1. Team Dow
Dan Greene, Fran Heil, Jacob Hersh, Prasant Muralidhar
Design Constraints
Problem Definition
Key Findings
•Operators need easy access to the blade for cleaning
•Operators need to be able to see their hands and work
while cleaning
•Excess polymer should flow to a single point
•The quality of the end product must remain the same
Cabinet
Cart
Blade
Drip pan
Teflon/Delrin
slider system
Final Concept
Key Features
•Blade slides all the way out on the Teflon/Delrin slider system for
easy and safe cleaning
•Cart allows the blade to slide all the way out with out bulky
supports
•Drip pan is angled for single point polymer containment
•Cabinet keeps negative pressure throughout the system
Slider System
*Currently there is a collection basin that does not funnel to a collection point
**For one year of normal use
Acknowledgments
Advisor: Dr. James Glancey Sponsor: James Romesburg
Dow Engineers and Operators:
Chuck Green, Dave Fogarty, Masayuki Kobayashi, Frank Tornetta Al Murrey, Allen
Weaver, Russ Kuchera, Dwight, Mike Matejik, Hank Clark
•The scraper section needs to be
more accessible
•The web dips into the polymer,
goes over the large roller and
the roller scraper removes
excess polymer from the roller
•The trough and scraper sections
can separate
Concept Validation
Calculated velocity, u,
to find flow rate
Verified drip pan
angle based on
highest viscosity
polymer≈2.42 Pa*s
Angle of drip pan
≈1.5° > 1.2° (pipe
draining standards)
1. Open channel flow calculation for drip pan
2. Full scale mock-up of support structure with
Delrin and Teflon sliders
3. Pulling Force Test  measured forced needed to
over come static friction coefficient
•Replicated 1 year
worth of pulls for
slider system
(about 1 pull per
week)
•Peak force during
pull out (3σ)
=19.8lbs
4. Accelerated Wear Rate Test  weighed Teflon
and Delrin strips to determine their life based on one
year worth of use
Life = when the countersunk screws are exposed
•Delrin will last 531 years
5. Accelerated Drip Pan Flow Test  measured the time
it would take 5 gallons to flow out of the drip pan
To modify the Impreg Line for easier and safer
maintenance of the Teflon roller scraper, while considering
material containment and product consistency. The
modification should be designed, prototyped, and tested.
Benefits to Dow:
•Increased safety and ergonomics for operators
•Decreased labor costs
•Decreased downtime of the Impreg Line
Project Scope
•Forced needed to move blade from support structure
meets the targeted value of 30lbs making the design
ergonomically acceptable
•Drip Pan test and the Open-Channel Flow analysis
proved that a shifts (8 hours) worth of polymer will not
overflow meaning less cleaning time
•The sliding system will require minimal maintenance
and cleaning
•Teflon will last 46 years
Current Impreg Line state
Teflon Slide
Delrin Slide
Zoomed in view of the Teflon/Delrin slider system
y = 0.0429x + 12.225
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Force(lbs)
Trials
Slider Pull Out Force
0.00
100.00
200.00
300.00
400.00
500.00
600.00
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
FlowRate(gal/shift)
Angle (deg)
Flow Rate versus Drip Pan Slope
•Determined flow rate of liquid with μ = 2.42 Pa*s
= 0.21 gal/min = 101 gal/shift
Rank Metrics Units Current Marginal Target
1 Meets Dow QC standards (Gap) inches 0 0 0
2 Ergonomics/Safety NIOSH Lift Equation (lbs per person) N/A <50 30
3 Weight pounds N/A <100 50
4 Time to clean blade/ drip pan minutes 20-30 <20 10
5 Flow rate out of drip pan Gal/shift (8 hrs) N/A <5 5
6 Times drip pan is cleaned Shifts (hours) 1 (8) 1 (8) 1 (8)
7 Access space (width) inches 15 >>15 36
8 Polymer collection points number 1* 1 1
9 Wear rate of sliders Mass loss (g)** N/A 0.3 0.1
inches (length) 95 95 95
inches (height) 5 5 5
inches (width) 0.75 0.75 0.75
11 Number of parts number 10 <15 10
12 Cost USD N/A <6000 4000
Size of blade apparatus10