Vibrational force field effect on the melting process of a polymer solid against a sliding wall

Abstract The melting of polymers caused by friction before a solid plug is an important phenomenon in the vibration‐induced plastic extrusion process. In order to better analyze the melting process of polymers in a vibration screw type extruder, a melting model is proposed as well as a corresponding experimental apparatus to test the model. Due to the introduction of vibration force field, the viscidity of a polymer melt behaves in a strong non‐linear and time‐dependent fashion. Therefore, the effect of heat generated by viscous dissipation is very important. Through sophisticated deduction, an analytical expression of the relationship between the velocity of polymer solid element and the parameters of vibration is derived. The model is then proved by comparing a calculated sample with experimental results, which indicate that, the introduction of vibration force field can improve the melting process to a great extent. This model can serve as the theoretical basis for a polymer melting process. POLYM. COMPOS., 2008. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers