EP-4735766-A1 - ROTOR-TYPE PUMP ASSEMBLY AND INSTALLATION COMPRISING SAME

Abstract

The invention relates to an installation (1) for processing a material strip, the material strip in particular comprising a rubber mixture or silicone. The installation comprises a rotor-type pump assembly (2) for transporting the material strip through the installation, having a pump housing (4) which defines a pump interior (3), at least one inlet duct (5) on the inlet side and an outlet in the lateral surface of the pump housing, and at least two pump rotors (6, 8) which are mounted in the pump housing and which are in contact with the material strip during operation of the installation for transporting the material strip through the installation, wherein the pump housing provides a maintenance and/or cleaning position for the pump rotors in such a way that it is possible to quickly and temporarily bring the pump rotors into the maintenance and/or cleaning position, in particular for cleaning the pump rotors.

Inventors

• UTH, Julia
• FLÜGEL, Daniel
• SCHWAB, MICHAEL

Assignees

• Uth GmbH

Dates

Publication Date

20260506

Application Date

20240627

Claims (1)

1. Patent claims: 1. System (1) prepared for processing a material strip (60), in particular an extruder for plasticizing and extruding the material strip, the material strip in particular comprising a rubber mixture or silicone, the system comprising a rotor pump arrangement (2) for conveying the material strip through the system with a pump housing (4) which defines a pump interior (3), at least one inlet channel (5) on the inlet side and an outlet in the outer surface of the pump housing, at least two pump rotors (6, 8) mounted in the pump housing, which are in contact with the material strip during operation of the system for conveying the material strip through the system, the pump housing providing a maintenance and/or cleaning position (120) for the pump rotors, such that in particular for cleaning the pump rotors it is possible to transfer the pump rotors to the maintenance and/or cleaning position, at least temporarily. 2. System (1) according to the preceding claim, further comprising a disengaging device (30) for laterally disengaging the pump rotor(s) (6, 8) in or out of the pump housing (4), and/or a pump rotor drive (20) for driving the rotor pump arrangement (2) and for applying the pump delivery capacity, wherein the pump rotor drive is arranged in particular opposite the disengaging device. 3. System (1) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising a safety device with an operating state detection of the system, which is designed to enable the operation of the release device (30) only when the operating state of the system is stopped. 4. Rotor pump arrangement (2) for conveying a strip of material (60), the strip of material in particular comprising a rubber mixture or silicone, through a system (1), in particular according to one of the preceding claims, comprising a pump housing (4) which defines a pump interior (3), at least one inlet channel (5) on the inlet side and an outlet in the outer surface of the pump housing, at least two pump rotors (6, 8) mounted in the pump housing, which are in contact with the strip of material during operation of the rotor pump for conveying the strip of material through the pump housing, wherein a maintenance and/or cleaning position (120) is provided for the pump rotors, such that a rapid and temporary transfer of the pump rotors into the maintenance and/or cleaning position is possible, in particular for cleaning the pump rotors. 5. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the pump rotors (6, 8) are gears which mesh with one another. 6. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, the pump housing (4) having at least one shaft cutout (22) for receiving a rotor shaft (12, 14). 7. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to the preceding claim, the shaft cutout (22) forming or comprising at least one external bearing for supporting the rotor shaft (12, 14). 8. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one pump rotor (6, 8) is arranged in the region of the shaft cutout (22) and/or outside the pump interior (3) when the maintenance and/or cleaning position (120) is assumed, and/or that the pump rotors (6, 8) are removed by pushing or extending. 9. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one pump rotor (6, 8) is arranged on a rotor shaft (12, 14), preferably both pump rotors are each arranged on a rotor shaft, the rotor shaft having a first housing bearing (16, 18) arranged on a first side of the respective pump rotor and a second housing bearing (19) arranged on a second side of the pump rotor opposite the first side for holding the rotor shaft in the pump housing. 10. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the shaft cutout (22) has a first diameter, the outer bearing a second diameter, and the pump rotor (6, 8) a third diameter, and wherein the third diameter is smaller than or equal to the first or second diameter. 11. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the rotor shaft (12, 14) is designed to be laterally displaceable for at least partial Pushing the rotor shaft out of the pump housing (4). 12. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising a disengagement device (30) for disengaging the pump rotor(s) (6, 8) from the pump housing (4). 13. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to the preceding claim, wherein the release device (30) is actuated hydraulically or pneumatically and/or wherein the release device (30) releases the pump rotor(s) (6, 8) in a linear translational movement from the pump interior (3). 14. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the release device (30) is arranged outside the pump housing (4) and/or fastened to the pump housing and/or is part of the pump housing. 15. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the release device (30) has a cover plate (36) for covering the shaft cutout(s) (22) during operation of the rotor pump. 16. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising a pull-out bridge (34) for disengaging the pump rotors into the maintenance and/or cleaning position (120). 17. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to the preceding claim, wherein the pull-out bridge (34) has a shaft groove for engaging around a shaft web (44) formed on the rotor shaft (12, 14), so that when the pull-out bridge is moved by means of the release device (30), the Rotor shafts are also disengaged, and/or wherein the disengaging device (30) has a plurality of at least four, preferably six, pressure cylinders (54), wherein the pressure cylinders act in particular on the extraction bridge (34) for uniform extraction of the rotor shafts (12, 14). 18. Rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the disengaging device (30) is arranged opposite the pump rotor drive (20), so that the pump rotor (6, 8) disengages from the pump rotor drive upon actuation of the disengaging device or wherein the pump rotor engages in the pump rotor drive. 19. Retrofit kit for retrofitting an existing system (1) for disengaging pump rotors (6, 8) of a rotor pump arrangement (2) according to one of the preceding claims and/or a system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, the retrofit kit comprising a disengagement device (30) for laterally disengaging the pump rotor(s) in or out of the pump housing (4), and for providing a maintenance and/or cleaning position (120) for the pump rotors, such that, in particular for cleaning the pump rotors, a rapid and temporary transfer of the pump rotors into the maintenance and/or cleaning position is possible, that the transfer of the pump rotors into the maintenance and/or cleaning position takes place by pushing or extending, and wherein the disengagement device is prepared for attachment to the pump housing and/or is designed as part of the pump housing. 20. Method for cleaning or maintaining the pump rotors (6, 8) of a rotor pump arrangement (2), in particular according to a of the preceding claims, for a plant (1) for processing a material strip (60) comprising in particular a rubber mixture or silicone, in particular according to one of the preceding claims, the method comprising the steps Stopping the plant operation or ensuring that the plant operation is stopped, Disengaging the pump rotors using a disengaging device (30) into a maintenance and/or cleaning position (120), manual cleaning or maintenance of the pump rotors, Re-engaging the pump rotors into an operating position (100) using the release device, restarting the system for continued operation.

Description

Rotor pump arrangement and system with such a Description field of the invention The present invention relates to a system prepared for processing a strip of material, in particular the improvement of an extruder for plasticizing and extruding in particular a rubber mixture supplied in the form of at least one strip of material, a rotor pump arrangement, a retrofit kit for retrofitting an existing system and a method for cleaning or maintaining the pump rotors of a rotor pump arrangement. Background and general description of the invention Rubber and silicone processing, for example, presents rubber and tire manufacturers with major challenges every day. The highest level of product quality is required while at the same time increasing cost-effectiveness. The roll-ex® extrusion system developed by UTH offers an innovative solution for particularly gentle processing and has thus become the global benchmark for the fine straining of rubber mixtures, cf. for example the patents DE 10 2006 027 896 B4 and EP 0 839 630 Bl from the applicant's company. Fine straining is the term used to describe the fine filtration of rubber or silicone mixtures. Impurities are retained in the sieve and thus removed from the material. Depending on the quality of the mixture and the sieve width, pressures of several hundred bar are required for this process. This demonstrably increases the quality of the material. The straining of rubber mixtures is one of the main applications for gear pump extruders. In particular, high-quality products such as those used in the automotive sector, membrane technology, tire manufacturing, etc. require very clean mixtures. With a volumetric conveying method of the gear pump used, a uniform and synchronous material flow can be generated - regardless of the back pressure. With throughputs of up to 10,000 kg/h, the gear extruder and strainer solutions are optimally designed for operation in larger mixing lines, whereby the modular combination options of gear pump and a two-roller feeding unit (TRF) or a conical twin-screw extruder (DSE) enable integration into a wide variety of line concepts. A particular problem when operating a typical rubber and/or silicone processing plant is that the interior of the plant has to be cleaned repeatedly, for example when the material is changed or at set intervals, to prevent contamination. The materials used are extremely tough and difficult to access in awkward areas, so that such a cleaning process is labor-intensive and can entail a downtime that must be taken into account. Although the plants from the applicant's company were already designed to be comparatively user-friendly, it was recognized that there was a need to reduce the amount of work and/or the downtime resulting from cleaning in order to increase the plant's throughput and/or improve the plant's profitability. If the plant can be cleaned better, it will also be possible to open up new areas of application for the plant type presented here, such as the food sector. The object of the present invention can therefore be seen in providing a device and a method for reducing the downtimes associated with system cleaning in a known rubber and/or silicone processing plant and/or improving the economic efficiency of the plant. The present invention is based, where appropriate, on EP 0 839 630 A1 and in particular represents a further development which can also be integrated into existing systems as a retrofit solution. A system disclosed in the present description prepared for processing a strip of material can, for example, be provided as an extruder for plasticizing and extruding the strip of material. Typically, the strip of material is conveyed through the system, with a rotor pump arrangement moving or conveying the strip of material. The strip of material typically comprises a rubber mixture, for example for tire production, or silicone. The strip of material can be a cold strip of material, i.e. can typically be processed at room temperature. The system is then prepared for processing the cold strip of material. For example, a cold strip of material can be present if the strip of material has a temperature of 50 ° C or less. The system comprises the said rotor pump arrangement for conveying the material strip through the system. The rotor pump arrangement comprises a pump housing which defines a pump interior and which has at least one inlet channel on the inlet side and one outlet in the outer surface of the pump housing. The material strip is therefore conveyed into the pump interior by means of the rotor pump and/or conveyed out of the pump interior by means of the rotor pump. In order to apply the pumping power to the material strip, the rotor pump arrangement comprises at least two pump rotors mounted in the pump housing. Such pump rotors are particularly preferably gears that mesh with one another. During operation of the system, the pump rotors are therefore in contact with the particularly c