Evaluating Processing Parameter Effects on Polymer Grades and Plastic Coloring: Insights from Experimental Design and Characterization Studies

Resolving material and processing issues is essential to improving formulations and attaining accurate color matching in blending. Two transparent polycarbonate resins made up the blend: PC1, which made up 33% of the mixture with a Melt Flow Index (MFI) of 25 g/min, and PC2, which made up 67% of the mixture with an MFI of 65 g/min. This study employed data mining and a well-structured experiment using Design of Experiment (DoE) software-8 to investigate the effects of various processing temperatures on identical material formulations. The primary objective was to understand the influence of the operating conditions on the viscosity of a red letdown pigment made of polycarbonate, both with additive (WA) and without additive (WOA). The study analyzed the effects of processing parameters and rheological properties using a co-rotating twin-screw extruder. Rheology, Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) were employed to compare results and evaluate their impact on minimizing color discrepancies and improving Single-Pass Color Uniformity.