The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 09, 2010
Filed:
Feb. 08, 2008
Mary Therese Jernigan, Kingsport, TN (US);
Michael Paul Ekart, Kingsport, TN (US);
Luciano Dalmacio Samitier, Kingsport, TN (US);
Cory Lee Wells, Gray, TN (US);
Larry Cates Windes, Kingsport, TN (US);
Mary Therese Jernigan, Kingsport, TN (US);
Michael Paul Ekart, Kingsport, TN (US);
Luciano Dalmacio Samitier, Kingsport, TN (US);
Cory Lee Wells, Gray, TN (US);
Larry Cates Windes, Kingsport, TN (US);
Eastman Chemical Company, Kingsport, TN (US);
Abstract
A process for thermally crystallizing a polyester polymer by introducing pellets into a liquid medium having a temperature of at least 140° 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.