PET Preform Handle Cooling for Blow Molding Shape Integrity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current PET bottles with post-installed handles face issues such as handle deformation and detachment during the bottle blowing process due to inadequate temperature control, particularly at the junction of the handle and bottle body, leading to quality defects.
Innovation Solution
A heat treatment device for PET bottle preforms with integral handles that includes an air-cooling knife to cool the lower end of the handle, ensuring a gentle temperature transition between the handle and bottle body, preventing deformation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the lower end of the handle is heated to high temperature during bottle preform heating, then the bottle body achieves uniform temperature distribution, but the handle lower end becomes soft and deformed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating temperature treatment for different regions of the bottle preform. The heating device heats the bottle body to high temperature while the air-cooling knife specifically cools the handle lower end to a lower temperature, creating a localized temperature difference that prevents handle deformation while ensuring adequate heating of the bottle body for blowing
Solution Approach 2:
The air-cooling knife acts as an intermediary element between the heating furnace and the handle lower end. It introduces cool air to create a temperature transition zone that mediates between the high-temperature bottle body and the temperature-sensitive handle, preventing direct thermal damage to the handle while maintaining overall heating effectiveness
2Stability of the object's composition
If the temperature at the joint between handle and bottle body is increased, then a gentle temperature transition region is achieved, but the handle lower end elongates and deforms
Solution Approach 1:
The air-cooling knife creates a localized cool zone at the handle lower end, establishing a gradual temperature gradient from the hot bottle body through the handle to the cooled handle end. This localized cooling approach maintains temperature transition smoothness while preventing excessive heat accumulation that would cause deformation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the temperature parameter locally at the handle lower end by introducing cool air. This creates a controlled temperature differential that modifies the thermal state of the handle region, enabling the material to maintain structural integrity during the blowing process while still achieving adequate heating elsewhere
3Productivity
If infrared lamp tube is used to heat the bottle preform, then heating efficiency is improved, but the handle lower end cannot be protected from overheating
Solution Approach 1:
The air-cooling knife serves as a protective intermediary positioned between the infrared heating lamps and the handle lower end. It introduces cool air that counteracts the intense radiant heat from the infrared lamps, creating a temperature buffer that protects the handle from overheating while allowing the infrared heating to efficiently heat the bottle body
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the harmful thermal effect from the handle lower end region by introducing cool air through the air-cooling knife. This separates the heating function (applied to the bottle body via infrared lamps) from the temperature-sensitive handle region, allowing efficient heating while preventing localized overheating damage
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The air-cooling knife effectively maintains the integrity of the handle by reducing temperature fluctuations, improving the quality of the final bottle product by preventing deformation during the blowing process.
Implementation Method 1
the air-cooling knife is configured to jet airflow to and cool a lower end of the handle
Implementation Method 2
an infrared lamp tube is used to heat the bottle preform
Data Source
AI summary
A heat treatment device for a PET bottle preform with an integral handle includes an air-cooling knife, a heating furnace, and a transport mechanism. The air-cooling knife is disposed on an outlet side of the heating furnace, the bottle preform is transported into the heating furnace through the transport mechanism, heated in the heating furnace, and transported to the air-cooling knife, and the air-cooling knife jets airflow to and cools a lower end of a handle of the bottle preform, appropriately reducing the temperature at junction of the lower end of the handle and a bottle body so that a gentle transition between the temperature of the bottle body and the temperature of the handle is achieved, and the handle is not easily deformed after the bottle preform is blown, thereby effectively improving the quality of the bottle preform after blown.