In one especially important situation I used control charting of metallizer process conditions to solve a big problem with metallized films. In this case after a year or more of good production the metallized film moisture barrier was “lost”. It turned out that the metallizer’s high vacuum pump was in need of servicing and was the source of the poor barrier results. This was easily seen as the assignable cause in the charting of the pressure of the metallization chamber on starting metallization. Over the course of the year the pump down time to reach the correct starting pressure was increasing (indicating the need to service the pump) Rather than wait until the proper chamber pressure was reached, or service the pump, the production facility went back to the 10 minute pump down time and therefore started to metallize at too high a chamber pressure. Having the charts lead directly to the need to service the pumps and the moisture barrier, and chamber productivity was restored. An alternative would have been to chart time to start at the proper pressure. this is a good way to insure timely pump maintenance if every on is honest enough not to over ride the starting pressure to fix the starting time.
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Dr. Mount is an independent consultant in the coextrusion, extrusion, film, metallization and film converting industries. He is a leader in the development of metallized films for barrier applications and film laminations. His expertise is in oriented film product and process research, the design and implementation of extrusion systems and coextrusion die specification and system specification including installation and start-up. He is also recognized for trouble shooting mono and biaxial orientated film and sheet coextrusion, melt casting and melt pinning, and film surface treatment by corona, flame and plasma systems. EMMOUNT Technologies, LLC offers consulting and technical training in film orientation, barrier technologies, coextrusion and extrusion and measures polymer melt viscosity with a capillary rheometer.
Eldridge has over 30 years industrial experience in the extrusion and orientation of polypropylene and polyester films at ExxonMobil Chemical and ICI Americas Film Divisions. He managed the intellectual property of Mobil Chemical Films Division and has courtroom experience as an expert witness. A frequent contributor to SPE ANTEC, AIMCAL and TAPPI conferences, he is a member of the SPE Extrusion Division Board of Directors, and a Fellow and Honored Service Member of SPE. Appointed AIMCAL Metallizing Consultant in 2001 and a past VP of the Society of Plastics Engineers. He has a Bachelors degree in Chemistry from West Chester University and a ME and PhD in Chemical Engineering from Rensselear Polytechnic Institute.
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