Patent ID: 8709315

Claim:
A process for making thermoplastic propylene-based polymer pellets, comprising: (a) forming a polymer melt that consists of a propylene-based thermoplastic polymer having a Shore A hardness of less than 100 and a crystallinity of less than 40 J/g; (b) extruding the melt through a die to form a substantially continuous molten polymer extrudate, wherein the die has a contact surface bearing a polymer coating having a surface energy of less than 25 mN/m at 20° C.; (c) cooling the extrudate to form a cooled extrudate; and (d) pelletizing the cooled extrudate to form a plurality of polymer pellets, wherein the pelletizing takes place within a water bath, where the water bath temperature is in the range of about 40° C. to about 90° C. and where the water bath comprises a surfactant, wherein the surface of the polymer pellets have a crystallinity of about 15 J/g or more and a Shore A hardness of about 50 or more.