gate,
Since the gap between them can be easily sealed from the outside air,
It is possible to suppress or prevent outside air from entering through the gap between the chamber and the gate without increasing the gate drive output.
It is possible to easily prevent the deterioration of the product quality due to the oxidation of the material to be kneaded.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front sectional view of a gate device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the gate device.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the gate device.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of part A of FIG.

5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion A of FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of portion B in FIG.

7 is a side sectional view of a twin-screw continuous kneader having the gate device of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of an upper gate of the gate device according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a front view of the upper gate.

FIG. 10 is a right side view of the upper gate.

FIG. 11 is a front view of an upper gate of the gate device according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a front view of an upper gate of a gate device according to a fourth embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Biaxial continuous kneader 2 chamber 3 kneading room 4 rotor 13 Material supply port 17 Gate device 24 upper gate 25 lower gate 63 Airtight cover 77 Supply pipe 78 Gas supply passage 79 circumferential groove 80 internal passage 85 shaft passage e Gap

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Shigehiro Kasai 2-3-1 Shinhama, Arai-cho, Takasago-shi, Hyogo Prefecture Kobe Steel, Ltd. Takasago Works (72) Yoshinori Kuroda 2 Niihama, Arai-cho, Takasago-shi, Hyogo Prefecture 3-3 No. 1 Takasago Works, Kobe Steel, Ltd. (56) Reference JP-A-7-14449 (JP, A) JP-A-5-337939 (JP, A) JP-A-58-24406 (JP, A) ) JP-A-56-21634 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B29B ^7/ 00-7/94

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] A rotor (4) is rotatably provided in a kneading chamber (3) in the chamber (2), and approaches and separates from the rotor (4) in the kneading chamber (3) in the radial direction. In a gate device of a kneader in which a flexible gate (24) (25) is inserted into the chamber (2), a gap (e) between the chamber (2) and the gate (24) (25) is provided in the chamber. A gate device for a kneader, characterized in that an airtight cover (63) for sealing from the outside air is provided on the outside of the chamber (2) on the outside of the chamber (2). 2. The non-oxidizing gas supply pipe (77), which does not oxidize the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber (2) when the material is mixed, is connected to the airtight cover (63). Device of kneading machine. 3. A rotor (4) is rotatably provided in a kneading chamber (3) in the chamber (2), and the rotor (4) in the kneading chamber (3) approaches and separates from the rotor (4) in the radial direction. In a gate device of a kneading machine in which a flexible gate (24) (25) is inserted into the chamber (2), a non-oxidizing material which does not oxidize the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber (3) even if the material is oxidized A gate device for a kneader, characterized in that a gas supply passage (78) for supplying gas to a gap (e) between the chamber (2) and the gates (24) and (25) is provided. 4. The gas supply passage (78) has a circumferential groove (79) formed by circling the outer peripheral side surfaces of the gates (24) (25) constituting a joint surface with the chamber (2), and the peripheral groove (79). An internal passage (80) formed inside the gate (24) (25) so as to communicate the groove (79) with the outer surface of the gate (24) (25) exposed to the outside of the chamber (2). The kneading machine gate device according to claim 3, comprising: 5. The gate (24) (2) is provided on the outer surface of the gate (24) (25) exposed to the outside of the chamber (2).
5) A guide shaft (39) (4) that supports the retractable support.
1) is connected to the guide shaft (39) (41)
Along the axial direction of the guide shafts (39) (41) so as to communicate with the internal passages (80) of the gates (24) (25) at the connecting portions with the gates (24) (25). The kneading machine gate apparatus according to claim 4, wherein an extended shaft passage (85) is formed. 6. A chamber (3) having a kneading chamber (3) inside, a rotor (4) for kneading and melting a material to be kneaded, which is rotatably inserted in the kneading chamber (3), A gate (24) inserted into the chamber (2) so that the rotor (4) can be moved toward and away from the rotor (4) in the radial direction.
A kneading machine comprising: a gate device (17) having (25), wherein the gate device (17) is the gate device according to any one of claims 1 to 5. 7. A rotor (rotatably provided in the same kneading chamber (3) with a material to be kneaded supplied into the kneading chamber (3) from a material supply port (13) provided at one end of the chamber (2). The gate (2) which is kneaded in 4) and is moved toward and away from the rotor (4) in the kneading chamber (3) in the radial direction.
4) While adjusting the passing amount of the material to be kneaded in (25),
A material kneading method using a kneading machine (1) having a gate device (17) adapted to feed the material to be kneaded to the other end side of the chamber (2), the chamber (2) and the gates (24) (25). The material to be kneaded is sealed in the gate (24) while the gap (e) between them is sealed from the outside air outside the chamber (2).
(25) A method of kneading a material with a kneader having a gate device, characterized in that the material is passed between the rotor (4) and the rotor (4). 8. A rotor (rotatably provided in the same kneading chamber (3) with the material to be kneaded supplied into the kneading chamber (3) from a material supply port (13) provided at one end of the chamber (2). The gate (2) which is kneaded in 4) and is moved toward and away from the rotor (4) in the kneading chamber (3) in the radial direction.
4) While adjusting the passing amount of the material to be kneaded in (25),
In a material kneading method using a kneader (1) having a gate device (17) configured to feed the material to be kneaded to the other end side of the chamber (2), the material to be kneaded in the kneading chamber (3) is The material to be kneaded is supplied to the gate (24) (25) while supplying a non-oxidizing gas that does not oxidize the material even if it comes into contact with the space (e) between the chamber (2) and the gates (24) (25). ) And a rotor (4), a method of kneading materials by a kneader having a gate device.