Eastman Chemical Company

Grupo Petrotemex S.a. De C.v.

Luciano Dalmacio Samitier

Michael Paul Ekart

Mary Therese Jernigan

Larry Cates Windes

Cory Lee Wells

Raymond Isaac

Andrew S Hudson

A process for feeding a slurry of thermoplastic synthetic polymer particles such as polyethylene terephthalate homopolymers and copolymers in combination with a liquid such as water at a liquid temperature greater than the normal boiling point of the liquid, under a pressure greater than the vapor pressure of the liquid at the liquid temperature, into a separation zone such as a centrifugal dryer, and within the separation zone:

Process for separating and drying thermoplastic particles under high pressure

A process for thermally crystallizing a polyester polymer by introducing pellets into a liquid medium having a temperature of at least 140&#xb0; C. within a liquid medium zone and crystallizing the submerged pellets at or above the vapor pressure of the liquid medium without increasing the molecular weight of the pellets, and while the pressure on at least a portion of the pellets is equal to or greater than the vapor pressure of the liquid medium, separating at least a portion of said pellets and at least a portion of the liquid medium from each other. The crystallization is desirably conducted in the liquid medium zone without mechanically induced agitation. Optionally, the pellets are wormed by an underfluid pelletizer. There is also provided a process for thermally crystallizing solid pellets in a pipe by directing a flow of solid pellets in a liquid medium through a pipe having an aspect ratio L/D of at least 50:1, wherein the solid pellets are crystallized in the pipe at a liquid medium temperature greater than the Tg of the polyester polymer.

Thermal crystallization of polyester pellets in liquid

A process for thermally crystallizing a polyester polymer by introducing pellets into a liquid medium having a temperature of at least 140&#xb0; C. within a liquid medium zone and crystallizing the submerged pellets at or above the vapor pressure of the liquid medium without increasing the molecular weight of the pellets, and while the pressure on at least a portion of the pellets is equal to or greater than the vapor pressure of the liquid medium, separating at least a portion of said pellets and at least a portion of the liquid medium from each other. The crystallization is desirably conducted in the liquid medium zone without mechanically induced agitation. Optionally, the pellets are formed by an underfluid pelletizer. There is also provided a process for thermally crystallizing solid pellets in a pipe by directing a flow of solid pellets in a liquid medium through a pipe having an aspect ratio L/D of at least 50:1, wherein the solid pellets are crystallized in the pipe at a liquid medium temperature greater than the Tof the polyester polymer.

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Kingsport, TN, United States of America

Luciano Dalmacio Samitier