Patent ID: 8853327

Claim:
A process for preparing a blend of thermoplastic polymer and resin modifier, the process comprising the steps of: (i) charging neat thermoplastic polymer to a single-screw extruder; (ii) charging neat resin modifier to the extruder; (iii) conveying the thermoplastic polymer and resin modifier through a feed section of the extruder to form a blend, where the feed section has an average channel depth; (iv) conveying the blend through a compression section of the extruder to thereby form a molten blend; (v) mixing the molten blend after said step of conveying the blend through the compression section to thereby impart positive pressure on the molten blend in a downstream direction; (vi) conveying the molten blend through a metering section of the extruder, where the metering section has an average channel depth; (vii) extruding the molten blend, wherein the blend or molten blend is subjected to a compression ratio that is at least 1.2, where the compression ratio is the ratio of the feed section average channel depth to the metering section average channel depth; and wherein the resin modifier is an amorphous or substantially amorphous hydrocarbon resin.