Pelletizing Dies Plates

By leveraging our core competencies we have innovated a range of superior cutting face materials. Kennametal’s latest PD-21 titanium carbide provides properties unmatched by any other material suitable for this application. It combines excellent wear resistance with outstanding thermal retention to better enable underwater start-ups, reduce orifice hole freeze-off, decrease melt fracture, and solve many other pelletizing issues.

Kennametal set a high-performance standard when we innovated internal insulation. This feature consists of a ceramic layer embedded under the cutting face of the plate. The embedded layer helps to reduce overall heat loss from the plate and focuses this extra energy into the tip of the orifice, which is where the energy is most needed. Our exclusive design provides the most heat-intensive and uniformly heated pelletizing plate in the industry.

Compared to drilled or round channels, our contoured heating channels enable a more efficient thermal transfer to the polymer passageways. They greatly improve the thermal performance of the die while minimizing orifice freeze off and pellet size distribution. Kennametal’s advanced channel design allows us to maximize the area of the heating cross section within a given geometry and without sacrificing the strength of forged steel.

Kennametal offers die plates with optional low-friction polymer flow paths. The enhanced surface finish minimizes the rate of melt fracture and polymer shear, which benefits LLDPE production. Additionally, this innovation reduces the rate of additive build-up and flow restriction. This extends the overall life of the die by increasing your time between die changeouts, or maintenance intervals.

When the large surface area at the center of a pelletizing die is exposed to the pellet-cooling water, it can lead to excessive heat loss from the die. Over the years, this has led to the unsafe practice of using gaskets to insulate the die center, which can trap water and cause distorted or ejected steel retainers. Kennametal’s TrueTherm™ Die design uses embedded air cavities to insulate the die center, so that a much safer ring design can gasket the mounting bolts against water intrusion.