Plastic Extrusion Process Optimization by Digital Twins

A. Sarishvili, D. Just, K. Moser, A. Wirsen, J. Diemert, M. Jirstrand. Chemie Ingenieur Technik, 10 November 2021.

Abstract

Continuous plastics compounding processes are highly complex from a physicochemical point of view and correspondingly difficult to optimize. Model-based digital twins suitable for this purpose require complex simulation approaches, trained personnel and input variables that are difficult to determine. However, data-based digital twins, which are in principle suitable for this purpose, often fail because of the enormous trial effort which is required to generate a sufficiently large database. To overcome this problem this paper describes a hybrid approach for generating the necessary database for a data-based digital twin. By intelligent combination of real experiments, adaptation of the physical-chemical process model to these few experimental data and subsequent data cloud generation with the adapted process model results in a sufficient data base for the digital twin.




Photo credits: Nic McPhee