Rubber-coated MDO rollers for plastic film
In the production of oriented plastic film, the precision and consistency of the stretching process directly determine the mechanical, optical, and barrier properties of the final product. At the heart of this process are the MDO rollers (Machine Direction Orientation), and the choice of their coating is one of the most critical factors in ensuring high performance and production continuity. The coating offered by A.Piovan represents one of the most reliable solutions available on the market today.
MDO rollers are the components that, within the orientation line, stretch the plastic film along the machine direction. Through a series of rollers rotating at differential and progressively increasing speeds, the film is stretched in a controlled manner, acquiring the physical characteristics required by the final application: greater tensile strength, improved transparency, reduced thickness, and optimized barrier properties.
The MDO process typically develops in three consecutive stages:
- Preheating: the film is brought, through heating rollers, to the optimal stretching temperature, close to the softening point of the polymer, so as to make it workable without compromising its structural integrity.
- Stretching (orientation): the film passes between pairs of rollers with a precisely calibrated speed differential, which determines its elongation in the machine direction. At this stage the roller coating is crucial: it must ensure uniform grip across the entire width of the film, avoiding slippage, marking, or surface defects that would compromise product quality.
- Cooling and stabilization: the oriented film is cooled to fix the new molecular properties acquired during stretching, “freezing” the orientation obtained and stabilizing the final mechanical and optical characteristics.
The quality of each of these stages depends largely on the ability of the roller coating to maintain consistent performance over time, even under demanding operating conditions in terms of temperature, pressure, and speed.
The rubber coating that A.Piovan offers for these rollers combines thermal, chemical, and mechanical resistance in a single compound, making it particularly suitable for coating MDO rollers used in plastic film processing. MDO rollers operate in continuous contact with film heated to high temperatures. Our compound maintains dimensional stability and elasticity even under prolonged operation at high temperatures, without premature hardening or surface degradation.
The points where the A.Piovan compound excels are:
- Chemical and weathering resistance: offers excellent resistance to ozone, UV rays, oxidation, and a wide range of chemicals and oils.
- High abrasion resistance: provides excellent mechanical abrasion resistance, preserving over time the profile and surface roughness needed for constant, uniform grip across the entire working width.
- Low compression set: allows the coating to effectively recover its shape after deformation, preventing the formation of flattened areas that would compromise the uniformity of stretching.
- Long-term dimensional stability: allows the coating to maintain tight dimensional tolerances even after thousands of hours of operation, reducing the frequency of regrinding and the resulting machine downtime.
In the production of oriented plastic film, the MDO roller coating is not a minor detail, but a factor that directly affects productivity, product quality, and operating costs of the entire line. The rubber coating offered by A.Piovan combines thermal, chemical, and mechanical resistance in a single solution, representing the ideal choice for those who require production continuity and consistent quality over time
