Pellet dispensomixer and pellet distributor: open hardware for nanocomposite space exploration via automated material compounding†

Abstract

The development of novel polymer-based nanocomposites necessitates the experimental preparation and characterization of numerous compositions to identify optimal formulations. For thermoplastic-based materials, the compounding process typically involves the labor-intensive tasks of dispensing, weighing, mixing, and extruding solid components such as polymers and additives. Herein, we present an open hardware solution that aims to automate this process. Our setup system is designed to streamline material surveying tasks associated with experimental design or closed-loop, self-driving laboratories. Our hardware setup consists of two main components: a multi-material pellet dispenser, which simplifies the preparation of targeted compositions from a range of master batches, and a pellet collector-distributor, which efficiently gathers and distributes processed materials into various containers throughout the experiment.