SPECIAL
PVC Processing. Counter-rotating, closely intermeshing twin-screw extruders are
primarily used nowadays for the production of pipes, profiles and sheet of unplas-
ticised PVC. This article traces the evolution of this machine technology from its
origins down to the present.
The Historical Development
of the Counter-rotating
Twin-screw Extruder
Fig. 1. Technicians during early extrusion trials (Anger, 1953) [1]
HANS-PETER SCHNEIDER
n pipe and profile extrusion, conical
I twin-screw extruders are primarily
used in the lower to medium per-
formance range as principal and coex-
truders. Parallel twin-screw extruders are
mostly used in the medium-to-high-per-
formance area. For pelletizing, where the
maximum output performance is
achieved, parallel extruders are used al-
most exclusively.
Translated from Kunststoffe 5/2005, pp. 4450
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005
Historical Development
PVCu pipes were first laid in 1935 as
pressure pipes for public water supplies.
Pipes of PVCu suffer from neither cor-
rosion nor incrustation. It was the search
for efficient ways of producing these
PVCu pipes for water supplies that
sparked the development of counter-ro-
tating twin-screw extruders. The family
tree of extruder manufacturers, as it
were, has three main branches: Anger
(Mapre), Kestermann and Schloemann
(Pasquetti).
Following the founding of the Anger
company, the brothers Anton and Wil-
helm Anger developed a process in the
early 1950s for extruding powder into a
finished pipe in a single working step
(Fig. 1) [1]. Almost simultaneously, they
also succeeded in solving the problem of
how to join pipes by means of plastic. In
1954, Anger developed a Mapre extrud-
er. Just one year later, the first self-devel-
oped twin-screw extruders were built.
These were 3-section screws (without
vent section) and had a length of 12D.
Fig. 2. Twin-screw extruder BT 150/11,5D
(Schloemann, 1964) [2]
After a test period lasting several
years, combined with extensive theoretical
studies and practical trials along with a
whole range of pipe-laying operations,
Anton and Wilhelm Anger, together with
stake holders, founded the company
Kunststoffwerk Gebrder Anger GmbH &
Co. Its headquarters were in Munich and
the production shop was in Bogen on the
Danube, in the buildings of a former
leather factory. The companys first ex-
truders were launched in 1959.
In 1960, the Schloemann company
took over the Pasquetti company and al-
1
 SPECIAL
so began building twin-screw extruders.
Models BT 50/12D, BT 80/12D and BT
100/12D were followed in 1964 by the BT
150/11.5D, which had an output rate for
pipe of 200 kg/h. It had a 70 kW electric
motor and a heating capacity of 48 kW
(Fig. 2).
Weber produced its first twin-screw
extruder DS 60 in 1961. This had a pro-
cessing section of 12D but no venting. It
did not launch longer machines with
venting, such as the DS 6017D, DS
8516D and DS 12017D, until the peri-
od from 1964 to 1968.
In 1962, the Rheinstahl Group ac-
quired a majority holding in Kunststoff-
werk Gebrder Anger GmbH & Co. By
that time, the plant had 30 pipe-pro-
duction lines and was one of Europes
leading manufacturers. In 1964, Anton
Anger eventually founded the company
AGM (Anton Anger Allgemeine Maschi-
nenbau GmbH), headquartered in
Linz/Austria. His brother Wilhelms
company, located in Vienna, called itself
APM (Anger Plastic-Verarbeitungs-
maschinen GmbH & Co).
While AGM built conical and parallel
twin-screw extruders, APM concentrated
on the production of one-stage and two-
stage parallel extruders (Fig. 3).
From 1964 on, Kestermann also start-
ed offering single-stage twin-screw ex-
truders without venting (K2-80, K2-100
and K2-120) and two-stage designs with
venting (K2-80/86V, K2-100/107V and
Fig. 3. Two-stage twin-screw extruder A4/80/84
(80 and 84 mm, 11D and 8D), (model APM) [2]
Fig. 6. Twin-screw extruder KMD 90-20D
(Krauss-Maffei, 1973) [6]
2 Carl Hanser Verlag, Mnchen
Fig. 9. Conical and parallel twin screws
K2-120/130V). Later, the single-stage ma-
chines were also fitted out with venting.
In 1968, Reifenhuser built an extrud-
er with a diameter of 125 mm and a pro-
cessing unit of 16D (without venting)
(Fig. 4). Reifenhuser subsequently ac-
quired the twin-screws (Bitruder) of
Schloemann in 1972.
In the year 1969, Cincinnati started
selling its conical extruders CM 45
(Fig. 7), CM 55, CM 65 and CM 80. The
program at that time was rounded out
with a two-stage parallel machine (A4/
125/125).
Apart from the companies just men-
tioned, further producers of counter-ro-
tating twin-screw extruders in the 1960s
were Bausano (Italy), Bandera (Italy),
Mapr (Luxembourg) and Leistritz (Ger-
many).
Rheinstahl eventually acquired Kester-
manns activities in 1970. In so doing, it
acquired the machine design in which the
exchangeable breaker plate was secured
against rotation in the barrel (Fig. 5).
Fig. 4. Twin-screw extruder 125 -16D (Reifen-
huser, 1968) [2]
Fig. 7. Twin-screw extruder CM 45 (Cincinnati,
1976) [3]
1971 was the birth year of Krauss-
Maffei Extrusionstechnik. Initially, it was
headquartered in Munich. The chief en-
gineers came from AGM and APM. Apart
from a conical KMD50K, it offered two
parallel extruders, namely the KMD90-
20D (Fig. 6) and the KMD120-20D. In
1974, Krauss-Maffei Austria was found-
ed and engineering and marketing were
switched to Asten near Linz. Production
of the extruders continued in Munich.
The headquarters of Krauss-Maffei Ex-
trusionstechnik were switched back to
Munich in 1979, where they have re-
mained ever since.
Thyssen and Rheinstahl merged in
1972. Three years later, Thyssen Plastik
Maschinen (TPM) was founded. This
company evolved out of the former divi-
sion of Thyssen Rheinstahl, whose activ-
ities were mainly based on Kestermanns
extrusion technology. After a very short
development period, the new twin-screw
extruder series was presented in 1976.
These were exclusively parallel models
Fig. 5. Twin-screw extruder (Kestermann, 1970)
[4]
Fig. 8. Twin-screw extruder TPM2- 90-22V (TPM,
1980) [7]
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005

Fig. 11. Conical twin-screw systems
with screw diameters of 50, 60, 85, 107,
130 and 160 mm. The processing units
varied with the application, and were
either 16D or 22D. The TPM 90 (Fig. 8)
was added to the range in 1979. The new
Service and Development Centre in Dor-
nach near Munich opened in 1979, only
to shut again in early 1980. The compa-
ny then moved to Bad Oeynhausen/Ger-
many. This coincided with the birth of
Battenfeld Extrusionstechnik.
Development of
Conical Extruders
Two designs have prevailed for counter-
rotating, closely intermeshing twin-screw
extruders: the parallel and conical types.
In the parallel variant, the external screw
diameter and the axial distance remain
constant over the entire screw length,
whereas, in the conical variant, it varies
continuously (Fig. 9).
Parallel extruders have been made in-
dustrially since the 1950s. In the forma-
tive years, the mechanical reliability of the
parallel twin-screw extruders did not al-
ways come up to scratch. The main prob-
lems occurred in the region of the driven
shafts. On account of the narrow axial dis-
tances, it was not possible, with the bear-
ing technology available then, to accom-
modate long-term radial and axial forces
by means of appropriate dimensioning
techniques. It was not until the end of the
1960s that bearings became available
which enabled parallel extruders to offer
adequate operational reliability [8].
The problem of safely accommodating
the radial and axial forces was solved with
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005
SPECIAL
the development of conical twin-screw The inventor of the Krauss-Maffei
extruders. In these machines, the screw patent co-founded Maplan in 1977 and
external diameter and the axial distance circumvented his own invention. Maplan
increase steadily from the screw to the filed a new patent [11] in 1978 in which
transmission. This offers design advan- the overlapping ratio of the double con-
tages for shaping the distributor drive: ical screws, relative to the Krauss-Maffei
First of all, the two bevel wheels of the dis- variant, was altered slightly and not kept
tributor drive, viewed from the screw tip, constant.
can move back so far that their average Cincinnati had also been producing
diameter assumes an adequate size for the double conical screws since 1978, which
permanent design. The distributor drive were termed super-conical from 1985 on.
consists of very few parts, which leads to In both screw systems, the degree of over-
cost advantages during manufacture lapping lies between 18 % and 20 % (as
(Fig. 10). Furthermore, this solution of- in patent claim 2 of the Krauss-Maffei
fers good scope for designing the recep- patent), but the overlapping ratio varies
tacle for the axial bearings [9]. along the length. As a result, patent claim
The first conical extruders were built 1 of the Krauss-Maffei patent was not in-
by Anger (AGM) (from 1964 on), fringed.
Cincinnati (since 1969), Weber (since Cincinnati never registered a patent
1981) and Krauss-Maffei (since 1973). for the double conical or super-conical
These are so-called single conical screws. screws. However, in 1983, Cincinnati
In this type of screw, the flight depth re- registered a working model [12] in
mains constant along the length of the which the barrel features at least two ax-
screw. ial sections of different conical angles.
In 1974, Krauss-Maffei registered its The use of different conical angles in the
patent for a so-
called double
conical screw [10].
In double conical
screws, the flight
depth decreases
continuously from
the feed section
to the metering
section (Fig. 11).
Without any
change to the axi-
al angle of the Fig. 10. Conical distributor drive
transmission for
the length of the barrel unit, the external screws and thus in the barrel was never
diameter at the start of the feed section implemented, but would nonetheless
was enlarged under the terms of patent have been possible since the conical
claim No 1 such that the ratio of over- Cincinnati cylinders consist of several
lapping with the local external screw di- segments.
ameter along the full length is approxi- The conical screws designed by Weber
mately constantand, according to patent have been of the single conical type since
claim No 2 amounts to between 18 % 1981. In 2000, Battenfeld, which until
and 20% of the local screw diameter (by then had only produced parallel extrud-
overlapping is meant the flight depth ers, presented its so-called negative con-
minus the flight clearance). ical screw design [13], which today is
This change to the diameter ratios pro- called the active conical design. In this de-
duced constant overlapping at every point sign, the flight depth increases continu-
along the screw and, to be sure, in the ously from the feed section to the end of
same ratio as in the parallel Krauss-Maf- the metering section.
fei screws. The main reason for develop-
ing a double conical screw was to increase Development of
the output rate while retaining the barrel Parallel Extruders
length and the axial angle, and thus to use
the same transmission. The delivery rate of an extruder at a giv-
Naturally, further performance en- en screw diameter depends on three key
hancements in the pipe and profile area factors, namely the installed screw torque,
necessitated higher screw torques for the the maximum screw speed and the spe-
double conical extruders. cific drive energy.
3
 SPECIAL
L/D ratios
Fig. 12. Evolution of L/D ratios in twin-screw extruders of different manufacturers
The introduction of venting and screw
temperature control enabled substantial
increases to be made in screw operational
speeds from the mid-1960s onwards,
but, to avoid greater wear, not to the same
extent as in operating torque [14].
Practical experience over recent
decades has shown that certain screw
and peripheral speeds should not be ex-
ceeded in the screw designs used so far
as, otherwise, this may lead to partial
over-shearing of material and thus to
temperature inhomogeneities. Further
limiting factors on the screw speed are
the recipe and, especially, wear on the
processing unit.
The delivery rate of a twin-screw ex-
truder of given screw diameter can there-
fore not be increased by means of higher
screw speeds.
Instead, the extra performance must
come from an increase in specific
throughput. The specific output is the
ratio of the output rate to the screw speed.
For a given screw diameter, the specific
output rate can therefore only be in-
creased by increasing the screw torque or
reducing the specific drive energy.
Torque Increase
The first twin-screw extruders still fea-
tured comparatively low screw torques.
Continuous improvements to radial and
axial bearings made it possible to more or
less treble screw torques between 1960
and 1977 [15]. While the rise in screw
torque between 1960 and 1990 was vir-
tually linear, it increased dramatically
thereafter into the mid-1990s. This was
triggered primarily by an enormous per-
formance increase in the area of window
profiles. Innovative developments in die
4 Carl Hanser Verlag, Mnchen
Kunststoffe
construction and a boom in the plastic
windows sector increased demand for
high-performance extruders which could
be used non-stop for the main window
profiles.
Fig. 13. Preheating device with vanes
(Krauss-Maffei model)
Extending the Processing Unit
Not only is shear energy incorporated
into the dry blend, but also heat energy
via the barrel heaters. A certain amount
of energy is required to plasticate 1 kg of
PVC dry blend. The specific total energy,
i.e. the sum of specific heat and shear
energy, is therefore almost constant.
Heat energy and shear energy are ac-
cordingly closely related to each other.
In practice, it is found that the shear en-
ergy fraction increases with increase in
screw speed.
On the other hand, more shear energy
has to be incorporated into the material
via the screws in the case of a short pro-
cessing unit relative to a long processing
unit.
Given the same specific output and the
same screw speed, the dwell time of ma-
terial in the extruder with the long pro-
cessing unit is greater than in the short
extruder of the same screw diameter and
axial distance. In other words, a longer
processing unit can be used to reduce the
specific drive energy, provided that all
other construction factors are kept con-
stant. In practice, this is accomplished by
using screw geometries of lower com-
pression.
The processing units of twin-screw
extruders have accordingly become
longer as time has passed. The first twin-
screw extruders had a processing length
of 8D. Some 35 years ago, processing
lengths were still 1218D, whereas nowa-
days they are between 22 and 36D. The
L/D ratio has risen more or less linearly
from 1955 to 2001. Outstanding exten-
sions to the processing units are the ex-
tension of the Krauss-Maffei pipe ex-
truders to 36D in 2001 and the extension
of the processing units of the Krauss-
Maffei profile extruder to 32D in the year
2003 (Fig. 12).
Overlapping
Extending the processing unit is not the
only way to increase the dwell time of the
material in the extruder. It can also be
done by increasing the level of overlap-
ping of the screws (D/a). While the ear-
ly twin screws still had relatively short
overlapping ratios of 1.15 to 1.20, these
now lie between 1.19 and 1.23. This has
proven to be the optimum value in prac-
tice as regards shear rate of external di-
ameter and root diameter, maximum
possible root drilling for internal tem-
perature control of the screws, and screw
strength.
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005

Increase in Throughput
The main engine for driving the devel-
opment of twin-screw extruders was the
efficient production of semi-finished
plastic goods of PVC, initially pipes, but
later profiles and sheet. Recent decades
have seen steady increases in output rates,
especially of the parallel twin-screw ex-
truders.
Material Preheating
In the early 1970s, Krauss-Maffei looked
for other ways of increasing the perform-
ance of twin-screw extruders. Increasing
the output by extending the processing
unit, coupled with a torque increase,
seemed to be feasible only with a huge ef-
fort. More powerful transmissions were
not available. Reasons of quality and wear
protection prevented any consideration
from being accorded to increasing per-
formance by increasing the screw speed.
Accordingly, a preheating device was
developed, and presented to the public for
the first time in 1975. This preheating de-
vice was mounted on top of the feed
opening of the extruder barrel and its
purpose was to incorporate into the ma-
terial some of the energy required for
plastication prior to the actual extrusion
process.
It features a motor that employs a
speed reduction gear to drive a shaft on
which vanes are mounted (Fig. 13). The
vanes slide on heated, circular plates that
are arranged in several levels. The pow-
der passes from the hopper into the up-
per level, is transported further by the
vanes until after 7/8ths of a revolution,
it falls through an opening into the next
level. This process repeats itself in subse-
quent levels until finally the heated pow-
der is transferred to the extruder screws
[16]. The preheating device also functions
at the same time as a feed unit.
The use of this type of preheating in
combination with appropriate down-
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005
SPECIAL
Fig. 14. Multi-screw
extruder (Krauss-
Maffei model)
stream processing unit can increase the 220 mm diameter) with which, from op-
output rates of the various extruder types posing sides, a small screw engages (of
by 2035 %. The greater output is 110 mm diameter) (Fig. 14). The same
achieved at the same screw speed and mo- peripheral velocity is obtained by halving
tor load. the screw speed of the central screw rela-
Maplan later launched preheating de- tive to the side screws. The more
vices that initially consisted of two indi- favourable ratio of surface area to
vidually driven screws which conveyed throughput obtained with smaller screw
the material through a heated housing. diameters enables a great deal of heat en-
Additional heating of the material was ef- ergy to be input from outside. Heat is al-
fected by means of the oil-heating system so introduced via the heated central
for the screws. Nowadays, Maplan offers screw. The fact that the number of inter-
preheating devices that consist of a heat- meshing zones is twice as high leads to
ed barrel and co-rotating, oil-heated con- better compounding of the dry blend.
veying screws. Apart from material pre- The material ejected from the chambers
heating, these devices have a metering is collected in the mixing head, ho-
function. mogenised and fed to the adapter.
Multi-screw Extruders Development of
Throttle Designs
A further alternative to conventional
twin-screw extruders was presented by Plastication of PVC dry blend requires
Krauss-Maffei at Europlastique in Paris compression of the material in addition
in 1974, namely a multi-screw extruder to the input of heat energy and shear en-
for large pipe pro-
duction, i.e. for
output rates of be-
tween 800 and
1000 kg/h. The
maximum screw
diameter that
could be managed
at that time was
130 mm. As yet
unresolved wear
problems made it
risky to build ma-
chines of even
greater screw di-
ameter. Accord-
ingly, multi-screw
systems were de-
veloped that com-
bine two pairs of
screws in one bar-
rel. One twin-
screw assembly is
replaced by the
central screw (of Fig. 15. Comparison of different types of screws
5
 SPECIAL
Fig. 16. Two-stage vent screws (Kestermann model, 1968) [17]
ergy. In the multi-part vented screws, the
various manufacturers have incorporat-
ed different compression elements or
throttles. The purpose of the throttle is
twofold: First, the material is compressed
and slightly plasticised and, second, the
venting section is hermetically sealed off
from the feed section. Over the course of
time, the machine manufacturers have
devised a range of designs for the throt-
tles.
In the 1960s, Kestermann built so-
called two-stage vented screws (Fig. 16).
Each stage has the characteristic features
of the single-flighted feed zone, the thread
transformation zone and the multi-flight-
ed delivery zone. Between the first and
second screw flight, the area in the flight-
free screws contains a breaker plate im-
mobilised in the barrel such that it can-
not rotate (Fig. 17). In the first screw
flight, the material is drawn in and fed to-
wards the breaker plate. A concomitant
pressure builds up that causes the pre-
heated, partly sheared material to ag-
glomerate. The pressure build-up can be
influenced by exchanging the perforated
breaker plate for another with different
flow-through cross-section.
Back in the 1950s, Anger used a single
flighted zone of relatively small pitch and
6 Carl Hanser Verlag, Mnchen
Fig. 17. Non-rotating breaker disc in screw
barrel (Kestermann model, 1968) [12]
Fig. 18. Double flighted throttle in counter-
rotating twin screws
narrow flight and roller gaps as throttle
element. The compression could be var-
ied via the height of the pitch.
In the 1960s, APM manufactured five-
zone screws with a compression zone, sev-
en-zone screws with two compression
zones (Fig. 15) and composite vent screws
featuring five zones.
In 1975, TPM acquired Kestermanns
machinery programme. At K 1976, six
completely new, parallel twin-screw ex-
truders (50160 mm) were presented.
Instead of the breaker plate, the profile
screws were fitted out with a double
flighted, closely intermeshing throttle
while the pelletizing and pipe screws
featured so-called baffles.
While the pipe screws were a one-part
design, the pelletizing screws came apart
so that the baffles could be exchanged.
The degree of plastication could be ad-
justed to suit the material via the num-
ber and contour of grooves in the baf-
fles.
Nowadays, machine manufacturers
usually use throttle elements of the same
pitch as the other screw zones in their
twin screws. The screws are normally
made in one piece. The throttles vary in
pitch, number of flights, effective length
and the flight and roller gaps (Fig. 18).
Extruder manufacturers now mostly
offer different geometries for different ap-
plication areas. For any particular appli-
cation area, such as profile extrusion, the
various geometries often differ only in the
throttle zone.
REFERENCES
The bibliography can be called are up under
www.kunststoffe.de/A012
THE AUTHOR
HANS-PETER SCHNEIDER, born in 1955, works for
Krauss-Maffei Kunststofftechnik GmbH, Munich/Ger-
many, where he is project leader for the process-en-
gineering of twin-screw extruders.
Kunststoffe plast europe 5/2005