Abstract:
The invention describes a process and an apparatus for the production of highly crimped polymer strips which are suitable for use in artificial turf surfaces, for example for football pitches, hockey pitches, tennis courts or golf courses, and are characterized by a high degree of strength, a large volume and a high elasticity. The texturing of the polymer strips is carried out by means of a stuffer box, wherein the polymer strips are laid on a cooling godet immediately after the stuffer box.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The invention describes a process and an apparatus for the production of textured filament strips for artificial grass, wherein these strips are stretched or shrunken between two heating godets and then textured, and the textured filament strips are drawn off over a cooling godet and then spooled. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The knit-deknit process is mostly used for the texturing of thermoplastic polymer fibres. In addition, gear crimping is also customary for the production of fibres for artificial grass. 
         [0003]    A draw texturing process in which a stuffer box is used in which a cooling zone is provided is known from the textbook “Synthetische Fasern” by Franz Fourné (see page 433, FIG. 4.255, right-hand side of the figure). 
         [0004]    The texturing of threads by means of a stuffer box is also known from DE 21 42 652 and DD 221 214. 
         [0005]    The knit-deknit process is used for the production of crimped fibres. EP 0 263 566 describes the production of crimped polypropylene fibres for artificial turf with the knit-deknit process. However, the degree of texturing is limited in these processes. 
         [0006]    A process for the crimp texturing of an extruded yarn in which the extruded yarn is first stretched through two heating rollers, then crimped in a texturing unit and subsequently cooled via a cooling drum with a certain number of turns is known from DE 38 00 773. The texturing unit is a plug former. To cool the textured yarn, cooling air is sucked through holes located on the outside of the cooling drum. 
         [0007]    A cooling godet or roller for the treatment of synthetic thread- or web-shaped goods is also known from DE 28 44 207. 
         [0008]    An apparatus for the continuous crimping of thermoplastic yarns with which the crimping (texturing) is carried out with a stuffer box mounted tangentially on a rotary cylinder and the rotary cylinder is used for cooling is known from DE 21 10 670. For this, openings through which cooling air is passed over the cylinder and a cover plate are mounted on the outside of the rotary cylinder next to the stuffer box. 
         [0009]    A process for the production of low-shrinkage strips in which flat strips, strands or monofilaments made of plastic are stretched in a stretching station and fixed in a fixing station is known from DE 43 18 689. 
         [0010]    The cooling of threads is known from EP 0 003 952, wherein these threads are formed from thread plugs formed in stuffer boxes and then spooled on an air-permeable drum and cooled. There is a substantial distance between the stuffer box and the cooling godet. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0011]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a process and an apparatus for the production of highly crimped polymer strips which are suitable for use in artificial turf surfaces, for example for football pitches, hockey pitches, tennis courts or golf courses, and are characterized by a high degree of strength, a large volume and a high elasticity. 
         [0012]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a process for the production of textured filament strips for artificial grass, comprising the steps of stretching filament strips between two heating godets; texturing the filament strips in a stuffer box; and drawing off the textured filament strips over a cooling godet and laying the textured filament strips on the cooling godet immediately after the texturing. 
         [0013]    Preferably, up to ten strips are processed simultaneously and the strips are 0.5-1.5 mm wide and have a linear density of 250-1200 dtex. 
         [0014]    The filament strip can also be a monofilament tape which is 1.5-8 mm wide and has a linear density of 500-8000 dtex. 
         [0015]    The filament strip leaving the stuffer box is preferably fed approximately radially to the cooling godet. 
         [0016]    An additional air nozzle is preferably mounted above the cooling godet and laterally beside the stuffer box. The additional air nozzle supports the laying of the material on the cooling godet. 
         [0017]    The stuffer box is to be mounted at as small as possible a distance above the cooling godet. The laying on the cooling godet takes place without the use of feeder rolls, as the texturing would be destroyed again as a result of using feeder rolls. 
         [0018]    A guide groove is located on the outside of the cooling godet. The guide groove is provided with small openings. The radius of the guide groove is matched to the texturing of the textured materials in order to avoid deformations of the texturing. The cooling godet is provided with a suction device which sucks air through the openings in the guide groove in order to cool the filament strip laid in the groove and keep it in the groove. A rapid cooling of the material is thereby achieved and the texturing is fixed by the onset of crystallization. In addition, an upright cover is incorporated into the cooling godet in order that the suction action is confined to the section of the periphery of the cooling godet in which the thread lies in the guide groove. The filament is drawn off from the cooling godet by a draw-off godet. 
     
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0019]      FIG. 1  shows diagrammatically the device for carrying out the process. 
           [0020]      FIG. 2  shows in section along A-A of  FIG. 1  the stuffer box and the cooling godet with a suction device. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0021]    In the present process, a polymer material in the form of strips  10 , 0.5 to 1.5 mm wide and with a linear density of 250-1200 dtex, is processed. PA (polyamide), PP (polypropylene) HDPE (high density polyethylene) or LLDPE (linear low density polyethylene) are used for example as polymeric materials. The strips  10  are further processed either fed from a creel or direct on leaving the extruder. 
         [0022]    For further processing, four to ten strips  10  are bundled into a multifilament and thermally stretched or shrunken by up to 20% over two heating godets  11  and  12 . 
         [0023]    The strips  10  are then subjected to a hot-air texturing process in a stuffer box  13 , wherein the strips  10  are pressed into a box and knocked against the fibre plug forming there. The filaments buckle up against one another. The stuffer box has a lateral inlet for a hot-air texturing nozzle  21  and an air outlet zone  23 . The resulting structure is thermoset while still in the box with hot air from the texturing nozzle  21 . A three-dimensional, sawtooth-shaped crimp structure forms. Stuffer boxes customary in the trade can be used in the process. 
         [0024]    To stabilize the texturing, the compressed and crimped strips  10  are taken up by a cooling godet  14  immediately after the texturing. The cooled strips  10  are drawn off from the cooling godet  14  by a draw-off godet  16  and fed to a spooling machine. The degree of texturing is limited by the speed ratio of the cooling godet  14  to the draw-off godet  16 , the speed ratio of the draw-off godet  16  to the second heating godet  12 , and the air pressure in the stuffer box  13 . 
         [0025]    The discharge end of the stuffer box is arranged as near as possible to the surface of the cooling godet  14 , and the stuffer box  13  ends just a few millimetres above the cooling godet  14 . The filament strip  10  leaving the stuffer box  13  is conducted radially onto the cooling godet  14 . In addition, there is mounted laterally on the stuffer box  13  an air nozzle  18  which directs an air jet at an angle of approximately 45° to the longitudinal axis of the discharge end of the stuffer box  13  and the surface of the cooling godet  14  onto the point at which the filament strip  10  leaves the stuffer box  13  and is laid on the cooling godet  14 . The laying of the filament strip  10  on the cooling godet  14  is thereby supported. 
         [0026]    As shown in  FIG. 2 , the cooling godet  14  has a suction device  15 . Arranged on the outside of the cooling godet  14  is a radial guide groove  25  with small openings  26  through which air is sucked in from the outside and which ensure an air throughput sufficient for cooling. The radius of the guide groove  25  is matched to the textured material. The filament strips  10  generally rest against the cooling godet  14  on a circular arc of less than 360°, e.g. approximately 180°. Incorporated into the cooling godet  14  is an upright cover  19  which shields from the inside the part of the guide groove  25  on which no filament strips lie. Unnecessary consumption of suction air and an unnecessary reduction of the negative pressure in the cooling godet  14  are thereby avoided. Wrapping of the filament strips  10  around the cooling godet  14  is also avoided thereby because the textured filament strips drop down from the cooling godet  14  as from the beginning of the cover  19  due to their own weight and the absence of the suction. 
         [0027]    The textured strips  10  are held and cooled by the suction air at the cooling godet  14  in their guide groove  25  in the desired segment of e.g. approximately 180° on the periphery of the cooling godet  14 . The cooling quickly reduces the temperature to below the glass-transition temperature with the result that the texture of the fibres is fixed by the onset of crystallization. 
         [0028]    The speed ratios of the godets are variable and can be adjusted according to the desired degree of texturing. Particularly important here is the speed ratio between the second heating godet  12 , the cooling godet  14  and the draw-off godet  16 , as this determines the degree of texturing. The cooling godet  14  travels by the factor 5 to 20 slower than the second heating godet  12  and the draw-off godet  16  travels by the factor 2 to 4 slower than the second heating godet  12 . 
         [0029]    The speed difference between extrusion and spooling is 5-35%, wherein the extrusion speed is 1.05 to 1.35 times greater than the spooling speed. Production speeds of 100-500 m/min. can thus be reached. 
         [0030]    The thus-obtained fibres can then be bundled as fibre groups and anchored on dimensionally stable backing fabric, whereby an artificial turf surface with high elasticity, an optimum recovery capacity and high wear resistance is obtained. 
       EXAMPLE 
       [0031]    Six extruded polyamide strips  10  are stretched by 10% at 160° C. over the two heating godets  11  and  12  with a thread tension of 4000 g. The stretched strips  10  are then compressed and crimped in the stuffer box  13  with a texturing pressure of 5 bar and thermoset at 120° C. texturing nozzle temperature. There is a back shrinkage of 35%. The textured strips  10 , supported by an air jet from the lateral air nozzle  18 , are laid tensionless on the cooling godet  14  and held, cooled and transported further in the guide groove of the cooling godet  14  by the air jet from the suction device  15 . The temperature at the cooling godet  14  corresponds to the ambient temperature. The cooled strips  10  are taken up by the draw-off godet  16  and fed to the spooling machine, wherein the spooling tension is 300 g. The speed difference between extrusion and spooling is 25% and thus compensates for the back shrinkage. A production speed of 400 m/min. is reached. 
       LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS 
       [0000]    
       
           10  strip 
           11  first heating godet 
           12  second heating godet 
           13  stuffer box 
           14  cooling godet 
           15  suction device 
           16  draw-off godet 
           18  air nozzle 
           19  upright cover 
           21  texturing nozzle 
           23  air outlet zone 
           25  guide groove 
           26  openings