Infrared rotary drum: More than mere drying

B.IRD Machinery is set to unveil its latest advancements in the highly efficient heating and drying of plastics at the K 2025 trade fair, held in Düsseldorf from 8 to 15 October. The company engineers and manufactures compact Infrared Rotary Drum (IRD) devices for treating bulk materials, including pellets, regrind, flakes, and powders. This innovation makes the technology accessible for smaller throughputs.

The proprietary B.IRD technology offers distinct advantages over conventional hot-air drying methods for bulk materials:

> more than 90% in time savings with process times of minutes instead of hours

> up to 70% in energy savings

> exceptionally fast changeover times provide greater flexibility

> enhancing material efficiency

These improvements enable significant productivity gains across various plastics processing applications, while also unlocking previously unachievable process control possibilities.

Injection Moulding of Engineering Plastics

“With B.IRD, we have adapted the well-established IRD technology from large-scale plants for smaller throughputs, allowing injection moulding to now benefit from the significant advantages of infrared heating,” explains Urban Stricker, the IRD inventor and the company’s founder.

For common injection moulding materials like PA, PC, PMMA and ABS, the company provides standardised B.IRD 5 series machines. The throughput capacity has been expanded to 4 to 100 kg/h for deep drying to specifications below 200–1,000 ppm. The drying time for this continuous process ranges from just 3 to 30 minutes, depending on the material and task. This approach saves over 90% of valuable time and uses up to 70% less energy compared to previous drying methods. Switching to different materials is accomplished in minutes by simply changing the rotary drum. Additionally, higher feed temperatures substantially widen the processing window for materials.

“This allows for better utilisation of injection moulding machines, optimises energy and material efficiency, and significantly boosts process productivity, thereby improving overall profitability,” says CEO and co-founder Daniel Stricker, outlining the benefits for plastics processors.

New Impulses for TPU Processing

Through a series of tests conducted in collaboration with a material manufacturer, B.IRD has thoroughly investigated TPU drying and adapted the IR-radiation process for this elastomeric material. The forced conveying and mixing of pellets in the B.IRD rotary drum ensure consistently uniform heat treatment. The short exposure times under heat also minimise material degradation. This eliminates two common problems associated with conventional drying: the no-flow effects in hoppers and long exposure to high temperatures. Consequently, this method can reduce the often-high scrap rates in TPU injection moulding, saving costly material.

Optimising Melt Homogenisation

The benefits of B.IRD technology are also evident in the preparation and pre-processing of materials for compounding and recycling. When combining multiple components, homogenising the melt can be challenging due to differing melting points. The targeted in-line pre-heating of specific fractions with B.IRD provides a solution. An international client was able to achieve a sustainable 20 kg/h increase in product yield by reducing filtrate. The B.IRD device paid for itself within a few months. Other ongoing practical tests include reducing odours in recyclates.

B.IRD Machinery at K 2025: Hall 6, Stand D76 (Joint stand for the State of North Rhine-Westphalia)